Cremation

Cremation is the practice of disposing of a corpse by burning. This often takes place in a crematorium or crematory. Cremation and burial are the main ways of final disposition of the dead.

Reasons for choosing cremation

People choose cremation for a variety of reasons, including religious reasons, other personal reasons, environmental reasons, and cost. For all these reasons, more and more people are choosing cremation.

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Religious reasons in Dharmic Faiths

While the Abrahamic religions do not permit cremation or prefer burial over cremation, the Eastern religions (i.e., Dharmic faiths) such as Buddhism and Hinduism mandate the use of cremation. However, two exceptions to cremation apply in Hinduism. For example, monks, Hijras, and children under five are buried. Sikhism, although it has been influenced by Abrahamic religions such as Islam, utilizes cremation. Cremation was also practised in the ancient world, being mentioned in the Old Testament and used widely in the Greek and Roman civilizations.

Related Topics:
Dharmic faiths - Buddhism - Hinduism - Hijras - Sikhism - Old Testament

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Resurgence of cremation in the Christian world

In Christian countries, cremation fell out of favor due to the Christian belief in the physical resurrection of the body. Beginning in the Middle Ages, rationalists and classicists began to advocate it. Much later, Sir Henry Thompson, Surgeon to Queen Victoria, was the first to recommend the practice on health grounds after seeing the cremation apparatus of Professor Brunetti of Padua, Italy at the Vienna Exposition in 1873. In 1874 Thompson founded The Cremation Society of England. The society met opposition from the church, who would not allow cremation on consecrated ground, and from the government, who believed the practice to be illegal. Cremation was finally made legal in England by a court judgment in February, 1884 in Cardiff. An Act of Parliament for the Regulation of burning of human remains, and to enable burial authorities to established crematoria was passed in 1902.

Related Topics:
Christian - Middle Ages - Queen Victoria - Padua - Italy - 1873 - 1902

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The Roman Catholic Church

For most of its history, the church had a ban in place against cremation. In 1963 the Pope lifted the ban on cremation, and in 1966 allowed Catholic priests to officiate at cremation ceremonies. The church still officially prefers the traditional burial of the deceased. However cremation is now permitted as long as it is not done to express a refusal to believe in the resurrection of the body. Until 1997, church regulations stipulated that cremation was to take place after the funeral service has taken place.

Related Topics:
1963 - Pope - 1966 - Officiate

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The church still prefers that funeral services take place before cremation. Such funeral services are conducted in the same manner as those of traditional burials up to the point of committal, where the body is taken to the crematorium instead of being buried. A burial service is performed after the cremation has finished.

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In 1997 the funeral rite was modified so that church funerals can take place when the body has already been cremated and the ashes were brought to the church. In such cases the ashes are placed in an urn or another worthy vessel. They are brought into the church and placed on a stand near the Easter candle. During the church service, and during the committal rite, prayers that make reference to the body are modified. Any prayers that refer to the "Body" of the deceased are replaced with "Earthly Remains."

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Since the lifting of the ban, even with the official preference for burial, the church has become more and more open to the idea of cremation. Many Catholic cemeteries now provide columbarium niches for housing cremated remains as well as providing special sections for the burial of cremated remains. Columbarium niches have even been made part of church buildings. However church officials tend to discourage this practice because of concerns over what would happen to the niches if such a parish closed or decided to replace the current building.

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The church does specify requirements for the reverent disposition of ashes. This means that the ashes are to be buried or entombed in an appropriate container, such as an urn. The church does not permit the scattering of ashes or keeping them at home.

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Traditional Catholics have objected to the practice of allowing cremation, which they cite as one reason among others to suport their claim that the post-Vatican II church is no longer the true Catholic Church.

Related Topics:
Traditional Catholic - Vatican II

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Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church forbids cremation. Exceptions are made for circumstances where it may not be avoided (when civil authority demands it, or epidemics) or if it may be sought for good cause, but when a cremation is willfully chosen for no good cause by the one who is deceased, he or she is not permitted a funeral in the church and may also be permanently excluded from liturgical prayers for the departed. In Orthodoxy, cremation is a rejection of the dogma of the general resurrection, and as such is viewed harshly.

