As we have attended one after another funeral service and memorial service, almost annually, we have always been struck by two facts. One fact is that an impressively large number of people at these services have been touched by early deaths-parents and siblings and spouses of lost youngsters. They come bearing scars that have never healed, seeking to bring comfort to those newly hurt even as they seek solace for their own heartaches. The second fact is that there is little comfort to be found on these sad occasions. Theologians and philosophers and grief counselors have published a library of books explaining why the young die young and how best to cope with that reality.
Pastors preach funeral sermons pondering loss.
No words avail. Death is not God s desire, nor is it his domain. The caring God whom most of us worship must surely weep with the rest of us when death comes to any of us. I cannot comprehend a God who loves us being cast as the villain who takes us away from each other. We die despite God, not because of him.