One of the things you do as a pastor is conduct funerals--and those can be the source of some great sadness and ministry but also some fantastic funny stories so I thought I would share some of those with you. In 45 years of being a pastor you see a lot...
Case of the missing pastor.
Seems that the pastor (not me) was conducting a funeral in New Orleans on a rainy, rainy day and was standing at the grave pontificating about the dearly departed's destination. He obviously forgot that the ground gets really wet and soggy in New Orleans and as he was speaking, the ground gave way and he slid right down into the hole! With the casket above him and hell below him, I'm sure he made a quick exit...
Catching the falling casket.
The funeral was beautiful and complete to the last detail--even with a horse-drawn hearse to take the dearly beloved out to the burial site. The funeral home person was decked out in her very best with high hells and great hair... Much to her surprise, as the hearse left the chapel and was winding through the cemetery they noticed that the back door has come unlocked and the casket was slowly sliding out the back. You have never seen a woman in heels run as fast...
Its never too early for a garage sale.
Here is a sign that was at the exit of the cemetery. Guess they wanted to get an early start on selling that which was left behind.
The preacher really was all wet!
The family was adamant about having the funeral in their local church and everything was fine. During the closing song, the pastor decided he need to get to the other side of the church but didn't want to disturb the singer or the service. He decided the best course of action would be to go behind the stage, walk across on the ledge of the baptistry, and then he would be safe on the other side and noone would know the difference. His plan went well until he fell off the ledge into the baptistry full of water! To say the service ended with a splash would have been an understatement...
The infamous open bar.
Probably the strangest of all, was the funeral with the open bar. I actually did this funeral and the family had me announce at the conclusion of the funeral service that there would snacks and an open bar at the lounge in the funeral home and everyone was invited. Guess they wanted to go out in style...
And the fight is on!
Funerals are a place where relatives meet to greet--and fight! The police were called at this one when dear old Dad has passed away and sister didn't want her brother at the funeral. Quite a show with policemen, relatives, and a fighting brother-sister combination...
No comments:
Post a Comment