In today's densely populated world, people are increasingly thinking about committing their body not to the earth, but to fire. How the church relates to cremation and how reasonable it is to choose this method of burial, we will tell in this article.
Many people, regardless of religion, are increasingly choosing cremation today. This is not surprising, because this type of burial has its advantages:
Different religions view cremation differently. Many of them, such as Judaism and Islam, believe that the body and soul are one, therefore, by destroying the body, we also destroy the soul. Others, for example, Hinduism and Buddhism, on the contrary, are sure that when burned, the soul quickly leaves the body in which it is locked. Catholic Church for many years it forbade the cremation of the dead, but since the 1960s this ban was lifted. And here is the attitude Orthodox Church to cremation still remains extremely negative. Despite the fact that the priests agree to bury the bodies of the cremated dead, they are sure that this is a pagan rite that harms the soul of the deceased.
You may ask: if it is only a matter of time before the body is completely decomposed, then what difference does it make which method of burial was chosen: burial in the ground or cremation? The Church finds an answer to this as well. The fact is that the fact of relation to the body remains important. If the Eastern religions, which are the founders of this tradition, treat the body as a dungeon of the soul, then for Christians the body is a sacred temple. And it is not in the power of a person to decide what will happen to him even after death. The priests claim that by agreeing to cremation, people are offending the Lord himself, the one who gave us this body and instilled life into it.
However, despite the fact that the attitude of the church towards cremation is generally negative, there are many representatives of the Orthodox faith who allow the burning of the body under certain conditions. Such conditions may be the lack of funds to buy a place in the cemetery, and later the arrangement of the grave, the acquisition of a monument and a fence. An exception is also the case when a loved one wants to be buried with his family, however, sanitary standards this is not possible. The fact is that it is possible to bury the body to the deceased father, grandmother, husband or wife only when enough time has passed since the day of death. With an urn, everything is much easier. However, people should understand that it doesn’t matter for a person’s soul whether he is buried in the same grave with a loved one or not. If it was a truly sincere relationship, if these people were connected strong feelings and no less strong faith, then after death their souls will easily find their way to each other, even if the bodies are buried in cemeteries different countries. Another thing is if during life one of the people was a theomachist. Then the burial in one grave will not be a guarantee that the souls will meet after death. Sometimes the church makes concessions and allows cremation for convenience. So, for an aged woman, it will certainly be difficult both physically and financially to get to one end of the city to the grave of her mother and father, to the other - to her husband, and to the neighboring city - to the cemetery where her sister is buried. It is much easier when only one burial place needs to be put in order.
Often, relatives come to church with a will of the deceased, in which it is written about the request to cremate the body. In this case, relatives are interested in how the church relates to cremation and is it possible to violate the will of the deceased? The priests insist on going against the wishes of the deceased and burying the person according to all Christian traditions. In this case, you save the soul of the deceased from a great sin. Also, do not wave ashes over some place, whether it be the sea or the home of the deceased.
If for some reason you nevertheless cremated the body of your loved one, and now you regret your deed, remember that nothing can be changed. Despite the fact that cremation and the Orthodox Church are incompatible concepts, the priests do not advise making a big tragedy out of what happened. What's done is done, and tears won't change anything. The main thing is to understand everything and repent in time. After all, God, placing people in paradise, is guided not by what happened to the body after death, but by what a person was during life.
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: "I would advise not to exaggerate the complexities associated with the betrayal of the earth"
- Father Vladislav, why does the Russian Orthodox Church disapprove of cremation?
The negative attitude of the Russian Orthodox Church towards cremation is explained, first of all, by the fact that this method of burial is at odds with church tradition. There is also a certain theological problem here, because this way of burial does not correspond to the Christian teaching about the Resurrection from the dead. Of course, the point is not that the Lord is unable to resurrect the cremated. But on the part of the human community, a respectful attitude towards the remains of the deceased is expected.
The Church does not categorically forbid cremation under the threat of excommunication from the Communion of those loved ones who decided not to bury, but to cremate the remains of their relatives. The fact is that there are different circumstances. There are difficulties. For example, in Japan. This, of course, is not the case for Russia, but in Japan there are also Orthodox people who belong to the Russian Orthodox Church. And there it is forbidden by law to bring the body to the ground. There is only one way, so to speak, of burial - it is cremation. Only this method is allowed by the laws of the country.
- What, in your opinion, are the reasons for the growing popularity of cremation in Russia today?
