Catholic high school pallbearer ministry brings dignity to funerals of the homeless and those without families

More than 400 students at an all-male Catholic high school in Cleveland, Ohio, are serving the community as pallbearers at the funerals of homeless individuals and others with no families to mourn their deaths.

Joe Mulholland, who teaches theology at St. Ignatius, says the pallbearer ministry was founded out of concern from another teacher, the late Jim Skerl, who wanted students to learn the importance of addressing all seven of the corporal works of mercy emphasized in the Catholic faith: Feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, sheltering the homeless, visiting the sick and imprisoned – and burying the dead. 

“He just took the corporal works of mercy very, very seriously,” Mulholland told the National Catholic Register. “He viewed them as a checklist: Are we actually doing these seven things?” 

The success of the pallbearer ministry has prompted other Catholic schools to start St. Joseph of Arimathea Pallbearer Societies, named after the New Testament Christ-follower, Joseph, who arranged for Jesus’ burial after His crucifixion.  

For example, the Register reported that Ben Kresse, a theology teacher at St. Xavier High School in Louisville, Kentucky, “was inspired to start the ministry at St. Xavier after hearing a NPR story about St. Ignatius’ ministry.” 

St. Xavier students have now served more than 2,000 burial services.  

“While some St. Joseph of Arimathea Societies simply serve as pallbearers when families do not have anyone young or healthy enough to carry a casket, St. Xavier’s society goes the extra mile, offering a prayer service that they composed for these ceremonies,” noted the Register. “The prayer service incorporates Gospel and other Scripture readings and invites faculty, student, and family participation.” 

Typically, students in pallbearer ministries are allowed to miss class to serve at funerals but must make up any missed schoolwork and are not allowed to fall behind in any of their lessons.  

At St. Ignatius, students are trained during the first of the school year, instructed on different circumstances they may encounter, including how to interact with mourners. 

The types of funerals are diverse, from services for veterans that include full military honors to ceremonies for individuals with no family at all or for the homeless and indigent who have been forgotten or ignored by family. 

Students say the ministry has inspired them to keep serving and get involved in their communities.  

“Before that, I had done absolutely no service, basically; it wasn’t something that I was driven to do,” said Andrew Kramer, a recent graduate of St. Xavier in Louisville. He began serving funerals as a freshman to fulfill a community service requirement, but now he continues to serve because “something kept calling me back to it,” he told the Register. 

Fitzwilliam Lokiec, a student leader with St. Ignatius’ ministry, likened it to following Jesus’ words in Matthew 25:40. “When we’re doing this for the least of humanity, we’re doing it for Jesus, and nowhere is that more apparent than as pallbearers,” he told the outlet. 

“You don’t even have to do anything in particular; you just have to be there and pray with them, and that can completely change their outlook – it can make them feel so much better,” Lokiec added. “Situations like that, you can never say the perfect thing, but when you’re there, your presence is enough and your faith radiates a certain energy that can help make people feel better and feel more at peace because they can see God there in you.”