A South African pastor, Siva Moodley, whose family had kept his body in a morgue for 579 days with the hope that he will be resurrected, has been finally laid to rest.
Photographs from the funeral, which was conducted with the assistance of Destiny Church, were circulated on social media this week.
The South African News reports that Moodley’s body had been kept at a Johannesburg mortuary since his death on 15 August, 2021.
The 53-year-old Moodley proclaimed that he could raise people from the dead. He had died after falling ill.
According to reports, his family and members of the church used to visit the funeral home to pray for his resurrection.
It was reported that the funeral home manager, Martin du Toit, lodged an application with the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court to grant him permission to have Moodley buried or cremated.
He said they were forced to approach the Master of the High Court in Johannesburg to get an order to have him buried.
“We are awaiting that decision and hope to have him buried by the end of this year. The family last came to the funeral home within three to four weeks after his death to sign paperwork to register his death at Home Affairs,” Du Toit said.
He said they had also not received any payment for keeping his remains in the mortuary.
The Post said since Moodley’s death, services at the church have been going on as normal and are conducted by his wife, Jessie, son, David, and daughter Kathryn Jade.
The services are also live streamed on social media. The church has allegedly not openly acknowledged his death on social media or informed the congregation of his whereabouts.
His social media accounts, notably Facebook and Twitter, are operational and messages are posted every day as if they are from him.
