Is it pagan to cremate?

[Xeno.of.athens]

Traditionally Christians have been buried because the scriptures speak of those lying in the grave rising on the last day which implies burial. And Israelites were buried rather than cremated. But in more recent times cremation has become the norm for various reasons. Is it consistent with the holy scriptures (full 73 book canon) to cremate a Christian instead of bury them?

 

[Tuur]

I don't know. I suspect it's more of the why behind a ritual than the ritual itself. The body decays, often to nothing. In places in Europe there was no effort to keep the remains intact after some period of years, with bodied disinterred and graves reused where space was at a premium. It's a presumptuous idea that man could prevent resurrection by destroying the body. That said, I just don't know scripturally.

 

[PloverWing]

Is there anything in Scripture (73 book canon is fine) that says that God cannot resurrect a person whose body has been cremated -- or, indeed, whose body has decayed to nothing?

The Bible starts out by telling us that we are dust, and to dust we will return. The miracle of resurrection is that God is able to take that dust and re-create it as a glorious new being.

 

[AlexB23]

Traditionally Christians have been buried because the scriptures speak of those lying in the grave rising on the last day which implies burial. And Israelites were buried rather than cremated. But in more recent times cremation has become the norm for various reasons. Is it consistent with the holy scriptures (full 73 book canon) to cremate a Christian instead of bury them?

Cremation is not that good for the atmosphere (contributes to global warming), but scripture does not mention anything for or against cremation. Burial is better for direct CO2 emissions, especially if the coffins are flat-packed and no embalming is used. Cremation is better for long term emissions. I have a dislike for modern Nat. Geo, but this article below is pretty good. You can use Magnolia1234's add-on for Firefox and Chrome to circumvent the paywall, and sail the 7 seas.

Just refer to what your church believes. Many Catholics are against cremation.


Burial vs. Cremation emissions: The environmental toll of cremating the dead

 

[MForbes]

If it didn’t cost so much to get buried nowadays, there would be fewer cremations.

 

[joshua28]

Some thoughts to consider: Three Reasons Why Cremation is Unbiblical

 

[The Liturgist]

Is there anything in Scripture (73 book canon is fine) that says that God cannot resurrect a person whose body has been cremated -- or, indeed, whose body has decayed to nothing?

The Bible starts out by telling us that we are dust, and to dust we will return. The miracle of resurrection is that God is able to take that dust and re-create it as a glorious new being.

Obviously not, but this argument is a red herring, for it has nothing to do with why the Orthodox Church refuses to perform funerals for persons who opt to be cremated voluntarily.

The reason why we ban voluntary cremation in Orthodoxy, and the reason why Roman Catholicism traditionally did so as well, is that we regard the act as being one of unacceptable violence to the human form, and one inextricably linked to Pagan religions where cremation was the normal way of disposing of remains.

 

[The Liturgist]

Traditionally Christians have been buried because the scriptures speak of those lying in the grave rising on the last day which implies burial. And Israelites were buried rather than cremated. But in more recent times cremation has become the norm for various reasons. Is it consistent with the holy scriptures (full 73 book canon) to cremate a Christian instead of bury them?

No. I myself have argued against the practice repeatedly. Indeed it used to be illegal, up until the late 19th century, and frankly I wish it still was illegal.

 

[Jonaitis]

Traditionally Christians have been buried because the scriptures speak of those lying in the grave rising on the last day which implies burial. And Israelites were buried rather than cremated. But in more recent times cremation has become the norm for various reasons. Is it consistent with the holy scriptures (full 73 book canon) to cremate a Christian instead of bury them?

I haven't found any prohibition nor suggestion in the biblical canon that supports or condemns cremation. However, our bodies (with our bones) will eventually deteriorate with time, and no doubt many of the saints that lived thousands of years ago may no longer have their remains intact on this planet. So I find that open to the individual and their families.

 

[joshua28]

I haven't found any prohibition nor suggestion in the biblical canon that supports or condemns cremation. However, our bodies (with our bones) will eventually deteriorate with time, and no doubt many of the saints that lived thousands of years ago may no longer have their remains intact on this planet. So I find that open to the individual and their families.

Scripture has a vast amount of revelation that shows the importance of a proper burial: "The Biblical Importance of a Proper Burial."

That revelation shows that cremation is unacceptable to God and should be rejected by believers.

 

[Jonaitis]

Scripture has a vast amount of revelation that shows the importance of a proper burial: "The Biblical Importance of a Proper Burial."

That revelation shows that cremation is unacceptable to God and should be rejected by believers.

Why would the Almighty be concerned about what happens to the body after death?

