Monday, August 13, 2018

A Traditional Wake

A member died this week, who once was under my ministry -- and a wake was announced. This is still fairly common in Black and Coloured communities in Southern Africa, but it is so rare in European communities that some do not know the word "wake". It once was a strong European or Celtic tradition. A wake is "a watch or vigil held beside the body of someone who has died, sometimes accompanied by ritual observances". In South Africa, Jenny Goldade writes, "the night preceding a funeral service, a vigil is held usually in the home of the deceased until the morning." OBSERVATION: It seems to me that our Black and Coloured traditions have much in common with old European traditions (see what Jenny Goldade says). This is interesting. Perhaps these aspects originate with European missionaries.

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