X-Message-Number: 18480 From: "Jan Coetzee" <> Subject: Death certificate problems Date: Mon, 4 Feb 2002 00:25:50 -0500 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0007_01C1AD12.7FBB9160 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Apostle predicts own death - God says not yet Cecil Pearce A Reformed Apostolic Church leader who believed his death was imminent as predicted by a dream his daughter had, and had planned his funeral for midday on January 28, did not die as he planned. Devout apostle and former local builder Freddie Isaacs (58) planned his funeral to the last detail, bought a coffin and hired a hall for mourners. Isaacs, who is respected among church members, left his fellow congregants stupefied by the public announcement of his pending death. At the time of going to press Isaacs was weak from fasting but still breathing. His grave of nine feet has also been dug and hundreds of mourners streamed into Cradock for the funeral. The Karoo region's police spokesperson Captain Erris Claassen told City Press if Isaacs had to die, he will not be buried as arranged by the other apostles, as his death must first be investigated. "A doctor would have to declare him dead and that information must be sent to the department of home affairs before a death certificate can be issued," he said. Claassen said only when the family was in possession of the death certificate would the funeral take place, and because the department's offices were closed during the weekend , it was unlikely the burial will go ahead. The two grave diggers at Cradock cemetery said they were worried they would have to bury Isaacs alive as they were also shocked by the bizarre arrangement. Before making the prediction and embarking on a fast last week, Isaacs is said to have been in an excellent condition physically as testified by his doctor. Morose friends and relatives in the small town waited for days outside the apostle's home as he was dressed in a white suit lying on his back in bed ready "to go home to meet his Maker". "I'm sick and tired of Christianity because of its sectarianism. "There is no God and Jesus Christ but only the Apostle," he is said to have told those already mourning his death. A spokesperson of the church, Eddy de Lange, told City Press on Wednesday at Isaacs' house his prediction was sparked by a dream last September. "One of Isaacs's daughters, who is also a prophet of the church, had a dream that her father had to go home. This dream was written in a book where all other dreams are stored and later discussed with the apostles. After the dream was discussed we prayed and Isaacs agreed with us his time has come and his work on earth has been completed." Isaacs' wife, Sheila, said she and their nine children were heartbroken about his prediction, but is now relieved he hasn't in fact died. "My tears have now turned into happiness," she said. ------=_NextPart_000_0007_01C1AD12.7FBB9160 Content-Type: text/html; [ AUTOMATICALLY SKIPPING HTML ENCODING! ] Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=18480