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Posted on 04/03/2012 11:25:20 AM PDT by marshmallow
Rome, Italy, Mar 30, 2012 / 01:44 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Catholic Church in Italy has issued new guidelines that rule out scattering the cremated remains of a person or the keeping them in an urn at home.
“Cremation is considered as concluded when the urn is deposited in the cemetery,” says the appendix to the new edition of Funeral Rites issued by Italian Episcopal Conference.
“The practice of spreading ashes in the wild or keeping them in places other than the cemetery,” it adds, “raises many concerns about its full consistency with the Christian faith, especially when they imply pantheistic or naturalist conceptions.”
The new book of Funeral Rites was published earlier this month and will come into force in parishes across Italy on Nov. 2, All Souls Day.
Official statistics suggest that around 10 percent of Italians who die are cremated. Since 2001 the Italian government has permitted ashes to be kept at homes in urns or to be scattered on land or sea.
In the lead-up to the new Funeral Rites being produced this month, there was some media speculation in Italy that the Church would also accept these practices under certain circumstances.
Traditionally, the Catholic Church permitted cremation only when grave public necessity required the rapid removal of bodies, such as in time of plague or natural disaster.
The concern of the Church was that the rejection of Christian burial could be viewed as a rejection of Christian belief in the resurrection of the body and immortality of the soul. Indeed, the use of cremation was championed from the 18th century Enlightenment onwards by many anti-Catholic movements such as the Freemasons.
(Excerpt) Read more at catholicnewsagency.com ...
I’m so sorry you don’t get it. What I was commenting on was the FACT that I did not realize the Catholic Church allowed for cremation. Whether by choice or by a horrible accident, like the WTC, it was the idea that the RCC EVER condones cremation that surprised me. I just did not know that. Please stop with your “usual anti-Catholic vainglory.” It most certainly applies NOWHERE, as usual.
Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:
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No, I was right: anti-Catholic vainglory. And why would it surprise you that you didn’t know something about the Catholic faith? That happens pretty regularly. Celtic Cross called you out on that on Jan. 18th, for instance. That too all of two seconds on google to spot. It’s just that “usual”.
Good work.
Snotty bigots don’t make very good “innocent inquirers”.
The body is sacred, it shouldn’t be tossed to the wind.
God thinks more us than we do ourselves.
Brother, I saw that program too. Like many good programs shown on PBS it was made as a joint venture with the BBC, so the BBC archives might have it still.
It was an expose on shady practice by crematoriums. One common way they save money is to run the furnace at too low a temperature leaving the bones more or less intact. At recommended tempteratures, some larger bones may appear intact, but they crumble to dust at a touch.
I have never really seen the problem with cremation. It is just the speeding up of the natural process that occurs to all dead meat, and what happens to my body when I am no longer using it is fairly irrelevent to me. Once the soul is gone, my body is just a chunk of rotting meat.
Treat it with respect for my family’s sake, sure, but not for my sake. I have been promised a replacement body at the resurrection. We all have.
I will never know “something about the Catholic faith” as long as the “answers” I get are addressed to “Snotty bigots”. Once again, they are called the BEatidues, NOT the ATTITUDES. So, I’m forced to learn about Catholicsm from those less “informed” than you. Maybe even “poorly cathechised” former catholics. Who may or may not know about cremation and what the church teaches about it. Or “relics” that are buried beneath altars. Are there bones of “saints” buried beneath altars, or vials of the “tears of Mary”, or other relics of veneration? And BTW, shouldn’t that “bone” that belonged to a certain saint be joined with his other bones? Why would the Catholic Church condoned taking one bone from a person and burying it at an altar, thus leaving him incomplete? For their Catholic vainglory, perhaps?
-—especially when they imply pantheistic or naturalist conceptions.”-—
Understandable with the spread of New Age beliefs and practices.
This is a prudential, pastoral position, subject to change, since the practice is not intrinsically evil.
I believe the original prohibition dates back to the 11th century, and the spread of gnostic sects which denigrated the body, regarding it as a hindrance to spirit.
