Care for the Family have just published the results of a survey of over 1000 churches on what ministry and support they provide to the bereaved. There are a sizeable number of churches who would like to do more to support bereaved people, but lack either the time or the expertise.
There are also a small number of churches who are involved in a lot of funerals (40+ a year), whilst the vast majority are doing fewer than 10 per year. On the ground, that may mean that a lot of funerals are done by churches which are already heavily in demand, and that makes it difficult to offer quality support.
Care for the Family are developing more resources for local churches to use in this area.
We probably do 30-40 funerals a year, alongside a large number of baptisms and weddings, 2 churches and a lot of community involvement. With more resources and expertise we could provide more support than we currently do. Some of this is about priorities, and some of it is about available time from suitable volunteers. There's only so much people can do. It would be really good to hear from a church which thinks it's offering a good level of bereavement support, and how you've gone about it.
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