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CHURCH GROUP of 102 suffer 45 FUNERALS in a year!

 
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Post CHURCH GROUP of 102 suffer 45 FUNERALS in a year! News & Views
With inflation rapidly rising and the cost of living up 12 percent, there has been substantial news coverage about how Thanksgiving 2021 was the most expensive "Ever."

Really? Of the 102 people who left Plymouth, England September 2, in 1620 on the fabled Mayflower, by the first Thanksgiving 45 of them had died from disease and hardship. That is approximately 44 percent who paid the ultimate price.

They had planned to leave England in July, 1620 in two ships, the Mayflower and the Speedwell. That earlier start would have them arriving in the New World by September. This would have given them more time to prepare for winter.

However, the Speedwell did not speed very well, but it sure did leak a lot. Two incredibly frustrating times they were forced to turn back to repair the Sir-Leak-A-Lot. By turn around, we mean sail back into port after already being underway. So technically, they had THREE launches before one of them worked out.

Finally, they decided to ditch the Speedwell and make the leap into the unknown with just the Mayflower. Making the 3,000 mile crossing with just one ship, was kind of like wire-walking without a safety net. If something happened to the Mayflower, there was no backup. Plus, since nobody else in the world was sailing that way, there would be no rescue. We're talking about Suck-It-Up-Buttercup kind of courage.

MORNING SICKNESS & SEA SICKNESS AT THE SAME TIME
There were children on board and one woman was so pregnant that she had a baby during the trip. In spite of all the problems, there is no record we have seen that any of them backed out.

Calling 911 was not an option. Phones were not invented until over 300 years later. Talk about Long Distance. They unloaded the Speedwell and packed as much of that cargo and personnel onto the Mayflower as possible.

Today, we get frustrated if delayed when a flight we are on has to return to the airport for a few hours. We are glad the problem was discovered, but the delay messes up our schedule. Probably the Pilgrims felt like that too. They were glad the leaks were discovered.

So, where did they stay and eat during the time not-speeding-so-well was being unloaded? McDonald's hamburgers would not be open for another 370 years. In those days, there was only SLOW FOOD if you could find it, kill it, skin it, cut it up and fry or boil it over fire.

Finally, on December 21st, in the dead of a freezing New England winter, they came ashore in what is now Massachusetts. They had been at sea for 66 days and then spent several more weeks on board trying to find a suitable place to land.

FORTY-FIVE FUNERALS IN A YEAR
Imagine if almost half your family, friends, church or school, died in six months to a year. Every death was a shock. Just like now, they grieved, wept, cried and mourned for years, maybe the rest of their own life, over Loved Ones who died that winter. Most of the others probably wondered if they could survive or be next.

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL
The 45 deaths were up-close and personal. There were no Funeral Homes or other professionals who cared for the dead. Families cared for the sick themselves. When someone died, they prepared the body for burial. They dug the grave and lowered the body into the ground themselves.

Family members shoveled in the dirt to cover their Loved Ones body. This is still a custom today in some areas. Some Funeral Directors say this personal family participation actually helps families recover. There is no doubt their Loved One is gone.

THE PILGRIMS were fleeing religious persecution they had suffered for decades. How bad does persecution have to be to motivate someone to leave home knowing they most likely will never return; no phones, no texting, no Facebook, no mail?

They had sold or discarded everything they ever owned in order to make the trip; houses, land, furniture, animals. Yes, they saved up funds to pay for passage on the Mayflower. The cost was five British Pounds. Possibly a Viewer would know how to research how much that is in today's money.

LEAP INTO THE UNKNOWN
Imagine leaving your Mother, Father, Sisters, Brothers knowing you may never see them again. Oh, what weeping and clinging to each other for one last time.

Plus, they were going where nobody they knew had ever been. It was a leap into the unknown without GPS or travel brochures. It reminds me of where the Bible says of Abraham and Sarah, "They went out not knowing where they were going." All they knew was that God had told them to go and He would lead them.

On that first Thanksgiving, having family over for a visit was not an option. They were over 3,000 miles away with no way of getting there.

There was no house for them to come to, no streets, schools or grocery stores. However, there was central air-conditioning which is always the case when you are outside. Whatever it is, you have to get conditioned to it if possible.

Today, the average December temperature in Plymouth, Massachusetts where the Pilgrims landed, is 28 degrees. That means a lot of days would be even colder. Also, some say temps are warmer now than back then.

Set your thermostat to 28 degrees or lower. Then turn any fans you have in the house directly on you. That would possibly be getting close to what they were enduring that first year, except they did not have a house to be in.

So yes, these days of continued rising inflation is of concern, but probably nobody died because the cost of cranberry sauce was up 12 percent over last year. However, if inflation continues to rise, some these days may suffer something the Pilgrims did 400 years ago in America; trying to stay warm and alive.

Chaplain Doyle
writedoyle@mail.com
404-933-1373
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11/30/21 3:30 pm


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