I think there is a common reason. It is connected with the fact that traditions are left and forgotten. After all, in Soviet time both believers and non-believers were nevertheless buried, as a rule, in the traditional way, that is, buried in the ground. Although, of course, there was cremation. She advertised. Traditions are being abandoned today. Urbanization plays a role. The villagers, who are usually the most traditional, are becoming less and less. If 50 years ago there were half of the city dwellers, now the connection with the countryside of the vast majority of compatriots is already relative, distant. Already grandfathers, grandmothers in the second, third generation are city dwellers. But, on the other hand, it would seem that the restoration of normal church life should have supplanted cremation. However, we observe what we observe.
- Father Vladislav, what counterarguments can there be that would allow a person not to make a hasty decision to cremate his relative?
First of all, it is necessary to remind about church teaching, about the bodily resurrection from the dead, and about church traditions and rituals. The fact that although such a method of burial is allowed by the Church, in the sense that it is not subject to prohibitions: they do not refuse a funeral service for those who themselves wanted to be cremated - but, nevertheless, the Church does not bless this method of burial. We can appeal to the ecclesiastical and Orthodox conscience.
- Often, supporters of cremation in Russia cite as an example civilized Europe with clean, well-groomed and tidy cemeteries, where there is no place for sad memories. Many do not want to think about the bad in the cemetery ...
The cemetery should be a place of reminder of the most important: of death, of frailty human life, about eternity
The cleaner and neater the cemetery, the better, of course. But this does not mean that the cemetery should not be a place of reminder of death, of the frailty of human life, of eternity. It is designed just to be a place of reminder of the most important. One of the Russian thinkers of the early 20th century said that the cemetery is a school of philosophy.
It's still different things. Yes, in fact, both roads and sidewalks in many Western cities (I would not say that in all, for example, Southern Italy is not at all so clean) are neater, cleaner and tidier, especially in Northern and Central Europe. Also, the cemeteries are cleaner and tidier there. But I don't think cremation prevails there. I think that still and there the remains of the dead are buried more often. Cremation has nothing to do with the cleanliness and neatness of cemeteries. No matter how clean and tidy a cemetery is, it should still remain a reminder of human mortality and eternity.
- How can one relate to the position of a person who supports cremation solely because of financial considerations?
If this is a non-religious person, what can I say to him?! Only that in this case he also does not give a damn about traditions. Still, non-religious people are able to respect traditions. If he is a church person, then everything that we have already talked about should be authoritative and convincing for him.
- Father Vladislav, perhaps now our readers, who have lost their loved ones and native person but who cannot choose between traditional burial and cremation. What advice would you give to people who find themselves in such a difficult situation?
Everything possible must be done so that church norms, church traditions are observed
I would advise them not to exaggerate the difficulties associated with the burial of the body in the traditional way of burial. And I would remind you that they have a duty to their loved ones who have died. And this duty still relates most of all to the concern for the salvation of one's loved ones and the departed. Of course, we do not at all claim that it, salvation, is not available to those who have been cremated. Not at all. But for our part, we must do everything possible to ensure that church norms and church traditions are observed.
- There are times when already matured and churched Christians find out that one of their relatives was cremated. And a lot of people are starting to worry about it. They worry about the posthumous fate of loved ones. How can you calm them down?
They should not worry, because in general any turning back, regretting that it was necessary to do something differently than it was done, is unproductive. They should only work hard. It is not their fault if they were treated in this way against their will. And if they themselves wanted it ... Well, it was a sinful thought and deed. We must pray to God for the forgiveness of sins.
Keep up with the times?
The ideologists of Bolshevism today could give a standing ovation to the data published by Mr. Pavel Kodysh, President of the Union of Funeral Organizations and Crematoria of Russia. Let us quote once again his comment to the Russian News Service: “In Moscow and St. Petersburg, 60% of the dead are cremated.” Today, there are no banners calling for cremation; no one from a high rostrum is obligatory forcing the body to be burned after death.
The only deterrent that openly opposes the construction of new crematoria is the Russian Orthodox Church. So, in July 2015, Metropolitan of Izhevsk and Udmurt Viktorin sent an appeal to the head of the Udmurt Republic, Alexander Solovyov, about the inadmissibility of building a crematorium in Izhevsk:
“With deep sorrow, I received the news of the construction of a crematorium in Izhevsk. This is not my personal concern, but the concern of all Orthodox residents of the Udmurt Republic,” said Metropolitan Viktorin.