"Once the soul is gone, my body is just a chunk of rotting meat"
You know not what you say. Just look at how I think it was Jacobs body was taken to the promised land and levitical law respects the body.
Also how Christ too was carefully attended. It's in the bible also in Christian tradition as we know where some of the apostles and believers burial places are know. Also look at the respect we have with our bodies at the cemeteries are loved ones through out the generations are buried. In my humble opinion.
You wrote:
“I will never know “something about the Catholic faith” as long as the “answers” I get are addressed to “Snotty bigots”.”
If they are addressing you that way, then maybe you should change your actions that lead to that. Ever think of that?
“Once again, they are called the BEatidues, NOT the ATTITUDES.”
So, when you make a sarcastic remark about 9/11 is that Beatitude or Attitude? You tell me.
“So, I’m forced to learn about Catholicsm from those less “informed” than you.”
No, you’re not. You could read the Catechism. Are you helpless? Illiterate? You can’t send an email to Catholic Answers?
“Maybe even “poorly cathechised” former catholics. Who may or may not know about cremation and what the church teaches about it. Or “relics” that are buried beneath altars. Are there bones of “saints” buried beneath altars, or vials of the “tears of Mary”, or other relics of veneration? And BTW, shouldn’t that “bone” that belonged to a certain saint be joined with his other bones?”
Nope. It shouldn’t.
“Why would the Catholic Church condoned taking one bone from a person and burying it at an altar, thus leaving him incomplete?”
He’ll be incomplete until the resurrection. He’s in Heaven without a body so having one of his bones in a relic stone in an altar does nothing to change that situation. You did realize that obvious fact, right? I mean, that’s what people with common sense and a basic understanding of salvation history would see.
“For their Catholic vainglory, perhaps?”
The vainglory is all yours. And again, if someone calls you names, maybe you should not have acted in a way to be called those names.
You have shown me quite well the ATTITUDES. Thank you. And the "brilliant common sense" that the RCC bases her doctrines and beliefs on. You are a wonderful witness for the catholic faith. Believe me.
You wrote:
“No, actually the burying of someone’s bone beneath an altar in a “relic box” becomes an important part of the complete picture of deceit and paganism that is the Catholic Church.”
That completely phony and baseless accusation of “deceit and paganism that is the Catholic Church” is EXACTLY the sort of thing that gets you correctly labeled by Catholic posters here.
“”Common sense” and “a basic understanding of salvation history would see”???? lol! Yes, it takes a great deal of “common sense” to “see” that the thigh bone of a Catholic saint is to be venerated while on that long Catholic Road to “salvation”. Please, show me more of your “common sense” of your church so I may become more “informed.””
The common sense would be that salvation history dictates the general resurrection has not happened. Do you agree or disagree? If you agree, then those who die are incomplete anyway so a relic is not an issue in terms of “completeness” or however you referred to it.
“It takes a particularly brilliant mind to understand that the vial of Mary’s tears buried beneath the altar of St. Michael the Archangel Church of the Faithful, is indeed the real thing.”
Are tears bones? No. So it doesn’t work for your complaint anyway. Someone can be complete even if his tears are not with the rest of his body. Also, the fact that there were and are frauds perpetrated by unscrupulous men doesn’t change that even the Bible lauds relics as used by God.
“After all, the magisterium approved it and three witnesses came forward to claim healing when gazing upon the tears. And of course, Michael the Archangel protects it. With enough prayer to him.”
And again, none of that works with your earlier claim, so of course you shifted to something else. And it still doesn’t work. God used relics. The Bible makes that clear. Whether or not you believe they can be used is, therefore, irrelevant.
“You have shown me quite well the ATTITUDES. Thank you. And the “brilliant common sense” that the RCC bases her doctrines and beliefs on. You are a wonderful witness for the catholic faith. Believe me.”
The Catholic Faith - which you clearly hate - will long out live you. If you choose to attack it, that is your choice and you will have to explain your actions later, fine. But the insincerity and intellectual dishonesty used by anti-Catholics so frequently is not an aid to anyone, least of all, them. Again, you were correctly labeled.
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