South African Pastor Finally Laid To Rest After Failed Resurrection Attempts
After 579 days of waiting for a resurrection that never materialized, South African Pastor Siva Moodley was finally buried at Westpark Cemetery in Johannesburg. The founder of The Miracle Centre in northern Johannesburg passed away on August 15, 2021, but his family and congregation held onto his body, believing he would be brought back to life.
Legal Battle for Burial
Eventually, a funeral home in Gauteng obtained a court order to have Moodley’s body buried. Martin’s Funerals Fourways and Roodepoort made 28 attempts to contact Moodley’s wife and children for instructions but received no response. The funeral home explained to the family that they would face environmental health and hazard implications if the body was not disposed of.
Moodley’s wife allegedly claimed to have had a vision that her husband could be resurrected. Despite his death, his social media pages remained active, and the church did not publicly acknowledge his passing or inform the congregation of his whereabouts. Services continued as usual after his death, with his wife and children leading them, and they were also broadcast live on social media.
A Quiet Funeral
While Moodley was buried in a dignified manner, his wife and two adult children did not attend the funeral. Ryan Brown, a claims manager at Martin’s Funerals Roodepoort, confirmed that Moodley’s siblings and extended family were present at the funeral. The funeral home followed proper procedures to ensure a dignified burial for the pastor.
Lessons Learned
The story of Pastor Moodley’s delayed burial and failed resurrection highlights the danger of blind faith and the importance of taking proper legal and practical steps when dealing with the death of a loved one. Cases of families and followers of clergymen believing in their resurrection are not uncommon. In 2021, a Zambian self-proclaimed prophet died after his attempt to recreate Jesus’ resurrection backfired spectacularly. 22-year-old Pastor James Sakara died after he asked his followers to bury him alive for three days so that he could miraculously resurrect.
The lesson from these incidents is that caution should be exercised when dealing with such matters, and legal and practical steps must be taken to ensure a dignified farewell to loved ones who have passed away.