Ask the Editor - Numbering our days

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Today is Friday, February 4th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Myrna Brown.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Up next, this month’s Ask the Editor. Here’s WORLD Radio Executive Producer Paul Butler with a listener question about obituaries.

PAUL BUTLER, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: I live in rural north-central Illinois. There are less than 35,000 people in the entire county but we still have a small newspaper that comes out a few times a week. Many of my older neighbors read it faithfully. One slyly quips: “I read the obituaries to make sure I’m not dead yet.”

Obituaries have long been a staple in the news business. And WORLD has long made them a feature in our year-end coverage, both in print and on the podcast.

Andy from Hillsboro, Oregon, sent in the following feedback after listening to our year-end remembrances:

I was disappointed that you missed out on one very important person who died this year. Luis Palau...After Billy Graham, my estimation is that Luis is probably the best known evangelist in the world.

Thanks for all you do.

Andy is right about Palau’s legacy. So why didn’t we include him? As our Managing Editor Leigh Jones wrote back to Andy: “we usually don't highlight people in the year-end obits that we've already covered during the year.”

When Luis Palau died we mentioned it in the newscast, we featured Warren’s Smith’s interview with the evangelist—both on The World and Everything in It and the Listening In podcast. Plus, we ran a previous long-form interview with Palau on The Olasky Interview. So we covered his life and legacy in detail.

But Andy isn’t the first to ask why someone wasn’t included in our annual obituary features. Here’s a glimpse into our process:

We keep a running tally of people who die throughout the year—submitted by staff, reporters, and even listeners. As I scroll back through the growing list for this year, it includes some famous people like rocker Meatloaf and comedian Bob Saget. Christian artists like Jay Weaver—the bassist in Big Daddy Weave. Other names include unsung heroes like Laurence Brooks—the oldest living WWII veteran at the time of his death. There are song writers, religious figures, athletes, coaches, politicians, convicts, millionaires, actors and as you can imagine, by the end of the year we end up with way more entries than we can highlight. So how do we decide who to include?

First we look for people who were faithful followers of Christ. Then individuals who reformed their industries, changed societal perceptions, overcame great obstacles. And not just success stories. We also sometimes highlight people who didn’t end well. Those who arrive at the end of their days with the adulation of men—but are going to stand before their maker with fear and trembling.

That hints at the more fundamental question we might ask: why do we spend time remembering those who died anyway?

The Psalmist writes in chapter 90: “...teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

That may be what inspired early American theologian Jonathan Edwards to resolve in his journal on July 5th, 1723, that he would always act with future judgment in mind. A few days later he added that he resolved to live in such a way as to not suffer regrets in his old age.

Obituaries—like funerals—can help us do just that. Life stories can be inspirational, but more importantly they help us gain a heart of wisdom. It provides each of us a chance to reflect on our own lives, and prayerfully consider our own legacy. And as my friend suggests, as long as we’re not in the paper, we all still have time to touch someone’s else’s life.

I’m Paul Butler.

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