For those who believe that the Church should make concessions on this issue, let us recall the words of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia on this matter:
“Of course, we are talking only about, for and buried in the ground human body also turns into dust, but God, by His power from dust and corruption, will restore the body of everyone. Cremation, that is, the conscious destruction of the body of the deceased, looks like a rejection of faith in the universal Resurrection. Of course, many who believe in a universal Resurrection still cremate the dead for practical reasons. In the event of the death of a person close to you, you can bury him, but if you have the opportunity to convince him not to insist on cremation, then try to do it!
Here are the words from the official document "On the Christian Burial of the Dead", which was approved by the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church on May 5, 2015:
“The Church believes that the Lord has the power to resurrect any body and from any element (Rev. 20:13). “We are not afraid of any damage in any way of burial, but we adhere to the old and better custom of burying the body,” wrote the early Christian author Mark Minucius Felix.
The Russian Orthodox Church still considers cremation to be undesirable and does not approve of it.
Attitude towards cremation in ROCOR
ROCOR is uncompromising on the issue of cremation, forbidding its children to burn the bodies of the dead in crematoria
Any person who reads the final document of the ROCOR Council of Bishops will see that the decisions of the Synod are fundamental and do not allow various interpretations. The document is notable for its uncompromising attitude towards the cremation of the bodies of the dead.
“Proponents of cremation are atheists and enemies of the Church. The Greek and Serbian Churches also reacted negatively to this practice. The cremation of the bodies of the dead is contrary to what was established in the Christian Church from the very beginning,” the document says.
“Based on all the facts considered, the Council of Bishops forbids the children of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia to burn the bodies of the dead in crematoria. Priests are required to explain to their parishioners the non-Christian nature of such funerals. They should not serve a church memorial service for those whose bodies are destined for cremation. The names of such dead Christians can only be commemorated at the Proskomedia.
The document discusses in detail the question of how Christians can relate to the will of a relative who wanted to be cremated after death:
“It may happen that some Orthodox believer, out of his ignorance, bequeaths to his close relatives to cremate his body and then dies without receiving a blessing and without repenting of his intention ... If relatives promised the deceased to cremate his body, then they can be freed by the Church from this unreasonable promises through the prayer established for such occasions. The soul of the deceased after death, seeing the stupidity of his desire for cremation of the body, will only be grateful to his loved ones for such a decision.
The Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia at a session of August 20/September 2, 1932, on the issue of cremation of the bodies of the dead, decided: “In principle, the burning of the bodies of Orthodox Christians in crematoria is not allowed due to the fact that this custom is introduced by atheists and enemies of the Church. In all particular difficult cases, provide a decision to the diocesan bishop.
Attitude towards cremation of the Greek Orthodox Church
The Holy Synod of the Greek Orthodox Church in October 2014 stated that the Church would not bury those who bequeathed to be cremated. The Church also considers it her duty to notify the clergy and the pious people of the canonical consequences that the cremation of the bodies of the dead bears.
If it is established that the deceased allowed the cremation of his body, then the succession is not performed on him.
Why is burning a shame?
Saint Nicholas of Serbia: “Burning the body of the deceased is violence”
Some Orthodox continue to sincerely doubt and wonder what is wrong with burning bodies, because the soul is incomparably more important than the flesh. For example, here is the comment of Anna, our reader, outraged that cremation is being questioned:
“It seems that everything comes down only to the opinion of the priests that the vessel of life must be treated with reverence. Is burning a body a disgrace? After all, old torn books are burned, and even icons that are completely out of use. What is the pollution here? In my opinion, this is all “straining a mosquito and swallowing a camel.”
These questions can be answered in the words of St. Nicholas of Serbia:
“You ask me: why does the Christian Church resent the burning of the dead? First, because she considers it violence. Serbs before today they are horrified by the crime of Sinan Pasha, who burned the dead body of Saint Sava on Vracar. Do people burn dead horses, dogs, cats or monkeys? I haven't heard of it, but I've seen them buried. Why, then, commit violence against the dead bodies of people - the rulers of the entire animal world on earth? Is the burning of dead animals, especially in big cities, can justify the burning of dead people?
Secondly, because this pagan and barbaric custom was driven out of Europe by Christian culture almost 2000 years ago. Whoever wants to renew this custom does not want to bring in something cultural, modern, new, but, on the contrary, to return the long-obsolete junk. In America, I saw the graves of great presidents: Wilson, Roosevelt, Lincoln and many others. famous people. None of them were burned."
