Out of the respect of those who have taken their children to funerals I will not say that I feel that it is wrong. I do however feel that under most circumstances taking small children to a funeral is not appropriate.
Children have a large capacity to feel empathy for the people they encounter in their lives. They are very sensitive to the feelings and emotions of others and I feel we must be careful in how we approach the matters of death when in the presence of a child.
Children are not equipped to handle adult situations and in my opinion they should not be subjected to adult grieving at such a tender age. Many adults find the grieving process a difficult one to manage. There are bouts of crying uncontrollably and feelings of anger and remorse. There is sometimes laughter followed by heart wrenching sobs. There is no to predict how a grieving person is going to react because in their pain the clarity of what is happening is not always clear.
I find it very difficult to believe that a child is receiving closure when they are viewing a dead loved one. There are many questions that need to be answered and I am sure there is a lot of curiosity that comes along to a funeral home with a child. I agree that in a quiet setting a child is exposed to what a funeral is and what a dead body looks like but I am not sure why this process should be happening to a child so young and what benefit it plays for a child under ten years old.
I find a child attending a funeral home is subjected to an array of emotions from those around them. There are feelings of sadness and confusion on why the people around them are upset. I feel that a child has not learned the appropriate response to other people's grief and should not be expected to handle an adult who is in hysterics which we all know could very well happen.
As a person who has experienced being a part of loved ones funerals I would find it very difficult to have children attending the funeral I am apart of. If I am aware of a child being within ear shot I do not feel I can fully express the pain I am currently feeling nor can I show the true rainbow of feelings I have experiencing due to the loss of my loved one. I do not want to feel responsible for causing undo stress to any child but would not want to have my own opportunity to grieve be stifled to respect the vulnerable feelings of a minor in my presence.
A child is only a child for a few precious years. I do not see any rush on teaching them what a dead body looks like or that Aunt Betty is upset. Children will deal with death like a child and I feel forcing them to deal with it in the same regards as an adult it unfair and unhealthy. Taking children to a funeral home now will not make losing a loved one any easier later on in life, in my opinion.