Week # 1

I observed a funeral viewing this week. The funeral was for a member of the church. It was an older couple, and the elder man seemed to be dealing with the pain, but having a difficult time with the lost as well. The pastor I am observing made it known that he would be available anytime, anybody needed to talk.

The pastor went around the viewing and introduced himself and simply reiterated that he is there if anybody needed him. He had the chance to talk to some of the people about the member who had passed away. They all seemed eager to talk to the pastor. After about an half an hour I noticed a few things. The people were pleased to know that a pastor was there and that he cared enough to come for the whole viewing. That fact that they could talk to him when they were ready was a relief to them it seemed.

The pastor did all he could to get the member on a deeper level. His visitation pastor was there also. The church has a visitation pastor, which is an retired pastor who goes out and visits the people in the nursing homes, hospitals, and hospice patiences on a biweekly basis. With the size of the church the pastor can only make it to visit the people once a month. The pastor decide to bring the visitation pastor in on the preparation of the funeral service.

The observation gave me insight on how a pastor is suppose to act towards his congregation at a funeral viewing, but even at the level of everyday. Pastors are suppose to be available to their congregation anytime the are ready to talk.