The following ritual is an example of a service that can be held at a gathering the night before the funeral or at a meal served in the church dining room or family home following … read more

Coni Lynn Gasch-Grady is a fifth generation funeral director. Her great-great-great grandfather founded Gasch's Funeral Home in rural Maryland in 1858. Although the suburbs of… read more

After 20 years in the ministry, I have learned that many pastors are uneasy about doing funerals; some even choose not to preach during funeral services. I would like to suggest… read more

Sally, a Euro-American, is pastor of a multicultural congregation. When the mother of a Vietnamese parishioner in her church died, she knew nothing about the evening service… read more

A few months ago I attended the funeral of my brother-in-law, Robert Harris. Robert was a devoted, staunch, and active layman in Sweet Home United Methodist Church in Gadsden… read more

I was a young, wet-behind-the-ear pastor just a few years out of theological school. I had been appointed to serve in an isolated rural community tucked away in a pristine river… read more