Gathered in hope: In memory of Al Ward
One of the difficult decisions, and sometimes compromises, ministers regularly make involves conducting funerals and memorial services for people who are not members of the congregation. It happens fairly often: a telephone call, sometimes from a funeral director, informs you of a death and the family’s hope that the service can be in your church and that you will preside. “He wasn’t a member of your church, Reverend, but he was a good person. And, by the way, a few of his golfing buddies want to say a few words.”