There's a brewing conflict in the state of Louisiana over who can make and sell funeral caskets.  Louisiana law prohibits anyone but licensed funeral directors to sell funeral merchandise, including caskets.  However, federal law prohibits funeral homes from refusing caskets purchased elsewhere.  The brouhaha began in 2007 when Benedictine monks from St. Joseph Abbey in Louisiana decided to begin making and selling caskets to support themselves.  Most monasteries around the country sell items such as bread, candy, syrup, and religious articles to support themselves.  Some monasteries run farms that sell dairy products and cattle. 

Since 2007, St. Joseph's Abbey has sold 60 caskets which is a small amount given Louisiana's 40,000 annual deaths.  Yet, the state funeral board issued a cease and desist order for the monks.  Two monks have been subpoenaed to appear before the Louisiana State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors.  If found guilty of the charges, the monks face fines between $500 and $2,500 per violation.  In response, the monks have filed a federal lawsuit so that they can continue building hand-crafted wooden caskets.

Some comments in the Wall St. Journal are enlightening,

"They're cutting into our profit," says Leonard Dunn, the owner of Serenity Funeral Home, located a short drive from the abbey. He adds. "I don't think the monks are actually making the caskets—I think it's a marketing gimmick."

"But some local morticians are mortified by all the fuss. Darin Bordelon, the owner of LaVille Funeral Home in Ville Platte, La., says the state board should be ashamed of its campaign against the monks.

"They're making us all look greedy," he says.