Elder Paisius Svyatogorets on the attitude towards the remains
It is difficult to find the statements of the holy fathers of the first centuries of Christianity about cremation due to the fact that at that time they wrote, as they say, “on the topic of the day”: the topics of their works concerned the emergence of various kinds of heresies and false teachings, while disputes about the cremation of the dead had not yet acquired on the scale we see today. But we can find out what the respected modern spirit-bearing elders thought, many of whom are glorified as saints.
Athos elder Paisios Svyatogorets was told that in Greece "for reasons of hygiene and to save earthly space" they were going to burn the dead. His answer was simple and clear:
Elder Paisius Svyatogorets: “The fact that the whole atmosphere was polluted is nothing, but the bones, you see, interfered with them!”
“For hygiene reasons? Yes, just listen! Aren't they ashamed to say that? The fact that they dirtied the whole atmosphere is nothing, but the bones, you see, prevented them! And as for “saving the land”… Is it really impossible to find a place for cemeteries in the whole of Greece with all its forests? How can it be: they find so much space for garbage, but they don’t find it for sacred remains. Is there a shortage of land? And how many relics of saints can be in cemeteries? Did they not think of this?
In Europe, the dead are burned not because there is nowhere to bury them, but because cremation is considered progressive. Instead of cutting down some woods and making room for the dead, they would rather make room for them, burning them and turning them to ash. The dead are burned because nihilists want to decompose everything - including man. They want to make sure that there is nothing left that would remind a person of his parents, of his grandfathers, of the life of his ancestors. They want to tear people away from Sacred Tradition, they want to make them forget about eternal life and bind them to this temporal life.
Instead of an epilogue
Recently, I specifically went to the Donskoy cemetery. I looked at the closed columbarium. It is located to the left of the church of St. Seraphim of Sarov. The building was very quiet. I did not see any living people. I caught myself thinking that I was not at all used to the fact that a grave might look like this: pink wall, plastic flowers that will never lose their shape, and at a height of three meters there is a sign with a surname and a name. And there are hundreds of these. He drew attention to the new wall: something like a massive rack with glass doors. Apparently, a new one, since many cells are still empty. They reminded me - please forgive me for such a perhaps inappropriate comparison - the cells in the supermarket where you can put your bag. This was my first trip to the columbarium. And I hope it's the last one.
A crematorium has been operating in St. Petersburg for a long time. And many people, even believers, are not buried in the ground, but burned. It's much cheaper, and old people often don't have the money for a proper funeral. Is it possible to resort to the "services" of the crematorium? Or is it completely unacceptable? Is it a sin to allow a relative to be cremated? How to repent of this sin? How to pray for those who have been cremated? Can I order funeral services for them? What if the relative himself bequeaths himself to be cremated? How to treat the ashes without your consent of the burnt person?
Konstantin, St. Petersburg.
Christian burial will follow in its essence the burial of the Lord. Let “the dust return to the earth” (Ec. 12:7) is said in the Bible. In the rite of the funeral there are the words: "thou art the earth, and to the earth thou shalt depart." The human body, created from “dust”, from the composition of earthly elements, having fallen after the fall of Adam to decay and death, after death returns to matter and disintegrates into elements. There is a deep meaning in this: created literally from “nothing” by the Will and Thought of God, in complex composition souls and bodies, united in the incarnation of a unique personality, after death we lose this part of ourselves - the body - until the time that after resurrection in a new re-creation we find it again, no longer involved in death.
Cremation, the accelerated unnatural or unnatural destruction of the body of the deceased by burning, of course, is alien to Christian culture, the Christian spirit. In cremation, as a modern funeral act, perhaps the terrifying gap between the secular, i.e. a civilization separated from the Church – and a faith that has transformed this fallen and cruel human world for thousands of years. When faith is banished to the margins of social values, the ugly and soulless essence of these very “free values” is exposed as having no basis in the Holiness of God. And, probably, it is no coincidence that the first project of the crematorium appears during french revolution, and cremation as an industrial destruction of human remains develops in Europe in the 19th century, in the era of the triumph evolutionary theory Darwin.
Cremation does not meet Christian morality and cannot be included in the list of Orthodox burial customs. But cremation is only one, only, perhaps, a more expressive example of many other non-Christian norms of social relations (consumer culture, leisure, individualism), which we no longer notice due to their ubiquity.
One should not see any mystical spiritual meaning in cremation, or even a prototype of the “gehenna fire”. Rather, it is precisely the spiritual significance - precisely the churching power of Christian ritualism, which gives ordinary things a heavenly dimension - that cremation is deprived of. It is empty, soulless, indifferent and ruthless to man, like other landscapes of modern megacities.