 

[joshua28]

Why would the Almighty be concerned about what happens to the body after death?

He is the Creator of the human body, so He has the prerogative of what is to be done with at all times. Furthermore, when He redeems people, He owns their bodies both by creation and by redemption.

Whatever He has revealed in His Word about what He wants people to do with their bodies is what humans must do.

 

[joshua28]

It appears that there is no way to edit comments that you make once they have been posted. In my previous comment, I meant to say, "He is the Creator of the human body, so He has the prerogative of determining what is to be done with it . . ."

 

[tampasteve]

I would not tie it to any former pagan rituals, most Christians are very far removed from said rituals and. It is akin to saying we should not celebrate Christmas or Easter or other Christian practice due to some perceived or real former pagan ties - Christ conquered those false religions and owns everything now, they have no power and Christ lives.

That said, there are some traditional views as @The Liturgist stated on why burial is preferred, which Catholic and Orthodox still follow. I view those as man made traditions, not harmful in any way, but also not necessary to continue. The state of the body of billions of people will vary when the resurrection comes. Some will be dust due to decomposition, some will be dust due to cremation, some will have been eaten by animals both before death, in death and after....some will be fossils perhaps. I see no reason why Christ will care.

 

[trophy33]

Traditionally Christians have been buried because the scriptures speak of those lying in the grave rising on the last day which implies burial. And Israelites were buried rather than cremated. But in more recent times cremation has become the norm for various reasons. Is it consistent with the holy scriptures (full 73 book canon) to cremate a Christian instead of bury them?

Our body is a bit of illusion. Its a living tissue, constantly being changing. Your body today is not your body from your childhood, its completely new.

Regarding resurrection, it will be spiritual bodies, not physical ones. After the physical death, you have basically just skeletons after some years, all the softer tissue is decomposed. Skeletons will dissolve after 20 years or sometimes after hundreds of years, depending on the soil they are buried in.

 

[tampasteve]

Regarding resurrection, it will be spiritual bodies, not physical ones. After the physical death, you have basically just skeletons after some years, all the softer tissue is decomposed.

The physical bodily resurrection of the dead is a pretty central tenet of Christianity. When the Creeds speak of "resurrection of the body" they don't mean a spiritual resurrection. Of course it will be a new body, just as Christ's resurrected body was not the exact same but was still a physical body.

 

[trophy33]

The physical bodily resurrection of the dead is a pretty central tenet of Christianity. When the Creeds speak of "resurrection of the body" they don't mean a spiritual resurrection. Of course it will be a new body, just as Christ's resurrected body was not the exact same but was still a physical body.

Just few years after death your body will be just a skeleton. I do not think you believe you will be resurrected as a skeleton, i.e. your body will still have to be created new. And the properties of the body will be spiritual, it will not be meat and blood.

Jesus appeared and disappeared before their eyes, He went through closed doors etc.

 

[tampasteve]

Just few years after death your body will be just a skeleton. I do not think you believe you will be resurrected as a skeleton, i.e. your body will still have to be created new. And the properties of the body will be spiritual, it will not be meat and blood.

Indeed it will be created new, but it will still be flesh and blood, just as Jesus's glorified resurrected body is. To believe that Jesus's resurrected body is not flesh and blood is heresy.

Jesus appeared and disappeared before their eyes, He went through closed doors etc.

He did that before the crucifixion as well.

 

[trophy33]

Indeed it will be created new, but it will still be flesh and blood, just as Jesus's glorified resurrected body is.

He did that before the crucifixion as well.

Well, thats your opinion, thats OK.

However, considering the topic of this thread, cremation is simply just quicker than natural decomposition and being slowly eaten by insects and microbes. The body "disappears" (returns back to ecosystem) in both cases. Therefore, its hardly theologically significant. One can even argue that cremation is more respectful to the body than to leave it to be slowly eaten.

 

[joshua28]

That said, there are some traditional views as @The Liturgist stated on why burial is preferred, which Catholic and Orthodox still follow. I view those as man made traditions, not harmful in any way, but also not necessary to continue. The state of the body of billions of people will vary when the resurrection comes. Some will be dust due to decomposition, some will be dust due to cremation, some will have been eaten by animals both before death, in death and after....some will be fossils perhaps. I see no reason why Christ will care.

To say that believers burying their dead is a man-made tradition does not account for a vast amount of biblical data concerning the importance of burial. For instance, Scripture reveals that God denied many people burial as His judgment on them, but rewarded those who were faithful to Him with burial.

There is zero biblical support for cremation, and there are many biblical considerations that strongly argue against its acceptability to God.