Why do religious people always cry at a funeral? Something that I always ask myself when someone dies is why do people cry and feel so much dread? I ask myself this from an atheist point of view, looking at (mostly) religious people, or at least those who believe in some god or an afterlife. My point is, won't they meet again in heaven? I guess it is a similar situation when a loved one goes away on a long trip or something, and a person feels sad for their absence; but something that I noticed is how the people mourning always say things like: "They are gone forever," "I'll never see him/her again," etc. I understand the feeling of sorrow when a loved one dies, but shouldn't the vibe be more of a "see you soon" rather than that of a permanent loss? When my grandma died, of course, I felt sorrow, but that's because I understood I would never truly see her again. My relatives, in contrast, were crying rivers and hugging the casket, and most of them are devout Catholics, full-fledged believers in god, the afterlife, and all that jazz. So, the way I see this is in three ways: & 1. The feeling of loss is akin to someone leaving for a prolonged period; thus, it is more of an extreme sense of "I'm going to miss you." 2. They think my grandma or themselves are going to different places after they kick the bucket. 3. They all have a slight yet profound feeling that all of this afterlife stuff is just a bunch of BS, but they won't admit it, even to themselves. Maybe it is just me who thinks like this; I see death as an unavoidable part of life, and although I do feel sorrow and sadness when loved ones pass away, the whole crying, hugging the casket, and throwing my arms into the air and screaming I see religious people do, makes me wonder if they have forgotten about the whole reason they practice their faith.