Mule & the Pastor
 
    A pastor went to his church office Monday morning and discovered a
    dead mule  in the church yard. He called the police. Because there
    did not appear to be  any foul play, the police referred the pastor to the Health Dept.
    The Health Dept. said that since there was no health threat he
    should call Animal Control. The Animal Control people said that
    since the mule was dead he should call the Sanitation Dept.  The
    Sanitation people said they could not pick up the dead mule
    without authorization from the Mayor. Now the pastor knew the mayor
    and was not eager to call him.  The mayor had a bad temper and was
    generally hard to deal with, but since this was the last resort,
    the pastor called him anyway.  The mayor did not disappoint him.  He
    immediately began to rant and rave at the pastor and finally said
    "Why did you call me anyway?  Isn't it your job to bury the dead?"
    The pastor paused for a brief moment and asked the Lord to direct
    his response.  The he replied, "Yes, Mayor, it is my job to bury
    the dead, but I always like to notify the next of kin first."