Respect for the Deceased

Yesterday I shared with you some comments about treating the emblems of the sacrament with reverence and respect. I suppose you could consider the following to be "Part 2':

If you want to have an interesting experience, think about two scenarios that prompt some serious questions:

Scenario #1: Sacrament meeting. What goes on in our minds from the time we get up on Sunday morning until the moment we take our seats in the chapel? What do we think about on the way to the church? What do we talk about? After arriving at the meetinghouse, do we merrily “work the room,” socializing right up to the point when the person conducting has stepped to the pulpit and begun speaking? [In my ward there are typically 15-20 people socializing in the aisles when the member of the bishopric begins the meeting.] Do the words of the hymns, sacrament prayers, and sermons leave their footprints on our hearts, or does the weekly routine numb us to their intended effect?

Now hit the “re-wind” button and consider another event.

Scenario #2: A funeral. How does the nature of this event affect what we think about as we prepare for and travel to it? How does it affect what we talk about along the way? How does it affect our attitude and demeanor once we enter the building? Does it affect the volume of our voices? Are we as likely to “work the room” in this setting, or, due to the nature of the event, are we more likely to be subdued, meditative, and reverent? Do the words of the hymns and the spoken words cause us to reflect upon our own mortality, prompting us in significant ways to resolve to be better?

I suspect most people will say they're likely to be more reverent and meditative in the funeral scenario. When you ask them why, their response will be something like this: “Well, naturally, at a funeral my actions and speech will be more subdued -- out of respect for the deceased.”

Interesting -- do we not attend sacrament meeting to honor and worship and pay tribute to the Holy One who was deceased for us? Are not the sacrament table and the linen-covered emblems as real a representation of His body as a casket standing before us at a funeral?

“Out of respect for the deceased” is a very praiseworthy attitude, but shouldn’t it guide our behavior before and during sacrament meetings and not just at funerals?