* The following is part of a teaching series for a Sunday school class.
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Life, Death & Growing
Old—Burial
vs. Cremation
1.
Does the Bible and the Christian theological
tradition have anything to say about our handling of the body of a dead person?
a.
Are the responses of burial of the body and the
cremation of the body equally valid?
b.
What does the Bible say about this issue?
c.
What does Church history tell us?
d.
What theological messages are we communicating
by burial? By cremation?
2.
I would like to state my theses up front so you
know where I’m going and what I’ll be arguing for:
1.
Burial of the dead body is more consistent with the biblical and
theological reasoning found within Christianity.
2.
Although cremation is not necessarily sinful, it ought to be discouraged
as a Christian response to death.
3.
Important statement regarding differences of
viewpoints!
a.
I know that some of you have already reached
convictions on these matters… will you test your convictions by the Word of
God?
b.
I know that some of you have already
participated in fulfilling loved one’s desires to be cremated. The goal is not make you feel guilty or
bad.
c.
We need to recognize there may be differences of
view on this issue. We should
strive for a biblical-theological approach in all of our thinking no matter
where we end up in our decision-making.
4.
Definitions and descriptions
a.
Burial: “to deposit (a corpse) in the ground, in
a tomb; to inter.”
i. Technical
term is “inhumation”: “the action or practice of burying in the ground.”
ii. “There
is a tendency in discussions of cremation, especially by advocates of that
practice, to use
bury in the sense,
‘to dispose of a corpse’—and assume that cremation is one way to bury.
This is a sloppy use of language—though
it is often helpful to cremation advocates by making the process appear to be
just a variation of more common (in our day and culture) burial practices.”
b.
Cremation: the disposal of a corpse by means of
fire.
i. “The
Encyclopedia of Cremation defines
cremation as the practice of intentionally heating a deceased human body to
‘between 1,400 and 2,100
0 F to consume … the body’s soft tissue and
reduce the skeleton to fragments and particles.’”
ii. “The
process now takes only a few hours (depending on the size of the body) and
produces 5-7 pounds of bone fragments (sometimes referred to by the neologism,
cremains).
These fragments are run through a mechanical grinder,
shredder, or tumbler to reduce the bone fragments to a small size.
Although popularly referred to as
“ashes,” these remains are not like the soft flakes characteristic of wood ash;
they are more like sand with some larger bone fragments the size of rice,
though this depends on the equipment used (newer systems produce a very fine
powder).”
c.
“Promession”—the corpse is frozen and dried
using liquid nitrogen.
A
mechanical vibration then causes the body to fall apart into powder.
a.
First American cremation: Colonel Henry Laurens
1792
·
He was afraid of being buried alive
b.
Next recorded cremation: 1876—Baron Joseph Henry
Louis Charles De Palma
·
First use of commercial crematory furnace
c.
After 1876 for the next three years there were
only four recorded cremations
d.
Not until 1880’s and 1890’s is there an
increased momentum for cremation
1884
|
16 instances
|
1899
|
1,996 instances
|
e.
At the end of the 19th century:
i. 24
crematories in 15 states
ii. 10,000
cremations performed—less than 1% of deaths in U.S.
f.
Cremation percentages grow over time
i. 1%
crossed in early 1920’s
ii. 2%
in 1930’s
iii. 3%
in 1940’s
iv. 1963:
4%
v. 1999:
25%
vi. 2004:
29%
g.
Recent figures and trends
i. 2005:
32.3%
ii. 2010:
40.4%
iii. 2015:
48.5% vs. Burial rates at 45.4%
·
First time cremation rates were greater than
burial rates nationally
iv. Projections
Year
|
Cremation
|
Burial
|
2020
|
56.2%
|
37.9%
|
2025
|
63.6%
|
30.5%
|
2030
|
71%
|
23.2%
|
2035
|
77.8%
|
16.3%
|
h.
“A funeral practice that was practically unknown
100 years ago has become mainstream and appears to be growing quite rapidly.”
Biblical
Considerations
6.
Cremation in the Bible: Three potential
references
a.
1 Samuel 31.8-13—Saul and his sons
b.
Amos 2.1-3—Judgment on Moab
c.
