Cremation

From Philosopedia

CREMATION

• "Surprise me!", Fernando Vargas said when asked by Warren Allen Smith, executor of his estate, if he preferred cremation or having the body-in-the-casket transported from New York for burial in Costa Rica

Some religious groups do not allow cremation, although freethinkers and secular humanists leave the decision entirely up to the individual or the executor of the person’s estate.

An entire cremation and urn in New York City is available for under $500., whereas the charge by funeral parlors for services and caskets may cost in the thousands of dollars.

One American undertaker has offered a coffin fitted with a mobile telephone, air conditioning, a light, and a computer toy, all in case the corpse revives. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1994), “The Church permits cremation, provided that it does not demonstrate a denial of faith in the resurrection of the body.”

The Economist (15 April 1995) has reported that the Chinese government estimates that cremation saves 6,700 hectares (about 16,556 acres) of farmland, 3 million cubic metres of timber, and 10 billion yuan ($1.2 billion) a year. The Chinese ban what used to be the tradition of burning paper money as an offering to the dead. People who burn money or buy wreaths “do so to show off,” according to the Chinese People’s Daily.

{The Economist, 4 January 1997.}