Church in Italy to issue clarification on cremation
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Rome, Italy, Nov 3, 2009 / 01:50 pm (CNA).- The Italian Bishops' Conference is preparing to publish updated norms on funeral rites including cremation and the burial of ashes.

The manual, which will be reviewed and approved by the bishops' conference in Assisi on November 9,  will explain that Catholic doctrine does not oppose cremation but rejects the practice of storing ashes of loved ones at home.  The document will stress that this is a violation of the work of mercy that obliges Catholics to provide a holy burial to the dead.

Cremation was approved by Paul VI in 1963 as a practice that does not contradict the Church’s teaching on the resurrection, since it does not affect the soul “nor prevents the omnipotence of God from rebuilding the body.”

However, the document will note, a norm approved by the Italian government in 2001 runs contrary to Catholic teaching, as it allows the ashes of the dead to be kept in an urn at home or to be scattered in the wind, land or sea. 

Keeping the ashes of the dead at home does away with the important rite of accompanying the deceased to the cemetery, “which unites the community of believers.”  Burying the ashes at a cemetery, the “place of the dead,” is what makes most sense, the bishops will add.

Scattering the ashes, according to the Italian bishops, is based on a pagan ritual that supposedly symbolized the union of the deceased with “the great soul of mother earth,” and is contrary to the Christian obligation, established by the Lord Jesus himself, to bury the dead.

According to official statistics, currently 10 percent of those who die in Italy are cremated.

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Subscriber comments:
Published by: Samuel Ferraro
Chicago, IL USA 11/05/2009 01:19 PM EST
The Church allowed cremation with the stipulation that it does not demonstrate a rejection of belief in the resurrection of the body. The question is, who was this allowance directed at since the overwhelming majority of faithful, practicing Catholics do not choose cremation? It has never been a part of Judeo-Christian history and while the Church currently allows it, it does not recommend it. If money is an issue, low cost traditional burials are available. The belief that all traditional burials are extremely costly is false. A person can have a very modest standard burial of the body. More often than not, cremation is not ultimately about money. It is usually chosen by secular people with no particular religious belief, or by people whose religious beliefs include the burning of the body, for example, Hinduism and Buddhism.
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Published by: SK
Birmingham 11/04/2009 09:33 PM EST
Francis, therein is part of the beauty of being a Catholic: we do not need to rely on individual interpretation to guess at the answers to serious issues. We have, through Peter, the Magisterium to guide us. With all respect, if Pope Paul VI, guided by the Holy Spirit, wrote that cremation is not contradictory to the Church's teaching on the Resurrection, that "opinion" should settle the issue. You don't have to embrace the practice, but call it personal preference and don't act like you are more an authority on this (or any) issue than our Holy Father.
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Published by: DL
South Carolina, USA 11/04/2009 06:21 PM EST
I have been very interested in this subject. For some families, it is economical. It is cheaper to cremate the body rather than burying an embalmed body.
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Published by: Francis
Wareham Ma 11/03/2009 02:21 PM EST
"Cremation was approved by Paul VI in 1963 as a practice that does not contradict the Church’s teaching on the resurrection, since it does not affect the soul “nor prevents the omnipotence of God from rebuilding the body.” Oh really!!! Then why was cremation banned by the Catholic Church for 2000 years?? Everytime anyone says the Apostles creed, they say "I believe in the Resurrection of the body"! Yes, God can do anything and restore a cremated body at the last judgement, but he taught through the Apostles, his Church, and the scriptures that the body is sacred and should be buried; LIKE OUR LORD!!
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