This country has seen nothing like it since President Kennedy’s funeral more than 40 years ago. The riderless horse, the glass cassion, the solemn march up the Capitol steps. Though Americans are frequently criticized as deniers of death, they seem drawn to an elaborate funeral.
A society fascinated with public figures turns out in droves to publicly grieve people they never met. Think Princess Diana, JFK Jr, Mother Theresa and the 9/11 memorials. Today, across the country, flags are at half mast. Shrines of flowers and jars of jellybeans stand as personal tributes to President Ronal Reagan. Before the politicians take to the pulpit to prove their love and loyalty to the man, we step back and ask what moves a nation to mourn.
Guests:
Stephen Prothero, chairman of the Department of Religion at Boston University, author of “American Jesus: How the Son of God Became a National Icon”
Robert Thompson, Director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television and Professor of Popular Culture at Syracuse University.