If it is possible to bury a deceased close, dear person in a grave, in the ground, even if it involves difficulties and expenses, it is better to make every effort to do this. If there is no such possibility, and I know that there are many such cases, I have to be cremated. This is not a sin, but a forced measure, due to external circumstances, to which we cannot oppose anything. If, at the same time, there is something to repent of, it is that they did not make advance efforts so that the body loved one escaped cremation.
Deceased Christian - who accepted holy baptism and, after death, who was honored with a funeral service according to the rite of the Orthodox Church, instead of a grave burial - cremated - can and should be commemorated at Liturgies and memorial services, like other deceased who died in peace with the Church. I am not aware of canons or rules that state otherwise.
The ashes of a cremated person should be treated like any other ashes - to be interred, to create a semblance of a grave, and, if space permits, to put up a cross.
I have heard the erroneous opinion that cremation, instead of the usual decay of the body in the grave, will somehow make it difficult to bodily resurrection from the dead. It's a delusion. St. Gregory the Theologian appeals to those who doubt the possibility of resurrection in their own body: if you, holding a handful of seeds in your hand, easily distinguish one vegetable from another, is it possible that the Lord, Who holds the whole world in his handful, can something disappear or be lost? ? And according to another St. Gregory - Nyssa, the soul gives the body a certain form (idea), it is imprinted in the flesh with a special imprint or seal, set not from the outside, but from the inside. For the identity of the resurrected body with the earthly one, it is not at all necessary that the same material elements unite: the same seal is enough.
Cremation is one of the ritual processes of burial. The procedure involves burning the human body. In the future, the burnt ashes are collected in special urns. The methods of burial of cremated bodies are different. They depend on the religion of the deceased.
The tradition of burning corpses has been known to mankind since ancient times. According to archaeologists, this procedure was first used in the Paleolithic era. Later, this process of burial spread everywhere.
There is a legend about the burial of the Buddha, according to which, his body was burned, and the ashes were buried in several parts of India.
In ancient times, cremation was widespread in Rome and Greece. It was believed that burning the body would help a person to go to the afterlife.
The Christian religion did not initially accept the cremation procedure. For the Orthodox, the burial process was carried out by placing a corpse in the ground. The burning of the human body was a sign of paganism.
Later, in connection with the development of Christianity in European countries, cremation was prohibited. The punishment for violating the ban was the death penalty. The burning procedure has not been used for more than a thousand years.
Today, cremation is widespread both in Europe and in Russian Federation. This is due to the increase in population in large cities and the lack of space in the cemetery. it a big problem. Therefore, more and more Christians prefer the procedure of burning, regardless of how the church relates to cremation. It happens that relatives fulfill the will of the deceased, who, before his death, expressed a desire to be cremated.
Burial of the body in the Christian religion combines Orthodox and pagan elements. It is important to carry out the burial ritual correctly and observe all national and national traditions. This will help the deceased to move to another world.
There are the following rituals:
Funeral preparations are carried out carefully. The deceased is washed with water. According to tradition, a person must appear before God cleansed bodily and spiritually. After that, the body is dressed in best clothes. AT Ancient Russia they were white robes. They were worn by both women and men. AT modern world men are usually dressed in classic black suits and light shirts. Women are buried in dresses of light colors. Now there are many funeral services where you can buy everything you need, including outfits.
Deceased unmarried girls they are buried in wedding dresses, a veil is placed next to them. It is a sign of purity and innocence. Young men wear wedding rings and wedding suits. Perhaps the presence of some wedding traditions. For example, drinking champagne.
Burial takes place on the third day after death. All this time the body is in the room. Have him face the icons. Mirrors are covered throughout the house. This is also a kind of tradition that has its own history. Extraneous sounds are not allowed. A prayer is placed in the hands of the deceased, a whisk is placed on the forehead. A cross must be put on a person. The room is fumigated with incense and church candles are burned.
A person is escorted with special honors. A portrait of the deceased is established, relatives and close people say goodbye, express their condolences to each other. The funeral procession escorts the body of a person to the cemetery, where the burial takes place.
The rite of burial of the soul of the deceased by the priest is obligatory. This is a necessary measure for the remission of the sins of the deceased. Suicides in the Orthodox religion are not buried. There may be exceptions, but they require the permission of the Patriarch of All Russia.
After burial, flowers and wreaths are left on the grave, a wooden cross is placed.