Amos 6.8-10—translation issue
i. “a
relative who is to burn the bodies” (NIV; cf. KJV, RSV, NRSV)
ii. “undertaker
will lift him up to carry out his bones” (NASB)
iii. “the
one who anoints him for burial” (ESV)
·
If cremation is involved it may be that “In the
carnage of war, normal burial is not always possible, especially when the
number of casualties is high.”
·
“The text can also be understood as referring to
someone who burns incense or a memorial fire for the deceased.”
d.
A couple of summary points:
i. There
are only three references in the Bible to actual cremation.
ii. These
instances come from narrative and prophetic texts describing things that
happened or will happen.
“It is
not legitimate to build a theological conclusion on such texts.
They do, however, form the first part
of a larger picture of the biblical view of cremation.”
7.
God’s use of fire in judgment (partial
cremation)
a.
Leviticus 10.1-2—Nadab and Abihu
b.
Numbers 16.1-38—Korah’s rebellion
c.
Joshua 7.1-26—Achan’s household
d.
Leviticus 20.14—man who marries a woman and her
mother; all burned with fire
e.
Leviticus 21.9—priest’s daughter “profanes
herself by harlotry” is burned with fire
·
“Such a history of judgment fire ‘hardly
provided a positive incentive for the burial practice of cremation’ in ancient
Israel.”
8.
Fire is often used in the Bible as symbolic of
judgment
a.
Old Testament: Isaiah 10.16-17; 30.27-28, 33;
Jeremiah 4.4 (cf. Lamentations 2.3-4); Zephaniah 1.18; 3.8; Malachi 4.1
b.
New Testament:
i. Jesus:
Matthew 3.10, 11, 12; 7.19; 13.40, 42, 50; 18.8; 22.7; 25.41 (just to cite
Matthew)
ii. Paul:
1 Corinthians 3.13, 15; 2 Thessalonians 1.7
iii. Others:
Hebrews 10.27; 12.18, 29; 2 Peter 3.7; Jude 7
iv. Revelation:
8.5, 7, 8; 9.18; 11.5; 14.10; 16.8; 18.8; 19.20; 20.10, 14, 15; 21.8
·
“In themselves, these passages say nothing
directly regarding cremation.
They
do, however, help us to sense how God’s people would have viewed such a
practice against their conceptual world view…
Though perhaps not as negative to 21
st century
Americans, fire would have had a much more negative association for the
Israelites.
That fire would form
any part of their funeral practice seems quite unlikely.”
9.
Burial in the Bible
“Scripture clearly reports
that biblical characters showed great care and respect to the bodies
of their deceased loved ones, with burial being the most
common funerary practice.”
_________________________
“There is no dispute that
the Bible presents burial as the standard way to handle a corpse.”
a.
Sarah (Genesis 23.3-18)—1st recorded
burial
i. Abraham
goes to great lengths to secure a tomb
ii. This
tomb becomes the burial place for next few generations:
·
Abraham: Genesis 25.9-10
·
Isaac and Rebekah: Genesis 35.29; 49.31
·
Jacob and Leah: Genesis 50.13
b.
Rachel buried by Jacob on the way to Bethlehem:
Genesis 35.19-20
c.
Joseph made his sons promise to bury his bones
in the land of Israel (Genesis 50.25; Exodus 13.19; Joshua 24.32; cf. Hebrews
11.22)
d.
Aaron (1st high priest) buried in
Moserah (Deuteronomy 10.6)
e.
Moses was buried by God opposite Beth-Peor
(Deuteronomy 34.5-8)
·
“The burial of Moses is one of the most intriguing
in Scripture, for it was performed by God himself, and it was followed by a
dispute between the archangel Michael and Satan, who apparently desired the
body of Moses for an unspecified reason.”
(cf. Jude 9)
·
“If this was God’s preferred method in the only
such recorded instance, it ought to be treated as a significant precedent.”
f.
Joshua: Joshua 24.30
g.
Various judges: Judges 8.32; 10.2, 5; 12.7, 10,
12, 15; 16.31
h.
Samuel: 1 Samuel 25.1
i.
David: 1 Kings 2.10 (cf. Acts 2.29—Peter
mentions David’s burial and tomb)
j.
