ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book addresses death from theological and liturgical perspectives. It finds continuity and discontinuity with the mainstream of Christian tradition and doctrine. The book reflects on how death is marked in a society which no longer assumes that the Christian Church has a privileged position in shaping and presiding over the rites of death. It also attempts to listen to those engaged in the life and medical sciences. The book turns to the philosophers, ethicists and lawyers to ask not simply about the nature of death but about its value, its meaning and status. It examines the findings of those working in the social sciences. The book also focuses on the area of Christology. It also considers the rites surrounding the deaths of three very public figures: Diana, Princess of Wales; Basil Hume, Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster; and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.
