tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post964383530362350538..comments2023-09-26T00:42:29.508-07:00Comments on Caritas in Veritate: Cremation - not in keeping with the Christian vision of the goodness of matterFather John Boylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10581732723849634398noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-66084847412223290552012-12-11T03:25:08.382-08:002012-12-11T03:25:08.382-08:00I think keeping ashes in Urns is the best to show ...I think keeping ashes in Urns is the best to show the love you have for the departed one and as the funeral is getting expensive it best way to keep the remembrances with you.Funeral Urns ukhttp://www.urnsuk.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-12670264781830403212012-04-18T10:37:57.674-07:002012-04-18T10:37:57.674-07:00As I mentioned above, we should help. Here we have...As I mentioned above, we should help. Here we have a Pastor's Emergency Fund which can be used to assist those who cannot afford to bury their dead. As mentioned above, to bury the dead is a Corporal Work of Mercy. Yes, of course the Lord can resurrect our ashes otherwise the Church would not permit cremation. But we should still examine the difference between what should be the norm and what is (merely) permitted.Father John Boylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10581732723849634398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-54214770722086099922012-04-17T22:37:59.858-07:002012-04-17T22:37:59.858-07:00While I agree with everything you have said in pri...While I agree with everything you have said in principal the fact remains that for many Catholics a funeral with a body remains out of their financial reach. I don't see anyone acknowledging this or coming up with any solutions. It's much cheaper in Canada to bury ashes. I also trust in the mercy and power of God to resurrect my loved ones on the last day.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-90131662812922579322011-08-25T10:25:05.717-07:002011-08-25T10:25:05.717-07:00diddleymaz wrote "The atoms we are made of re...diddleymaz wrote "The atoms we are made of remain we are made of atoms that have always existed [since they were brought into existence billions of years ago at the moment of creation], matter is constant but ever changing"<br /><br />Something we did not know a couple of centuries ago and with this knowledge it is obvious that someone with the knowledge and power to do so (which we don't have) could recreate all our bodies fully as they existed in any point of time. The reason why cremation does not bother me.<br /><br />Another reason why devotion to the Sacred Head of Christ the King should be promoted.Paul, Bedfordshirenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-23122529408880118712011-08-23T01:02:23.446-07:002011-08-23T01:02:23.446-07:00People generally want to do the best for a decease...People generally want to do the best for a deceased relative. Describing their choice as "unworthy of the dignity of the body of a baptised person" is perhaps demeaning, Father John.<br />As cremation becomes the choice of more and more Catholics, I hope that the wording in the Catechism and the Code of Canon Law will be modified so that is less grudging and more generously affirming of considered and sincere action.<br />I believe the thing that matters most is not the outward form of disposal of a body but our respectful attitude towards that which was the temple of the Holy Spirit.robin molieresnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-51850796399879746752011-08-22T19:31:29.834-07:002011-08-22T19:31:29.834-07:00In case anyone is still following this, I think th...In case anyone is still following this, I think the point I was hoping people would concentrate on was:<br />- what does the Church "earnestly recommend"?<br />- what does the Church (merely) "permit"?<br />- what should be our response to this teaching?Father John Boylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10581732723849634398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-67775517858961330582011-08-22T14:46:14.885-07:002011-08-22T14:46:14.885-07:00Fr. Boyle: I'd be all for it! Though I would n...Fr. Boyle: I'd be all for it! Though I would never be able to give very much - I wonder who WOULD, in the current times?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-10644800683103882982011-08-22T14:20:31.600-07:002011-08-22T14:20:31.600-07:00One of the reasons so many Catholics I know opt fo...One of the reasons so many Catholics I know opt for cremation is the ridiculous cost of a funeral with burial of the body. It's outrageous that a family practically has to go into debt just to afford a funeral.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-40250964311555536572011-08-22T14:15:34.008-07:002011-08-22T14:15:34.008-07:00Frequently burial also results in total destructio...Frequently burial also results in total destruction of the corpse, it depends on the soil there was nothing left of Cardinal Newmans body when the went looking for it. My late Mother thought cemeteries were a waste of good ground that could be used for other purposes. The atoms we are made of remain we are made of atoms that have always existed ,matter is constant but ever changing. All my family have been cremated for many years but the last funeral for my uncle was a burial as that is now greener. I always fancied a woodland or meadow burial but since our sons death I will be cremated and my ashes and my husbands will be placed in the triple cremation plot we bought in St Davids, several generations of my husbands family are buried there. It's 100 miles from here so after the funeral a burial down there was impractical. We took his ashes down ourselves about a week after the funeral, the local catholic priest and the Anglican dean of St Davids performed the rites. It is a blessed place.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-64177217385407678362011-08-22T12:17:58.760-07:002011-08-22T12:17:58.760-07:00@robinmolieres: how have I suggested that the acti...@robinmolieres: how have I suggested that the actions of good and sincere people are demeaning themselves and their loved ones? I am simply expressing my personal opinion - backing it up with Blessed John Henry Newman's words - that cremation is not what is best. The Church permits it, I do not preach against it. On my blog, however, I hope to provoke some debate on the matter. I would also, personally, like to see a change regarding the practice of cremation amongst Catholics. This does not mean I consider those who have been cremated or who will be cremated to be in bad faith.<br /><br />I do not intend to cause any offence, although I know that there is always a risk of some being offended.<br /><br />Will our Saviour look differently upon us depending on the manner in which our remains have been disposed of? Probably not. But that is not the same as saying it does not matter.Father John Boylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10581732723849634398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-16345819673293951372011-08-22T10:48:30.706-07:002011-08-22T10:48:30.706-07:00I think it had a lot to do with a now obsolete bel...I think it had a lot to do with a now obsolete belief that if you were cremated your body was destroyed and you could not rise from the dead. <br /><br />There is also the matter of public health in large cities which do not have the space for the massive cemetries that would be required.Paul, Bedfordshirenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-18824295862673242832011-08-22T09:55:50.824-07:002011-08-22T09:55:50.824-07:00Why suggest at all that the actions of good and si...Why suggest at all that the actions of good and sincere people are demeaning themselves and their loved ones? Is this not leading people into bad faith?<br />From the dust we were raised and to dust we shall return - dust or slime, does it really make such a difference? Will our Saviour regard me differently when he raises my body on the last day? Of course not!robinmolieresnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-24759464573893116372011-08-22T08:12:19.478-07:002011-08-22T08:12:19.478-07:00Rats and worms, I suggest, are part of the squeami...Rats and worms, I suggest, are part of the squeamish argument. Mas was made from the dust/slime of the earth - not great! But that slime has been raised to a great dignity by the Incarnation. Even rats and worms are good!<br /><br />Expense: if that is the reason, should we not assist those who are poor to bury their dead? Burying the dead is a Corporal Work of Mercy.Father John Boylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10581732723849634398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-12387435929015666812011-08-22T07:03:39.958-07:002011-08-22T07:03:39.958-07:00In many places burial is, as I understand it, proh...In many places burial is, as I understand it, prohibitively expensive compared to cremation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-9532154052665963742011-08-22T00:43:29.179-07:002011-08-22T00:43:29.179-07:00Indeed! And yet we read that an English bishop (Ca...Indeed! And yet we read that an English bishop (Catholic)was cremated recently.Patriciushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08906131174326742939noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6845239886251312993.post-53814682456348426412011-08-21T22:38:58.343-07:002011-08-21T22:38:58.343-07:00Perhaps in some ways cremation is more respectful ...Perhaps in some ways cremation is more respectful than consigning a body to the earth to be devoured by rats and worms!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com