Acceptance of the practice has grown over the past century, especially in West Europe, North America and Australia, but not so much in conservative Christian majority places like East and Central Europe, Russia, Sub-Saharan Africa, The Caribbean, The Philippines and in the biggest part of Latin America. In other large areas such as South Asia, it is strongly opposed due to its religious meaning in Hinduism, for instance, plus the precedence of Jesus' burial and the rest of the biblical record.
History
In Christian countries, cremation fell out of favor due to the Christian belief in the physical resurrection of the body. Christians also used burial as a mark of difference from the Iron Age European pre-Christian Pagan religions, which usually cremated their dead. Cremation was even outlawed and punishable with death by Charlemagne in AD 789 for this reason.[1] Beginning in the Middle Ages, rationalists and classicists began to advocate for cremation. In Medieval Europe, cremation was practiced only on certain occasions when there were many corpses to be disposed of simultaneously after a battle, during famine or an epidemics to stop an imminent threat of disease spread. Much later, Sir Henry Thompson, Surgeon to Queen Victoria, was the first to recommend this practice for health reasons after seeing the cremation apparatus of Professor Ludovico 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, which would not allow cremation on consecrated ground and from the government as the practice was still illegal.
Cremation was forced into the law of England and Wales when eccentric Welsh doctor William Price attempted to cremate his dead baby son, Iesu Grist, at Llantrisant in January 1884 and was prevented from proceeding by local people. Later tried at CardiffAssizes and acquitted on the grounds that cremation was not contrary to law, he was able to carry out the ceremony (the first in the U.K. in modern times) on March 14, 1884 with pagan prayers.[2] On March 26, 1885 the first modern legal cremation in England took place, that of Mrs. Jeanette Pickersgill of London, "well known in literary and scientific circles",[3] by the Cremation Society at Woking, Surrey. This change of attitude prompted the formation of cremation companies in the U.K. One of the first such was set up in Manchester in 1892, closely followed by Maryhill, Glasgow, in 1895. An Act of Parliament in the U.K. for the Regulation of burning of human remains, and to enable burial authorities to established crematoria, the "Cremation Act" was eventually passed in 1902, removing all ambiguity. The influence of Hindu/Dharmic belief systems during the British colonial era in India, had a profound influence on how to dispose of the dead in the increasingly crowded UK cities and towns; cremation seen as the most obvious way of avoiding the use of large areas of land for cemeteries.[citation needed]
Roman Catholic Church
For most of its history, the Roman Catholic Church had a ban against cremation. It was seen as a sacrilegious act towards Christians and God, not simply blaspheming but physically declaring a disbelief in the resurrection of the body. 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 interment of the deceased. Despite this preference, cremation is now permitted as long as it is not done to express a refusal to believe in the resurrection of the body.[4]Until 1997, Church regulations used to stipulate that cremation has to take place after a funeral service. Such funeral services are conducted in the same manner as 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 is completed.
In 1997, the funeral rite was modified so that church funerals can take place when the body has already been cremated before the ashes are brought to the church. In such cases, the ashes are placed in an urn or another worthy vessel, brought into the church and placed on a stand near the Easter candle. During the church service and committal rite, prayers that make reference to the body are modified, replacing references to the "Body" of the deceased with "Earthly Remains."
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 a part of church buildings. The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles, California, has a number of niches in the crypt mausoleum. However, church officials still tend to discourage this practice because of concerns over what would happen to the niches if such a parish closes or decides to replace the current building.
The Church requires reverent disposition of the ashes which 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. Keeping them at home is permitted, but requires a bishop's permission, though some Catholics have done so without seeking it.[5] Burial at sea is permitted, provided the ashes are put into the ocean in a sealed container.
Traditional Catholics have objected to the practice of allowing cremation, which sedevacantists believe to be one of the many reasons why the post-Vatican II church is no longer the true Catholic Church.
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Eastern Orthodox Church forbids cremation. While in Orthodoxy there is no direct connection between cremation and the dogma of the general resurrection, it is seen as a violent treatment of the body after death and as such is viewed harshly.[citation needed].
Protestant Churches
The Protestant churches (excluding Pentecostal and charismatic churches) accepted and adopted cremation earlier than the Catholic churches, and cremation is also more common in the Protestant than Catholic countries. Usually cremation is favored in the towns and cities, where land is sparse and cemeteries are crowded, while the traditional burial is favored at the countryside where burial plots are readily available. The highest frequency in the EU is found in the Czech Republic, neighbour to Poland where in contrast cremation after the fall of communism almost has disappeared. The difference between Catholic vs Lutheran version of Christianity is obvious in the relation of cremation. Cremation is somewhat more common in the Protestant parts of Germany, compared with the Catholic parts. In Nazi Germany, Heinrich Himmler invented a "Nazi-funeral ceremony", which ended with cremation. This was used for instance at the State funeral of Field Marshall Erwin Rommel (who had been forced to take his own life, as it was revealed after the war).
