The phone rings.
It's the first day of your new pastoral position. The boxes aren't even unpacked when the director of the local funeral home calls to tell you that in three days you will be performing your first funeral. You grab your car keys, head out the door, and pray as hard as you have ever prayed for God's strength and guidance.
Funerals are among the most daunting tasks of pastoral ministry, especially for clergy in the early years of their careers. Even the best theological education rarely prepares one for the range of tasks that accompanies ministry at the time of death, from offering pastoral care to the bereaved family and friends to making certain that the air conditioning is turned on in the church sanctuary in time for the funeral service.
Drawing on many years of parish ministry experience, John S. Mansell offers clear, insightful guidance on how to prepare for and conduct funeral services, how to minister to those who have lost a loved one, and how to lead the congregation in caring for the families of those who have died, as well as numerous other pastoral duties associated with funerals. Included are sermon briefs appropriate to different kinds of funerals, detailed lists of tasks to be performed or assigned related to pastoral care of the bereaved, and sample funeral services and service outlines.
The Funeral: A Pastor's Guide will be an essential companion for all those who minister to the people of God at the time of loss.
John S. Mansell is an ordained pastor in the United Church of Christ who has ministered among congregations in California, Nebraska, and South Dakota.
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