Various kings:
i. 1
Kings 14.31; 15.8, 24; 16.6; 22.37; 22.50
ii. 2
Kings 8.24; 9.28; 10.35; 12.21; 13.9, 13; 14. 16, 20; 15.7, 38; 16.20; 21.18,
16; 23.30
k.
John the Baptist: Matthew 14.12
l.
Lazarus: John 11.17-18
m.
Ananias and Sapphira: Acts 5.6, 9-10
n.
Stephen: Acts 8.2
o.
Jesus: John 19.38-42—“as is the burial custom of
the Jews” (v. 40)
“In
one sense, Jesus’ burial is simply one more example of common Jewish custom. As
a narrative even it has no inherent normative force.
But as with other aspects of Jesus’ life,
as Christians we often take his life as exemplary, if not technically
imperative.
Our wedding
ceremonies often refer to Jesus blessing marriage by his presence at the
wedding in
Cana (John 2).
He attended the
Sabbath services, visited with ‘sinners,’ showed compassion
to those who hurt, etc. In the same way, and to the same extent (and
only to
that extent), we are wise to consider his example in death, for in this case it
is not
only what would be normal for someone of
his day and culture, but it was also ordained
by God that he be buried (Isa 53:9).
The NT makes an emphatic point that his
body did not suffer decay when he was buried (Acts 2:31; see also v 27, citing Ps
16:10); cremation was not an option.
None of these factors in their own right would, perhaps,
be determinative, but since they complement all the other factors considered
thus far, it should not be ignored that Jesus was indeed buried— not
cremated—and that by God’s choice.”
10. Refusal
to show care for a corpse or to deny a decedent burial as a sign of judgment
a.
Individuals denied a proper burial
i. Jehoiakim:
Jeremiah 22.19
ii. Jezebel:
2 Kings 9.30-37
iii. Ahab’s
offspring: 1 Kings 21.17-24
iv. Sisera
and Jabin: Psalm 83.9-10
b.
Other references related to lack of burial being
a sign of contempt or judgment
i. Deuteronomy
28.26; 2 Samuel 21.6, 9; 1 Kings 14.10-13; 2 Kings 9.10
ii. Psalm
79.1-4; Ecclesiastes 6.3
iii. Jeremiah
8.2; 14.16; 16.4-6; 25.33; 29.22
iv. Revelation
11.9
11. Summary
statements on biblical material
a.
Biblical record consistently depicts burial.
b.
Cremation is virtually unknown in biblical
practice.
c.
“The biblical text suggests that cremation was
viewed as abhorrent or at least offensive.
The connotations of fire imagery in Scripture are consistent
with this reaction.”
d.
“These observations are strictly descriptive.
There is no normative statement forbidding, allowing, or commanding
cremation.
(The only exception
being the two legal dictates in tightly defined situations as retribution for
particularly heinous sin.)
On the
other hand, it must be observed that neither is there any prescriptive
statement establishing burial as the only acceptable practice for God’s
people.
In and of themselves,
descriptive statements in the biblical text are not normative.
Even though we have a consistent,
positive pattern for burial, and even though we have some indications of God’s
preference for burial in two particular situations (Moses and Jesus), we cannot
hermeneutically extrapolate a divine imperative for all situations.
For this we need to involve additional
considerations, both theological and cultural.”
Theological
Considerations
12. The
nature of the human body
a.
Created by God and declared good: Genesis 2.7;
1.31
i. Material
body is not denigrated
ii. Body
is not a “prison-house” of the soul (e.g., Plato)
b.
Incarnation: Jesus shares in our flesh and
blood—Hebrews 2.14
“Christians should treat
the human body, with its strange and idiosyncratic design, with special
respect.
Why?
Because this is the form in which God became flesh.”
c.
Body and salvation
i. Body
will be redeemed—Romans 8.23
ii. Body
will be transformed—Philippians 3.21
iii. 1
Corinthians 6.12-20
·
Lord is for the body—v. 13
·
Raise us up—v. 14
·
Body is a temple of the Holy Spirit—v. 19
“True,
this is a description of a live body, but upon death a body, which is no longer indwelt
by the Spirit, but which has had the privilege of being God’s temple, ought to
be honored.