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List of religions that permit cremation

Ásatrú, Baptist Church, Buddhism, Calvinism, Christian Science, Church of England, Church of Ireland, Church of Scotland, Church in Wales, Hare Krishna, Hinduism (mandatory except for sanyasis, i.e., monks and children under five); Jehovah's Witnesses, Liberal Judaism, Lutheranism, Methodism, Moravian Church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), Presbyterianism, Roman Catholicism, Salvation Army, Scottish Episcopal Church, Seventh-day Adventist Church, Sikhs, Society of Friends (Quakers)., Unitarian Universalism

Related Topics:
Ásatrú - Baptist Church - Buddhism - Calvinism - Christian Science - Church of England - Church of Ireland - Church of Scotland - Church in Wales - Hare Krishna - Hinduism - Sanyasi - Jehovah's Witnesses - Liberal Judaism - Lutheranism - Methodism - Moravian Church - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - Mormon - Presbyterianism - Roman Catholicism - Salvation Army - Scottish Episcopal Church - Seventh-day Adventist Church - Sikh - Society of Friends - Unitarian Universalism

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List of religions that forbid cremation

Baha'i Faith, Eastern Orthodox Church, Islam, Orthodox Judaism, Zoroastrianism.

Related Topics:
Baha'i Faith - Eastern Orthodox Church - Islam - Orthodox Judaism - Zoroastrianism

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Neo-Confucianism under Zhu Xi strongly discourages cremation of one's parents' corpses as unfilial.

Related Topics:
Neo-Confucianism - Zhu Xi - Unfilial

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Other personal reasons

Some people find they prefer cremation for other reasons. For some people it is because they are not attracted to traditional burial. The thought of a long, slow decomposition process is unappealing to some, and they find that they prefer cremation for that reason.

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Other people view cremation as a way of simplifying their funeral process. These people view a traditional burial as an unneeded complication of their funeral process, and thus chose cremation to make their services as simple as possible.

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Still others choose this method in order to avoid the possibility of being accidentally buried alive. Given the general procedure that bodies are put into a sealed casket or box and then burned, though, this in turn poses the alternate threat of being cremated alive.

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Environmental reasons

Others prefer cremation for environmental reasons. Some are concerned that during bodily decomposition body fluids and embalming chemicals could contaminate the Earth. Some locations have found that long-buried bodies are now causing groundwater contamination. Arsenic, at one time used as an embalming chemical, has been known to cause serious pollution later on.

Related Topics:
Environment - Embalming - Groundwater - Contamination - Arsenic

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Another environmental concern is that traditional burial takes up a great deal of space. In a traditional burial the body is buried in a casket made from a variety of materials. Often the casket is placed inside a concrete vault or liner before burial in the ground. While individually this may not take much room, combined with other burials it can over time cause serious space concerns. Many cemeteries, particularly in Europe and Japan as well as those in larger cities are starting to run out of space. In Tokyo for example, it is almost impossible to find a traditional funeral plot.

Related Topics:
Concrete - Cemeteries - Europe - Japan - Tokyo

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One item of concern has been that the exhaust systems of cremation ovens may contribute to air pollution. In response crematorium manufacturers have built computerized control systems that regulate the exhaust systems to keep crematoriums from contributing to air pollution.

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Cost of cremation

The cost factor tends to make cremation attractive. Generally speaking, cremation costs less than traditional burial services, especially if direct cremation is chosen, in which the body is cremated as soon as legally possible without any sort of services. However, there is wide variation in the cost of cremation services, having mainly to do with the amount of service desired by the deceased or the family. A cremation can take place after a full traditional funeral service, which adds cost. The type of container used also influences cost.

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Cremation makes possible the scattering of remains over an area, eliminating the need for and expense of a burial space. However, some religions such as Roman Catholicism require burial or entombment of cremated remains. Burial or entombment also adds to the cost. The price will depend on what the deceased and/or the family has chosen. Cremated remains require far less space than a traditional burial or entombment. Cremation plots or columbarium niches usually cost less than a burial plot or mausoleum crypt.

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