Protestant Churches approved cremation gradually after the First World War and the Spanish flu. During the time between the world wars, the development of modern crematoriums also helped to differentiate Christian cremations from Pagan rites of burning the body on a pyre. The first crematorium in Stockholm, Sweden, was built in 1874. In Finland, the Helsinki Lutheran Parish Union built its first modern crematorium in 1926 which is still in use. The first purpose-built crematorium in England was Woking Crematorium, which was built in 1878 and is still in use.
In Scandinavia, approximately 30 to 70 percent (in large cities up to 90 percent) of the dead were cremated around the mid-1980s. However, in later years the high frequency has peaked and fallen; one explanation is the immigration from Muslim, Pentecostal, Catholic and Orthodox nations.
In Scandinavian Lutheran doctrine, the ashes are to be dealt with the same dignity as any earthly remains. They are either to be interred in an urn in a cemetery or sprinkled on consecrated ground, "dust returning to dust," and not stored at home or disposed of in an undignified way. Several littoral parishes do also have consecrated sea areas where the ashes may be sprinkled. Also unmarked "groves of remembrance" (tens of thousands of people buried within an area of 10–50 common graves with a common memorial) have become a common way of burial. Often the undertakers recommend cremation to the mourners. Cremation has also seen the re-appearance of the traditional Scandinavian family graves, where one single grave plot may now contain dozens of urns of the members of the family in several generations. Many Scandinavians prefer their ashes to be interred alongside their family members and loved ones.
The doctrine of the Church of England is similar. According to canon law: "The ashes of a cremated body should be reverently disposed of by a minister in a churchyard or other burial ground in ... or on an area of land designated by the bishop for the purpose ... or at sea. The ordinary position therefore is that ashes are to be buried. They may only be scattered if the bishop has designated land for the purpose of the disposal of cremated remains on that land."[6]
In the Finnish language, Christian cremation is called tuhkaus (incineration), while polttohautaus (burial by burning) refers to Pagan ritual on pyre.
In the American Episcopal Church, cremation has become accepted so much so that many parishes have built columbaria into their churches, chapels and gardens.
Pentecostal Christians forbid cremation. They hold that bodies must be buried after death; they base this belief on the teachings of early Christian figures. Pentecostals only hold funeral services for those cremated by accident, and they avoid attending funerals if the body has been cremated.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) have said that cremation is "not encouraged"; however the church provides instructions for properly dressing the deceased prior to cremation.[7] In the past, ApostleBruce R. McConkie[8] wrote that "only under the most extraordinary and unusual circumstances" would cremation be consistent with LDS teachings.
The LDS position on cremation was clarified in a 1991 issue of the LDS Church's Ensign Magazine, "Where there is no overriding reason to cremate, burial is still the preferred method of handling our dead. In the end, however, we should remember that the resurrection will take place by the power of God, who created the heavens and the earth. Ultimately, whether a person's body was buried at sea, destroyed in combat or an accident, intentionally cremated or buried in a grave, the person will be resurrected."[9]
Related Research Articles
A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect the dead, from interment, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor. Customs vary between cultures and religious groups. Funerals have both normative and legal components. Common secular motivations for funerals include mourning the deceased, celebrating their life, and offering support and sympathy to the bereaved; additionally, funerals may have religious aspects that are intended to help the soul of the deceased reach the afterlife, resurrection or reincarnation.
Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning.
Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objects in it, and covering it over. A funeral is a ceremony that accompanies the final disposition. Humans have been burying their dead since shortly after the origin of the species. Burial is often seen as indicating respect for the dead. It has been used to prevent the odor of decay, to give family members closure and prevent them from witnessing the decomposition of their loved ones, and in many cultures it has been seen as a necessary step for the deceased to enter the afterlife or to give back to the cycle of life.
A columbarium is a structure for the respectful and usually public storage of funerary urns, holding cremated remains of the deceased.
Burial at sea is the disposal of human remains in the ocean, normally from a ship or boat. It is regularly performed by navies, and is done by private citizens in many countries.
The majority of funerals in Japan include a wake, the cremation of the deceased, a burial in a family grave, and a periodic memorial service. According to 2007 statistics, 99.81% of deceased Japanese are cremated.