Though not technically
indwelt after death, if the body is a member of
Christ due, in part to the resurrection, then this body is still somehow, united
to Christ.”
·
We are called to glorify God with our body—v. 20
d.
When someone is buried, the New Testament still
refers to the person as being buried
i. Mark
15.44-47
·
“Mark refers to Jesus as a person—though what
was taken down from the cross, wrapped, and placed in the tomb was, indeed, the
corpse.”
ii. Mark
16.1, 6—personalized speech about the body
iii. John
11.43—Lazarus is called for even though the spirit of Lazarus is not in the
tomb
·
“Even in death the body that is laid in the tomb
is not simply a body.
It is the
body of the person.
More properly,
it is the person as respects the body.
It is the person who is buried or laid in the tomb… So what is laid in
the grave is still integral to the person who died.
In and during death the person is identified with the
dissolved material entity.”
·
“This is not to suggest that a corpse is all
there is of a person, but it certainly does argue that we ought not speak of
the immaterial soul as the ‘real person’ who only possesses a (disposable)
body.”
13. The
resurrection of the body
a.
All will be raised—John 5.25-29
b.
Bodily resurrection—Philippians 3.21
c.
1 Corinthians 15.35-44
i. Image
of sowing a seed—vv. 37-38
·
Burial tends to more accurately picture this
reality
ii. Contrasts—vv.
42-44
Sown a Perishable body
|
Raised
an Imperishable body
|
Sown
in Dishonor
|
Raised
in Glory
|
Sown
in Weakness
|
Raised
in Power
|
Sown
a Natural body
|
|
iii. “There
is an organic connection between a seed which is planted in the ground and the
stalk of wheat which grows from that seed—and that despite the fact that the
atoms of the seed are not necessarily the same atoms to be found in the plant
which grows from it.
Paul argues
the same is true of the resurrection.
The body which is planted in the grave is not identical with the body
that is raised (vv 42-44).
The
body which is planted (the ‘seed’) is perishable and dishonorable since it is
dead and decaying; it is a weak and natural body.
But the body raised, though organically connected with the body
planted, will be imperishable, glorious, powerful, and spiritual.”
“In an effort to comfort
those mourning the loss of a loved one we have too often adopted terminology
that does not reflect a biblical view of resurrection or a full-orbed, biblical
view of the human person.
When we
say, referring to a body lying in the casket, ‘This is not really Joe, it’s
just his body; the real Joe is in heaven with Jesus,’ we have not made a full
biblical statement.
It is
certainly true that Joe is in heaven with Jesus (assuming Joe was a Christian),
but we have implied that the body in the casket is no longer important.
More significantly, we have divorced
the body from the person; it was only a disposable possession.
The corpse is certainly nonfunctional
now that it has been separated from the immaterial, but it is still an integral
part of the person, else there would be no point in a resurrection.
If the spirit was the real person,
there would be no further need for a body, of, if a body were desired, it could
be created with no reference to the original body.
God, however, has said that our mortal bodies will be
resurrected and glorified.”
Historical and
Cultural Considerations
14. Non-Christian
systems and their approach to cremation
a.
Hinduism—has practiced cremation for thousands
of years
b.
Buddhism—follows the example of Buddha who was
cremated (486 BC)
c.
Confucianism—originally forbade cremation but
later embraced the practice
·
Japan has the highest cremation rate in the
world: 100%
15. Burial
and the spread of Christianity
“Is it irrelevant that when Christianity spread across
the western world, cremation ceased to be the most prevalent practice?
Though burial was, indeed, a Jewish
practice, the early church was soon a Gentile majority as the gospel spread
across the Roman world.
In Gentile
areas the norm was often cremation due to the many centuries of Greco-Roman
influence.
Yet Christianity—even
Gentile Christianity—never adopted or practiced cremation.
This would suggest that the Christian
world view (including the Christian doctrines of creation and resurrection)
inherently rejected a pagan practice viewed as incompatible with Christianity.”
16. Cremation
in the United States—some historical aspects
a.
“The changes in America regarding the practice
of cremation over the past century are significant in that they entail a shift
‘from certain religious beliefs and metaphors (most of them Christian) to
alternatives (some Asian, some New Age, and some more modern versions of
Christianity).’
