Mourners filed into the massive Word of Faith Cathedral west of Atlanta, taking their seats around a silver and gold casket surrounded by a sea of red roses.

But why insist on simplicity? If the body ultimately decomposes, wouldn’t a more expensive wooden casket—mahogany, perhaps—be just as suitable? The answer speaks not only to how we honor the ...

Burr asks. He also discusses his 11-year relationship with his wife and attending a friend's open casket funeral. "I don't get it," Burr complains. "It's like you told me he was dead. I believed you." ...