Upon arrival from the cemetery, according to tradition, a wake is held. Tables are laid, prayers are read, special songs are sung. As a rule, the commemoration is held on the third, ninth and fortieth day. It is believed that on the fortieth day the soul leaves the human world and enters the Kingdom of God.
AT major cities everything remains in the cemeteries less space for the burial of people. Today it is a major problem for megacities. There is practically no space for new cemeteries. In this situation, cremation becomes an alternative solution to the problem.
How does the church view cremation? Christian church promotes the burial of the body in the ground. This tradition is associated with many scriptures that man is created in the image and likeness of God. Therefore, even after death, the body must go into the earth. That's why Orthodox faith takes care of the safety of the body.
Cremation is allowed by the church, but only in the form of forced measure. Cemetery space is expensive. Not everyone has the means to purchase it. Burning the body and burying the urn with the ashes is much cheaper. Of course, the burning of the body does not mean the difficulty of the transition to another life. The Church does not refuse funeral services for relatives who decide to cremate the body of the deceased. This action not considered a sin. According to the clergy, cremation will not be able to prevent the resurrection from the dead. But still, for the Orthodox religion, this is an unnatural process of decay of human remains. Regardless of the form of burial, all the deceased are commemorated at liturgies and memorial services. Nevertheless, the attitude of the church towards cremation is negative.
In May 2015, a meeting of the Russian Holy Synod was held. This event was held in the Danilovsky Monastery in Moscow. At this event, an important document "On the Christian burial of the dead" was adopted.
The project has been developed over several years. The Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia participated in its revision. This document describes the norms of burial of Orthodox believers.
Of course, there are situations in which the funeral and burial of the body becomes impossible. These can be plane crashes, floods (when bodies are carried into the water), terrorist attacks, fires, or any other tragic situation. In such situations, an absentee funeral service is possible. They are prayed for in the same way as for those buried in the ground. The clergy pay great attention to the relatives of the dead. They are taught to pray fervently for their loved ones.
The meeting of the clergy in the document on the burial clearly described their position.
According to the Holy Scriptures, the human body is the temple of God. The body of the deceased must be treated with respect. According to the Christian faith, a person comes from dust and after death his body must turn into dust. In this state it must rest until the day of resurrection, when "what was sown in corruption shall rise in incorruption" (1 Cor. 15:42).
In accordance with the burial document, any burial is made into the ground in wooden, plastic or stone coffins. Perhaps burial in caves and crypts in compliance with the necessary standards.
Cremation is not recognized as the norm of burial. At the same time, the church says that the Lord God is able to resurrect any body that has been exposed to any element.
The process of cremation of a person occurs according to the preliminary will of the deceased. It takes about one and a half hours. In the Russian Federation, the share of cremated burials is small and amounts to approximately 10%. But in large cities, mainly Moscow and St. Petersburg, this method of burial prevails over the traditional one. Its share is 70%. Of course, before deciding to burn the body, it is necessary to think about all the intricacies of cremation, and it is necessary to weigh the pros and cons.
This procedure is carried out in specially designated places, crematoria. There are furnaces, the temperature of which varies from 900 to 1100 °C. After the end of the procedure, the ashes are only 2-2.5 kg. First, it is placed in an iron capsule, which is subsequently sealed. Ashes can also be stored in an urn. Relatives of the deceased buy it on their own. Urns can be varied in design and shape. The crematorium staff move the ashes from the capsule to the urn.
Only relatives can collect the ashes. The shelf life of the urn in the crematorium is 1 year. Sometimes more. If the ashes remain unclaimed, after the expiration of the storage period, they are buried in a common grave. Each crematorium has such burials.
How are people cremated? Modern cremators consist of two chambers. The coffin with the body of the deceased is placed in the first chamber. This is where the first stage of human cremation takes place. Combustion takes place with hot air. Hot jets are not able to burn the body completely. Therefore, the remains are sent to the second cell. It's called an afterburner chamber. It completely burns out the remains of organic tissues.
From the cremator, the remains are sent to the cremator, where they are crushed into dust. Unburned metal products are taken out with special magnets.
It is impossible to mix up the remains. Before burning, a metal number is placed in the coffin. After the procedure, it is pulled out of the ashes.
The state does not allocate special places for the burial of ashes. The relatives of the deceased dispose of the urn at their own discretion or carry out the last will of the deceased. The procedure for burying ashes is more convenient than traditional burial. The urn can be placed in a family grave. At the same time, it is not necessary to withstand the sanitary period (15 years).
You can purchase a place in the columbarium open or closed type. Some simply scatter the ashes in a certain place.