It has been, in other
words, a
theological shift in how
people view death—actually a shift in how the person is viewed in relation to
this world and to God, and that deliberately and consciously away from an
orthodox Christian worldview.
The
increasing popularity of cremation is often no less ‘spiritual’ than
traditional Christian burial, it is just a different spirituality—a
nonchristian one.”
b.
“Throughout the history of the pro-cremation
movement in the 19
th and early 20
th century it was almost
exclusively unorthodox in leadership.
Though this argument should not be pressed too far, the histories
written make it quite clear that ‘free thinkers,’ whether they be Masons,
Unitarians, Theosophists, or atheists, were the primary advocates of cremation
in this early period, particularly those enamored with eastern thought.”
c.
“Liberal Protestant ministers … were especially
concerned with eradicating the popular notion that the earthly body would have
some continued existence in the afterlife—an idea which in their view defied both
science and rational thought… [They] considered the immaterial world of the
mind and spirit as the
true reality
and … deemed an undue attention to the body as ‘unsophisticated.’”
d.
The advance of cremation since the 1960’s—what
caused the expansion of the practice?
i. Rodney
Decker references Stephen Prothero’s Purified
by Fire: A History of Cremation in America (Berkley: Univ. of California
Press, 2001) as mentioning the following items:
·
Vatican II
·
Expose’ of funeral industry—Jessica
Mitford The American Way of Death
(1963)
·
Rise of the counter-culture and environmentalism
movement—“Save the land for the living.” (Slogan by some cremationists)
ii. “Funeral
practices express one’s worldview.”
Conclusions and
Some Objections Answered
17. The
Bible is consistently pro-burial.
a.
There is little about cremation in the Bible
b.
The most that can be said for cremation
biblically is that there may be cases where it is not condemned
c.
Objection:
Our culture is different than the
biblical culture. There are other
practices we modify to fit our culture (e.g., “greet one another with a holy
kiss” becomes a handshake or hug).
i. Wayne
Grudem lists out six potential candidates for culturally relative commands in
the New Testament
·
Holy kiss (Romans 16.16; 1 Corinthians 16.20; 2
Corinthians 13.12; 1 Thessalonians 5.26; 1 Peter 5.14)
·
Foot washing (John 13.14; compare 1 Timothy
5.10, which is not a command)
·
Head covering for women or wives in worship (1
Corinthians 11.4-16)
·
Short hair for men (1 Corinthians 11.14)
·
No jewelry or braided hair for women (1 Timothy
2.9; 1 Peter 3.3)
·
Lifting hands in prayer (1 Timothy 2.8)
ii. Grudem
notes that “
all of these examples refer
to physical items or actions that carry symbolic meaning.”
iii. He
further notes: “
only the physical,
surface manifestation is culturally relative, and the underlying intent of
the command is
not culturally relative
but is still binding on us today.”
iv. Rodney
Decker applies this to the burial/cremation issue:
“Other customs, however,
either contain or embody theological truth and are used as such to teach
Christian doctrine.
Although the
exact nature of a grave may be cultural (and perhaps even
geographical/geological) in that it may be an earth-dug grave or a man-made mound
or tomb, the
practice of burial
appears to be used theologically in the Bible.
It is not only the basis of Jesus’ teaching on resurrection
but is the basis of Paul’s extended theological explanation of resurrection.
In such cases the practice should be
viewed as not merely cultural but also theologically normative.”
18. The
practice of burial better reflects and symbolizes biblical and Christian
theological distinctives—salvation of the body through resurrection.
a.
“[W]hat practice best reflects the Christian
hope of the gospel?
Should we be
concerned to testify to our hope even in the form of our funerals and the
disposition of our corpses?
I
would suggest that this
is the case
and that burial of the body presents a much clearer picture of resurrection
than does the deliberate destruction of the body by fire.
Although only an analogy, Paul’s
picture in 1 Corinthians 15 of death and resurrection as that of a seed which
germinates is a deliberate and important analogy. … The analogy is deliberately
chosen to illustrate the resurrection.
If we are to proclaim the hope of the gospel in death, we are wise to
conduct our funerals and dispose of our corpses in a similar way.
Burning and grinding a corpse to ash
does not seem to reflect the Christian hope of resurrection.
