I accidentally came upon part of a funeral here the other day. I didn't really recognize what it was at first. There were some really, really loud firecrackers being set off, and I figured someone had gotten married or a new company was opening, but when I saw a group of people with sad looks on their faces and all dressed in black, I knew what it was. Of course, I think black is fairly new for the Chinese and funerals. I believe white used to be traditional.
Anyway, as I walked along, I noticed something else. There was a whole line of women - maybe about 10 of them - who were wearing some kind of white coat or dress that looked intentionally plain. All of these women were wailing - not just crying - I mean there was truly a terrible sound of grief in their voices. I asked a student about this and he told me that when a person dies at too young of an age, there will be people who cry out in grief. However, if someone has died at a good age, then these women will be laughing, so as to celebrate that person's life.
I thought it was an interesting tradition, and it probably reflects some common thought among most cultures - if a person lived a good life, then their death should be a time of bittersweet enjoyment. Of course it's sad to lose them, but you know they lived their life well. But those sounds of grief stayed with me for quite a while that day. I realized how appropriate those sounds were for grieving someone who was lost to us. And it is all the more true if that person was lost from his Creator.
It is sometimes very distressing and painful to live among a people who generally don't acknowledge their Creator (or any other maker, for that matter). What do they hope in? I know in America we can believe a host of lies: our nation's strength, our finances, our comfort, etc. But China has just been ravaged by hard times in its history. How can these people be so resilient in the face of hopes that never seem to hold water?
Perhaps I speak too much. Anyway, I love what I get to do over here, and I can't wait to see more and more Chinese waking up to real truth. Perhaps then even the cries for those who are lost at too young an age can still be tempered with the hopefulness of eternity.
