Being with someone, being with his family, as his soul departs this earth is a holy moment, said the Rev. Judy Van Hoose, a pastor at First United Methodist Church in Springdale. Family and friends are blessed with a holy moment again as they join to celebrate the life and faith of the deceased.
“God is present. You can feel the power of the Holy Spirit,” Van Hoose said. “It’s spiritual. It’s fulfi lling - in a weird way.”
Traditional Christian funerals include liturgy, prayer and song for remembrance, said the Rev. Leslie Belden, a parish associate for First United Presbyterian Church in Fayetteville.
She noted comments by theologian Tom Long, a professor of preaching at Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta.
“The primary aims of the Christian funeral were constructed around the metaphor of the deceased as a saint traveling on a baptismal journey toward God, accompanied by the community of faith on ‘the last mile of the way,’” he writes in “Accompany Them With Singing:The Christian Funeral” (John Knox press, 2009).
But things have changed through time. In most Christian traditions, the responsibilities of “sitting up with the dead” and ritual cleansing have been passed to funeral directors. Cremation and embalming are accepted, with cremains and open caskets present at funeral services or not. “Green” burials and home funerals can also follow Christian tradition.
Belden said she appreciates the blending of cultures in today’s funerals. For example, American Indian customs might be intermingled with Christian traditions. “I like that it gives me the opportunity to reflect on my beliefs and personal value interwoven in faith,” she continued.
The Rev. Steve Sheely, pastor of Rolling Hills Baptist Church in Fayetteville, has oftciated everything from a fully traditional funeral at a church or funeral home to saying a quick prayer over a box of ashes.
Increasingly, families choose memorial services to celebrate the life of their loved one after a private burial rather than mourn the loss. Many churches havebuilt colombariums with niches for the ashes of members.
“It makes the church a place where the family is together,” Sheely said. “Where children are born and die. The church is your place from life to death.”
Cemeteries used to lie beside churches, and through the colombarium, the church again becomes the fi nal resting place, Belden said, reconnecting the church and its members.
Van Hoose said the ministerial staff of her church wants to provide comfort and peace for the family members left behind, through old traditions or new.
Planning a funeral can become difficult when the family faces its own shortcomings and differences, Sheely said. “But there’s always an opportunity to bring healing and grace.”
“We don’t dwell on death. We focus on the promise of eternal life, which is true across Christianity,” Belden said. “We still don’t know what that world is goingto look like. It’s a world of unknown, but you will see that person again.”
Funerals reassure so many on the death of someone they cared for, were passionate about, someone whom they loved for a long time.
“Death often comes as a test of faith and a time of being unsure - especially if you’ve prayed for a long time and your loved one still dies. You might be angry and not trust God,” Belden said. “But even if the prayers are not answered, you can have confi - dence in God. With trust, you have hope and confidence because you were raised with Christianity.”
Funerals provide comfort for the mourners, “but they all are glorifying God, who gave them the communion of faith and the life eternal,” Van Hoose said.
“We are very aware of the spiritual nature of death because we were created by God, then we go back to God. Jesus Christ promises us eternal life.”
Death and funerals remind Christians of the Resurrection, Belden continued. She pointed to the early African-American traditions. “They grieve and mourn their loss, but they serve as a witness of the Resurrection. The deceased is released from turmoil, pain and anxiety.
“It’s just easier when a person has lived a fabulous long life. We are called to follow God, but Jesus already claimed us,” Belden said. “We are living to just to be living to our Salvation.
“When Jesus Christ died, he broke down the door of heaven for us. But he is the one being measured in our sinfulness. We are not really followers of Jesus Christ, but users of Jesus Christ.
“(Theologian) John Calvin (1509-1564)said God knows his own,” Belden said “We are already a part of God’s family - even in the womb. There is nothing we can do or say to make us God’s child.”
“There’s no accounting of who this is, they can have a life-changing relationship with God,” Sheely said.
THIS IS THE FINAL STORY IN A SERIES ABOUT FUNERAL PRACTICES IN NORTHWEST ARKANSAS.
Religion, Pages 10 on 09/28/2013