Cremation is the process of placing a deceased body in an oven and burning it until the body is completely consumed and consists of primarily bone fragments. These fragments are then ground into fine granules, placed into a container and given to the deceased person’s loved ones.
Cremations have become more popular in recent years and are expected to soon rival burial as a the preferred handling of the departed. One of the main reasons for this is the shortage of suitable cemetery land.
There are several cremation pros and cons. One downside has to do with how it is viewed in the Christian worldview, as well as in other religions. Almost from the very beginning of organized religion, the church believed only in burial. In fact, at certain points in history, the church forbade cremation and those who participated were condemned.
One reason why the church was against cremation had to do with the resurrection. This is said to be when Jesus will return to Earth and raise the dead. Others include disrespect for the human body, a disruption in natural decomposition and other reasons in their list of complaints about cremation. In fact, for a number of years, the Roman Catholic Church banned cremation and viewed it as being sacrilegious and blasphemous. It wasn’t until 1963 that the Pope lifted the ban and three years later permitted priests to officiate at cremation-related services.
Even though the Christian religion prefers the traditional burial, it has become much more accepting of cremation. However, Catholic traditionalists disagree with this acceptance and continue to support the original church beliefs.
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