xiaxue wrote a post about a christian funeral in 2005, and it was only yesterday that i had an opportunity to attend one. my grandaunt's mother-in-law's.
i didn't know about the rule that said "if you're not a christian you don't attend the service" or the one that said "don't gather around the pastor during service-time if you can't sing christian songs". but apparently the pastor believed in the first, and my mom believed in the second. there must be many people who followed either of the rules, because when pastor adam called everyone to go to the front for the service, only about half the people present moved forward. i hesitated for abit, but joined them.
i'm not a christian, and i don't know the songs. can't decide if i'm a rule-breaker or the rules just don't exist.
so i held the song book (hey it's provided, so who cares if you don't know how to sing. i mouthed the words and tried to catch the tunes) and tried blending in with everyone else. the everyone else happened to be taipopo's (that's what i call the deceased) church mates and direct family members who also happened, as it seemed, to know the songs pretty well. i hope the lady beside me wasn't offended because i "sang" in such a low-decibel volume and had to look at the songbook after every two words.
but after the song-singing i left the group cuz i was getting a little intimidated by the christianty involved.
but i hung around, while pastor adam delivered te eulogy and kinda began evangelising, like what xiaxue described. but at least pastor adam knew taipopo's name. he even affectiontely referred to her as "popo", recelled events at which he visited her at home. but i don't understand why he kept saying that "popo lived till ninety-plus", and not just remember the sacred number ninety seven. i had this huge temptation to write the number on a piece of paper and hold it up, hoping he'll see it and get the rest of his speech right. but i didn't la, no guts.
yeah, the evangelising part got me a little pissed. he kept motioning his hand towards the group at the back, i.e. the group that didn't join in the service, i.e. the non-christians, and kept saying that he hopes "these people" will get to know god, and that he hopes "these people" can join taipopo in heaven, and that if any of "these people" were hearing his speech for the first time and want to know god, they can feel free to approach him or any of his "brothers" that came with him. sounded so much like what xiaxue talked about.
maybe it's a standard procedure, just another item on the to-do list when pastor adam went to the funeral. to attract more people to become sons and daughters of god. maybe now the time for evangelising has indeed cut into funeral time.