Columbarium is a place where urns with the ashes of the deceased are stored after the cremation procedure. For the first time, such storage facilities were built during the ancient Roman civilization. Columbarium is a structure divided into many cells. Such vaults exist at every crematorium. In Moscow, the most famous columbarium is located in the Kremlin wall.
There are two types of such burials: open and closed. An open columbarium is installed outdoors. It can be various kinds of structures, divided into cells.
The closed columbarium is a separate building, the so-called mausoleum. In the walls of such rooms there are cells intended for storing ashes. The cells can be concreted after the urn is placed in them. After that, a portrait of the deceased person and various inscriptions are placed on the cell.
Basically, the columbarium cells are covered with glass. Relatives and close people usually place memorabilia and photographs of the deceased along with the urn.
There are also family columbariums. In terms of their semantic meaning, they can be compared with family crypts or with family graves in a cemetery. One such cell can hold up to four urns with ashes.
There are three crematoria in the city of Moscow. All of them are located in the cemeteries: Nikolo-Arkhangelsk, Mitinsky and Khovansky.
To find out how people are cremated, you need to contact the administration of the crematorium. Here you can find out the cost of the procedure.
Basically, crematoria provide services of various levels. The price depends on the choice of the hall for farewell to the deceased, ritual accessories, etc.
Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery was founded in 1960. Initially, burials were carried out here only by the traditional method. Later, in 1973, it was decided to open a crematorium on the territory of the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery in Moscow. This is a big building. The crematorium conducts up to forty cremations a day.
Basically, the relatives of the dead do not pay attention to how the church treats cremation. The fact is that the cemetery is closed for new burials. Burial is allowed only in related graves or places purchased in advance. The traditional method of burial in a family grave requires compliance with a sanitary deadline. This condition is becoming a major problem for metropolitan areas. Therefore, most of the population of large cities resorts to the cremation procedure.
On the territory of the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery there are columbariums of open and closed type. Unlike places for traditional burials, a place to store the ashes here can be bought without problems.
The open columbarium of the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery is located on the street. These are the ranks long walls divided into small cells. The ashes of the deceased in an open columbarium are concreted. After that, relatives have no access to the urn.
The closed columbarium is located in a separate building. This is a room, the walls of which are also divided into cells. Here the urn is behind glass door. In addition to the urn, it is possible to put trifles dear to the deceased person in the cell: photographs, caskets, etc.
Prices for open and closed columbarium cells are different. In addition, the cemetery administration may collect an annual fee from the relatives of the deceased.
Various services are provided at the cemetery: a monument store, a mortuary, grave care. You can rent inventory for the care of the graves. In addition to the general crematorium, there is also a private one. It is located at the main entrance to the cemetery.
Church of the Intercession was built on the territory of the cemetery Holy Mother of God and a small chapel.
Based on the above-described unambiguous conclusion about how the church relates to cremation, it is impossible to draw. One side, Christian faith promotes the traditional burial of the body of a deceased person. This is the natural way. It repeats the burial of Jesus Christ. On the other hand, cremation does not mean that the clergy refuse to carry out the funeral service and bury the ashes of the deceased. Since according to the scripture the Lord God will resurrect all souls in their body. Before making an important decision about the form of burial, it is worth weighing the pros and cons.
Can the dead Orthodox Christians be cremated, or should their bodies be interred exclusively in the traditional way? Soon this issue will again become the subject of discussion in the governing bodies of the ROC. But regardless of decision it is unlikely that it will be finally clarified - there are many nuances, and life makes its own adjustments.
Gravediggers will be led out of the shadows
The attitude of the Church towards the cremation of dead Christians remains a mystery to many. An unequivocal answer to it, perhaps, will be given by the forum of the Inter-Council Presence of the Russian Orthodox Church - that cremation will become one of its key topics, Archimandrite Savva (Tutunov), Deputy Head of Affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate, recently told RIA Novosti.
“This is a hot topic. I know that many Orthodox believers are confused by the very fact of cremation of bodies. It is believed that this is such a form of burial that is not traditional for Christianity,” said Fr. Savva. At the same time, he noted that today the Russian Orthodox Church does not have a rigidly formulated attitude to cremation, officially expressed and completely exhausting this topic.
Indeed, few issues have such a complex attitude on the part of the Church as committing the bodies of the dead to fire. On the one hand, it would seem that everything is clear - the dead are supposed to be buried in a cemetery in consecrated ground with the performance of all the prescribed rites. And the latter, in turn, are rigidly tied precisely to the traditional practice of burying bodies in the earth. Much is said about this in the corresponding rites.