The mental picture seems to be at odds
with our theology.
It would seem
most appropriate to preserve the deliberate biblical analogy of a seed planted
rather than devise a new fiery picture—one never used theologically in the
Bible to portray the death or resurrection of the believer.”
b.
“As Paul taught, the very body that is sown
perishable is raised an imperishable body (1 Cor. 15.42).
The is best symbolized by burial, for
it anticipates the final preservation of the body in the resurrection.
The image presented of the dead being asleep
(1 Thes. 4:13-18) is also preserved through burial.
The Christian has escaped the judgment of fire presented in
the Bible (Rev. 20:14).
Cremation
is the wrong picture to remind believers of
salvation
in the body by resurrection (cf. Rom. 8:11).
On the other hand, cremation better symbolizes pantheism,
which in its Eastern forms is usually associated with a
salvation from the body by escaping the cycle of reincarnation.”
19. The
practice of burial betters honors the body as a good creation from God and as
an integral part of the Christian’s life.
a.
“For Christians, burial is not the disposal of a
thing.
It is caring for a
person.
In burial, we’re reminded
that the body is not a shell, a husk tossed aside by the ‘real’ person, the
soul within.
To be absent from the
body is to be present with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:6-8; Phil. 1:23), but the body
that remains still belongs to
someone,
someone we love, someone who will reclaim it one day.”
b.
“Deliberate destruction by fire and grinding
seems a quite inappropriate means by which to ‘honor’ the body, and that
despite the word games played by cremationists to make the burning and grinding
sound palatable.”
20. Objections
and answers
a.
Objection:
“It doesn’t matter what happens to the
body because God will resurrect it anyway. God is powerful enough to resurrect a cremated body.”
i. Yes,
God can and will resurrect all bodies (buried, cremated, eaten by animals,
etc.).
ii. The
issue is not God’s power but what theological statements we are making with our
practices with the dead body.
iii. Burial
is a better imagery for the future resurrection.
b.
Objection:
“Cremation is more economical than
burial. Burials can run into the
thousands of dollars and this is not good financial stewardship.”
i. “First,
since when have economic factors been determinative in theological issues?
This is not to suggest that economic
factors are irrelevant.
It does
claim, however, that in itself this does not constitute a determinative
argument.”
ii. “Second,
it is a false picture to contrast cremation and burial in terms of cost.
The difference in the cost of a funeral
is not between burial (expensive) and cremation (inexpensive), but between
extravagance and simplicity.”
21. Final
Concluding Thought…
“Certainly not all deaths
will afford loved ones an opportunity to choose the method of interment… Yet,
if given a choice, those left behind ought to consider carefully what is being
communicated in their handling of the body of the decedent.
After all, within the Christian
tradition, funerals are not simply ways of disposing of dead bodies, nor are
they solely about remembering the departed or expressing grief.
Rather, for believers, funerals ought
to be Christ-centered events, testifying to the message and hope of the gospel.”
Bibliography
Rodney J. Decker, “Is It Better to Bury or Burn? A Biblical Perspective on Cremation and
Norman Geisler and Douglas E. Potter, “From Ashes to Ashes:
Is Burial the Only Christian
David W. Jones, “To Bury or Burn? Toward an Ethic of
Cremation,” Journal of the
Russell D. Moore, “Grave Signs,” Touchstone 20/1 (Jan/Feb 2007), 24-27. Online:
“The NFDA Cremation and Burial Report: Research, Statistics
and Projections” (September
“2015 NFDA Cremation and Burial Report: Research, Statistics
and Projections” (July
Websites:
Rodney J. Decker, “Is It Better to Bury or Burn? A Biblical Perspective on Cremation and
Christianity
in Western Culture,” (William R. Rice Lecture Series; Allen Park, Mich.:
Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary, March 15, 2006), 4. Online: https://www.dbts.edu/pdf/rls/Decker-Cremation.pdf. Decker is quoting the The
Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary (1971).
Jones, “To Bury or Burn? Toward an Ethic of Cremation,” 340.
Norman Geisler and Douglas E. Potter, “From Ashes to Ashes: Is Burial the Only
Christian
Russell D. Moore, “Grave Signs,” Touchstone
20/1 (Jan/Feb 2007). Online:
