Christianity Against Ghanaian fantasy coffins

[Kofi]

In my country Ghana in West Africa, funeral rite for the dead is a very important part of our culture and traditions and every family tries as much as they can to bury their dead in the best possible way. My country is a Christian country with about 85% of the population being Christians and the rest being Muslims and traditional worshipers. Muslims like most Muslims around the world bury their dead according to Islamic rules. However, most Christians and Traditional worshipers in my country bury their dead bodies in fantasy coffins and then celebrate the life of the dead person for more than a month after burial.

Most African countries have adopted the western funeral whereby they bury the dead and everybody goes back to work but not in Ghana my country. We do our best to give the dead their final best. In other words, we celebrate their lives and bury them in fantasy coffins. If the person was a fisherman while alive, we may bury him or her in a fish coffin. If the person was an international businessman or a travel agent, we may bury them in a plane or a car coffin. If the person was a musician, we may bury him or her in a mic coffin. If the person was a pepper seller, we may bury her in a pepper coffin. If the person was a powerful King or a powerful ruler, we may bury him or her in a lion or an eagle coffin. If the person was a mother with several children and grandchildren, we may bury her in a broody hen coffin because the broody hen in my culture signifies a good mother. In other words, we bury people in what they loved and did best.

This shiny shoe you see in the picture below is not your regular shoe. It is a Ghanaian coffin for a deceased shoe shine boy and the "Air Canada" behind the shoe is actually a coffin for a deceased international businessman, a travel agent, a pilot, air hostess, or someone who traveled alot by plane.

These fishes you see in the picture below are not regular fishes but coffins for deceased fishermen.

This coca-cola bottle you see below does not contain soda. It is a Ghanaian coffin for a soft drink or a soda seller.

The beautiful leopard art below is not just an artwork. It is a Ghanaian leopard coffin for a powerful king or ruler

In other words, Although fantasy coffins are very expensive, you can get a unique coffin designed just for you in Ghana. Ghanaians bury the dead in what they loved best.
The reason why I am posting this here is that just yesterday a Ghanaian pastor and some others spoke against fantasy coffins. According to the Pastors, fantasy coffins go against Christian norms and that they are not going to allow their members to be buried in fantasy coffins. Most other Christians have spoken against fantasy coffins in the past. What some Christians do these days is that, they put the dead bodies in regular coffins when they are taking the bodies to church for the requiem mass but after church service, they put the dead bodies back into fantasy coffins and then bury them.

My question is, Is it a sin to bury someone in a fantasy coffin? Is it against Christianity to use fantasy coffins to bury the dead?

Although I still fear coffins at this my age, these coffins are amazing. there was a display of Ghanaian fantasy coffin in an East London museum in London. There was also a documentary on BBC last year about fantasy coffins and funeral rites in Ghana by the Ga people living along Ghana's ocean shores. What I think is, God doesn't hate these coffins. Once you die the body is nothing. The body just rot and God doesn't care how you treat the body after death. The most important thing is the soul and God takes away the soul after death so I see nothing wrong with fantasy coffins. According to the documentary, the prices of these coffins are rather too much for the average families in Ghana and some families go for loans to buy these fantasy coffins for the dead which is rather too extreme.

Some of these so-called Pastors in Ghana always want to go against anything that gives the general populace a means of Economic Independence!! This company has been kept going throughout generations of this Family, which employ many local trades people (This can only be POSITIVE) in a time when the average person in Ghana finds it challenging to make a good living.
Not to mention that these are a Cultural/Artistic Heritage for Ghana.
I wondered whether the Pastor in question was able to point out to his clergy where in the Bible it states that this goes against Christianity!! He would wish rather that the money was given to him to handle all aspects of funeral arrangements I bet!!

Kofi, Christianity is not against ghanaian fantasy coffins but rather some religoius men/women are. leave Christianity out of this picture coz what ever one believes in and confides in becomes both God and religion..Do you know these fantasy coffins are a religion themselves?...educate people properly.

[Doug]

"My question is, Is it a sin to bury someone in a fantasy coffin? Is it against Christianity to use fantasy coffins to bury the dead"?

And my question to you Kofi is have you not yet learned that religion and God are not the same thing? The whole duty of man is to fear God and obey His commandments for He will judge all deeds and secret things of man if they be good or evil. Jesus came to set us free of the fear of religion. God sent Jesus to be judge of man, to give man a fair shake and relieve us of the bondage of religion. Religion of any kind is not the judge of man.

Come on Kofi, burn the dead guy, let the worms eat him in the ground, dump him in the sea and let the fish eat him or put a fantasy coffin around him. The guy is dead and had his chance to prove weather he is good or evil. The only thing left for him is the judgement.

One of these days Kofi you might just have the guts to choose what you will fear. Is it going to be a religion or is it going to be God. May the Spirit open your eyes and set you free.

Your good friend from the US, Doug.

f**k christianity. these are beautiful coffins. I like one for myself.

Really people, please, I dont remember the christians worring about how they burried all those they massacared in the crusades. Christians get a F***ing life and try practicing love and tolerance toward your neighbour instead of worring about un-important shit.