Here are some of the most characteristic quotations from the text of the funeral, from which it clearly follows that the body should be buried in the ground: with a shovel, cruciformly throws on top of the relics of the verb: the Lord's land and its fulfillment, the universe and all who live on it ... and they cover it like a coffin is usually.
Just in case, let's clarify - under the "relics" in this case the relics of saints are not meant, but simply a dead body. However, in colloquial Russian, this term has become archaic - today it is used as a designation for the remains of a God-glorified ascetic, missing the epithet indicating his holiness.
More excerpts from the same rite of burial:
"Thou art the earth, and unto the earth thou shalt depart" (This is already a quotation from the Bible, chapter 3 of Genesis, verse 12), "because of the earth we shall be created from the earth, and to the earth we shall go there." “Come, kiss the former little one with us, betray himself to the grave, cover himself with stone, dwell in the darkness, bury with the dead.” “Seeing the image of the dead before us, let us perceive the whole of the final hour: this one departs, like grass cut, we wrap it in sackcloth, we cover it with earth.”
Thus, the liturgical practice of Orthodoxy simply does not provide for the burial of a specially burned body - the bodies of those who died in the fire are buried in the usual rite.
Definitely negative attitude to the cremation of the dead and the officials of the Russian Orthodox Church. Here, for example, are the words of the Deputy Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin: “We have a negative attitude towards cremation. Of course, if relatives ask for the funeral of the deceased before cremation, the ministers of the Church do not refuse them. But people who profess Orthodoxy must respect the dead and prevent the destruction of the body created by God."
And here is the textbook opinion of Patriarch Kirill himself during his tenure as chairman of the Department for External Church Relations in the rank of Metropolitan of Kaliningrad and Smolensk. In response to a question from the wife of a terminally ill patient, he said the following:
"... Cremation is outside Orthodox tradition. We believe that at the end of history there will be a resurrection of the dead in the image of the Resurrection of Christ the Savior, that is, not only in soul, but also in body. If we allow cremation, then, as it were, we symbolically renounce this faith. Of course, we are only talking about symbols here, for the human body buried in the earth also turns into dust, but God, by His power, from dust and decay will restore the body of everyone. Cremation, that is, the conscious destruction of the body of the deceased, looks like a rejection of faith in the universal Resurrection. Of course, many who believe in a universal Resurrection still cremate the dead for practical reasons. In the event of your husband's death, you can bury him, but if you can convince him not to insist on cremation, then try to do it!
In the theological literature, one can also come across such an argument - burning the body of the deceased is a grave sin - desecration of the temple of God: "Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God lives in you? If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will punish him: for the temple God's is holy, and you are this temple" (1 Cor. 3:16-17).
It is often remembered that in Russia the victorious procession of crematoria began shortly after the victory of the Bolsheviks. Their position, by the way, was rather ambiguous: the embalmed bodies of Lenin and Stalin - why not an attempt to artificially create "imperishable relics"?
However, posthumous worship was the privilege of the dead leaders of the Communist Party - the rest were ordered to turn into ashes. The latter even enjoyed a kind of state support: honored leaders of the party and the state were buried in a niche in the Kremlin wall, where only a small urn with the ashes of the deceased could fit.
On the other hand, one of the leaders of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, Leon Trotsky, frankly proclaimed the crematoriums to be "the department of godlessness" and cremation to be an anti-religious act. Apparently because, regrettably, he understood the essence of a religion hostile to him much better than many of today's "indifferent" believers.
Indeed, the attitude towards the bodies of the dead in Christianity (and in Judaism and Islam too) is very reverent. In Hinduism and Buddhism, the body is considered the "dungeon for the soul." And the soul must be released as soon as possible for the subsequent reincarnation or for nirvana and other purely spiritual states of bliss. But the Bible speaks of the coming Resurrection of the dead, each in his own body, even if endowed by God with incorruption and eternity.
It is interesting to note that in a very rational Israel, with its incredible dense population, there is still not a single crematorium. Neither the Jews nor the Arabs need them - both peoples, despite the sworn enmity in many other ways, agree 100 percent in relation to the burial of the dead.
Thus, the conscious desire to destroy his body after death immediately suggests the thought - does such a person really believe in the God of Holy Scripture? Of course, situations are different. The high cost of traditional burial in cemeteries, especially in large cities, the "cemetery mafia", which makes it unbearable for poor citizens - this, alas, is also a sad reality.
