Althought the Catholic Church has strict laws about laying a body to rest and prefers the traditional practice of burying the body, cremation is permitted.
Cremation was forbidden until recent years because incinerating the body was associated with beliefs and practices that did not respect the body and were not compatible with Catholic teaching about an immortal soul and the resurrection of the body.
The Church allows cremation because burning does not prevent the body from being resurrected and cremation does not necessarily indicate a rejection of Christian belief.
The Church prefers that the body be present for the funeral rites and cremation take place afterward.
The remains of the cremated body must be respectfully placed in an urn and buried in a cemetery or placed in a mausoleum with appropriate prayers. Cremated remains must never be kept at home, scattered, or made into a memento.
The body and the soul go together:
The goodness of the body can not be denied:
The human body is sacred:
Cremation does not affect the soul nor prevent God’s omnipotence from restoring the body; neither, then, does it in itself include an objective denial of the dogmas mentioned. The issue is not therefore an intrinsically evil act, opposed per se to the Christian religion. This has always been the thinking of the Church: in certain situations where it was or is clear that there is an upright motive for cremation, based on serious reasons, especially of public order, the Church did not and does not object to it.
Pope Paul VI, Piam et Constantem, May 8, 1963
Cremation is permitted but not preferred:
We were indeed buried with Him through Baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life. For if we have grown into union with Him through a death like his, we shall also be united with Him in the resurrection.
Romans 6: 4-5
Dignity in all stages of life:
Caring for the remains of the body in a dignified manner:
Autopsies can be morally permitted for legal inquests or scientific research. the free gift of organs after death is legitimate and can be meritorious. The Church permits cremation, provided that it does not demonstrate a denial of faith in the resurrection of the body.
Catechism of the Catholic Church 2301
The funeral should take place before cremation:
The remains of the body should be kept together:
Cremated bodies should be interred in a cemetary:
Gathered together in a sacred place:
The Truth, Goodness, and Beauty of the Catholic Church
The Eucharist is where it begins:
Share this page with friends and family to start a conversation about your faith.
Don’t miss a post. Learn more about the Catholic Church and strengthen your Catholic faith.
Find more Fiercely Catholic video issues here.
Subscribe here.