An urn is a vase, often with a cover, with a typically narrowed neck above a rounded body and a footed pedestal. Describing a vessel as an "urn", as opposed to a vase or other terms, generally reflects its use rather than any particular shape or origin. The term is especially often used for funerary urns, vessels used in burials, either to hold the cremated ashes or as grave goods, but is used in many other contexts; in catering large vessels for serving tea or coffee are often called "tea-urns", even when they are metal cylinders of purely functional design. Large sculpted vases are often called urns, whether placed outdoors, in gardens or as architectural ornaments on buildings, or kept inside. Urns are also a common reference in thought experiments in probability wherein marbles or balls of different colors are used to represent different results and the urn represents the "container" of the whole set of possible states.
Disposal of human corpses, also called final disposition, is the practice and process of dealing with the remains of a deceased human being. Disposal methods may need to account for the fact that soft tissue will decompose relatively rapidly, while the skeleton will remain intact for thousands of years under certain conditions.
A Christian burial is the burial of a deceased person with specifically Christian rites; typically, in consecrated ground. Until recent times Christians generally objected to cremation because it interfered with the concept of the resurrection of a corpse, and practiced inhumation almost exclusively. Today this opposition has all but vanished among Protestants and Catholics alike, and this is rapidly becoming more common, although Eastern Orthodox Churches still mostly forbid cremation.
Deaths in Singapore offset the population increase from live births. In 2007, 17,140 people in Singapore died from various causes. The death rate was 4.5 deaths per 1,000 of the population. There are strict regulations surrounding death and treatment of the body after death.
Icelandic funerals are ceremonies that are largely shaped by the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland, the largest Christian organisation in Iceland. However, customs may vary depending on religious group.
Alkaline hydrolysis is a process for the disposal of human and pet remains using lye and heat. The process is being marketed as an alternative to the traditional options of burial or cremation.
A funeral procession is a procession, usually in motor vehicles or by foot, from a funeral home or place of worship to the cemetery or crematorium. In earlier times the deceased was typically carried by male family members on a bier or in a coffin to the final resting place. This practice has shifted over time toward transporting the deceased in a hearse, while family and friends follow in their vehicles. The transition from the procession by foot to procession by car can be attributed to two main factors; the switch to burying or cremating the body at locations far from the funeral site and mainly the introduction of motorized vehicles and public transportation making processions by foot through the street no longer practical.
Woking Crematorium is a crematorium in Woking, a large town in the west of Surrey, England. Established in 1878, it was the first custom-built crematorium in the United Kingdom and is closely linked to the history of cremation in the UK.
Burial in Early Anglo-Saxon England refers to the grave and burial customs followed by the Anglo-Saxons between the mid 5th and 11th centuries CE in Early Mediaeval England. The variation of the practice performed by the Anglo-Saxon peoples during this period, included the use of both cremation and inhumation. There is a commonality in the burial places between the rich and poor - their resting places sit alongside one another in shared cemeteries. Both of these forms of burial were typically accompanied by grave goods, which included food, jewelry, and weaponry. The actual burials themselves, whether of cremated or inhumed remains, were placed in a variety of sites, including in cemeteries, burial mounds or, more rarely, in ship burials.
Cremation has been carried out as part of funeral rites in the Republic of Ireland since 1982, when the country's first crematorium, Glasnevin Crematorium, was opened. However, cremation in Ireland dates as far back as the Stone Age.
Thai funerals usually follow Buddhist funerary rites, with variations in practice depending on the culture of the region. People of certain religious and ethnic groups also have their own specific practices. Thai Buddhist funerals generally consist of a bathing ceremony shortly after death, daily chanting by Buddhist monks, and a cremation ceremony. Cremation is practised by most peoples throughout the country, with the major exceptions being ethnic Chinese, Muslims and Christians.
Cremation in Japan was originally practiced by monks seeking to emulate the cremation of the Buddha. Virtually all deceased are now cremated in Japan – as of 2012, it had the highest cremation rate in the world of over 99.9%. The Meiji government attempted to ban the practice in the 19th century, but the ban was only in effect for less than two years.
Freud Corner is the name used for the place within Golders Green Crematorium in North London, where the funerary urns of Sigmund Freud and many other members of the Freud family are deposited.
References
↑ Bregman, Lucy (2010). Religion, Death, and Dying. Vol.3. ABC-CLIO. p.13. ISBN978-0-313-35173-0. Cremation had been banned officially by Emperor Charlemagne in 789 as a capital offense and was generally perceived as a pagan practice antithetical to Christianity.
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