Most Christian churches agree that when cremation is chosen, the cremains should be treated with similar dignity and respect as would be afforded in a traditional funeral. They should be placed in an urn and afforded a religious funeral or memorial service, and should be placed in a permanent location for remembrance.
Ash Wednesday – officially known as the Day of Ashes – is a day of repentance, when Christians confess their sins and profess their devotion to God. During a Mass, a priest places the ashes on a worshiper's forehead in the shape of a cross.
In the Bible, there are no passages that prohibit or encourage cremation and scattering of ashes. However, many Christian sects believe a burial funeral aligns with best end-of-life practices. As a result, some Christian clerics may discourage cremation or prohibit it entirely.
In 2 Kings 23:16-20, Josiah took the bones out of the tomb, burned them on the altar, and “defiled it.” However, nowhere in the Old Testament does the Bible command the deceased cannot be burned, nor are there any judgments attached to those that have been cremated.
There is no Biblical precedent for cremation. Ultimately, it depends on the personal wishes of the deceased or, if no wishes were left, the feelings and preferences of those making decisions for their final arrangements. If you decide to cremate and scatter ashes, nothing in the Bible prohibits you from doing so.
While most Catholics keep them on at least throughout Mass (if they receive them before or during Mass), a person could choose to rub them off immediately. And while many Catholics keep their Ash Wednesday ashes on until bedtime, there's no requirement that they do so.
Is it a sin to not get ashes on Ash Wednesday? Some people believe that it is a sin to miss receiving ashes on this day. Some even believe that one would not go to heaven if he or she were not marked with blessed ashes. Neither is true.
No matter what a person's preference is, from the Christian perspective, cremation does not prevent one from going to Heaven. So there's no need to worry, if God can create life from dust, surely he can restore life from ashes.
Scriptures of the Old Testament, such as 2 Kings 23: 16-20 spoke of the desecration of an altar after human bones were burned there; however, nowhere in the Old Testament does it command against the burning of a human body. On the other hand, cremation was not a common practice by New Testament believers.
You can't find ashes to ashes, dust to dust in the Bible because it isn't there! The phrase comes from the funeral service in the Book of Common Prayer, and it is based on Genesis 3:19, Genesis 18:27, Job 30:19, and Ecclesiastes 3:20. Those passages say that we begin and end as dust. Where did the ashes come from?
Is it OK to Keep Cremains at Home? There's nothing bad about keeping cremated remains at home. Even though the practice is legal, those from specific faith communities may object to the practice. Some religious faiths, such as followers of Islam, Eastern Orthodox, and some Jewish sects forbid cremation.
Place the ashes in a memorial in an area of your home where you practice. Practicing yoga or meditation with a loved one nearby is a great way to feel grounded as well as emotionally and spiritually connected to those who have passed.
HAVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SPOUSES, LOVED ONES IN HEAVEN
A. Yes to both. The reunion will take place, but not as husband and wife. We learn this in Jesus' explanation to the Sadducees: "When people rise from death, there will be no marriage.
The average cremated adult will produce about five pounds of pulverized bone fragments, a coarse powder that is sterile and safe to touch, even if the person died of a communicable disease.
There is a belief that the soul continues to wander the Earth for another 40 days after the initial death. While wandering, the soul visits significant places from their life as well as their fresh grave. At the end of the 40 days, the soul finally departs from this world.
Of all world religions, Islam is probably the most strongly opposed to cremation. Unlike Judaism and Christianity, there is little diversity of opinion about it. Cremation is considered by Islam to be an unclean practice.
From a Christian perspective, people who have been cremated can certainly go to Heaven. First, the soul never dies, and when one accepts Christ as their personal savior it is the soul that receives eternal salvation and not the earthly body.
Ashes symbolized mourning, mortality and penance. For instance, in the Book of Esther, Mordecai put on sackcloth and ashes when he heard of the decree of King Ahasuerus (or Xerxes, 485-464 B.C.) of Persia to kill all of the Jewish people in the Persian Empire (Esther 4:1).
Ash Wednesday – officially known as the Day of Ashes – is a day of repentance, when Christians confess their sins and profess their devotion to God. During a Mass, a priest places the ashes on a worshiper's forehead in the shape of a cross.
Ash Wednesday is important because it marks the start of the Lenten period leading up to Easter, when Christians believe Jesus was resurrected. The ashes symbolize both death and repentance. During this period, Christians show repentance and mourning for their sins, because they believe Christ died for them.
The placing of ashes on the forehead is a tradition with roots in the Old Testament. “I turned to the Lord God, to seek help, in prayer and petition, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.” (Daniel 9:3).
Christians who know and love each other on earth will know and love each other in heaven.
We enter heaven immediately upon our death, or our souls sleep until the second coming of Christ and the accompanying resurrection.
Many Christians rely on Matthew 22:30, in which Jesus tells a group of questioners, "At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.”
Burial or Placement in a Columbarium
Two of the most common answers for what to do with ashes after cremation is to place them in an urn, and then bury the urn in a cemetery or place it in a columbarium or mausoleum. A columbarium is a building with small niches, openings designed to hold urns.