Pope Francis has modified the Catholic Church’s official stance on cremation and the preservation of ashes. The last time that this was done was in 2016.
On Tuesday the Vatican ruled that some of deceased persons’ ashes can be kept in places that were significant or dear to them in life. Up till the present time, the Vatican has ruled out scattering the loved ones’ ashes, although in practice many grieving people ignore the ban.
The Vatican’s doctrinal body, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has now issued a document signed by Pope Francis saying, “Church authorities may take into consideration and assess a family’s request to duly preserve a minimal part of the ashes of one of their relatives in a place that is significant for the history of the deceased”.
The Catholic Church’s attitude toward cremation has changed over time. For centuries, religious authorities believed that cremation prevented resurrection of the body and thus forbade Catholic families from cremating their loved ones.
Over time, the Church has amended its stance on cremation, lifting its ban and issuing guidelines for how to handle ashes with care. The present modification overrules the instruction on the burial of the deceased and the conservation of the ashes in cases of cremation that Pope Francis gave in 2016.
The 2016 document affirmed that the Church prefers the burial of the remains of the faithful in cemeteries or other sacred places, as a sign of respect for the human body and a reminder of the hope of resurrection, but it also acknowledged that cremation is not prohibited, unless it is chosen for reasons contrary to Christian doctrine. The instruction also specified that the ashes of the cremated faithful must be kept in a sacred place, such as a church or a cemetery, and cannot be scattered, divided, preserved in mementos or jewelry, or brought to private homes. The document stated that these practices are not compatible with the Christian faith and show a lack of reverence for the dignity of the human person and the memory of the deceased.
This latest liberalization of that stance reflects the changing attitudes towards the practice of cremation, which is growing in popularity in Catholic communities across the United States and that the Catholic Church has been unable to curb. Nearly one third of American Catholic families opt for cremation today, and the number continues to grow each year.
