Death: the human experience
It is an arresting title for an exhibition, and it was hard not to notice it as I walked past Bristol Museum and Art Gallery last week. As the brochure says, “death: the human experience is about the most universal of experiences that we will encounter.” That is certainly true: we are all going to die one day (unless Christ returns first, that is). It also says, “As a society we are reluctant to talk about death and dying. death: the human experience is about helping to start that conversation.” That is also true. Consider this: when did you last start, or even engage in, a conversation to do with death or dying?
Two things strike me. First, why is that we are so reluctant as a society to talk about these things? I strongly suspect that it is because we don’t have an answer to death; it’s something that lies outside our control. Indeed, assisted dying can be seen as a way of trying to retain some control – even if only over the time of death. What we are not able to do is to choose not to die; that lies beyond us.
Second, as Christians we do actually talk about death and dying, and not only with fear and uncertainty, but also with hope and confidence. This, of course, is because we know the one who does have the answer to death, the one who can say, uniquely, “I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever!” (Revelation 1:18), and these are words which each one of us who knows Jesus personally will be able to say for themselves.