Religion - Scattering Ashes

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The Church of England has granted atheist parents the right to exhumation their daughter ashes

Beverley Wilson and Michael Hughill lost their 10-month-old daughter back in 1982, a hugely traumatic experience. The child (Lizzie) was cremated and her ashes were buried the same month at Chestnut Cemetery in Hertfordshire. The parents, due to the trauma they were feeling, left the arrangements for the funeral to Mr Huhgill’s farther. Mrs Wilson,…

Splitting Ashes and the Church of England

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The good old CofE don’t really like ashes to be split, and the Catholic Church specifically prohibits it. I was speaking at a resent Church of England conference on the subject of ashes and this thorny issue was raised. From a secular point of view I never realised the extent to which this vexed the…

The Vatican’s position on the ashes of saints

The Vatican has updated it rules on relics these are body parts (and more historically) including associated items of a saint. There has been issues recently when surviving family members disagree with what the Catholic church wishes to do body of a person once they have given saint status. The rules were last updated in…

Why I understand the Catholic Church’s stance on scattering ashes

There are a number of people and organisations that have been getting rather hot under the collar about the recent instruction from the Vatican clarifying the Catholic Church’s position on the scattering ashes and the fact that they do not like it, or splitting ashes, or jewellery containing ashes, so on and so forth. There are those who…

Vatican’s update stance regarding the burial of the deceased and the conservation of the ashes in the case of cremation for Roman Catholics

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The Vatican has issued an Instruction to the faithful regarding the scattering of ashes. Whilst setting out of their position in many ways makes sense and it is clearly referenced, we will attempt to summarise and translate and convey the message in a slightly more condensed and accessible form. This is our interpretation and I…

Mar Thoma Syrian Church – Cremation is now allowed

The various religions in the world is a constant source of wonder to me. The various sects seems never ending, here is a new one on me, the Mar Thoma Syrian Church – never heard of it? It has over a million followers. Although as religions go this fairly unique. It is a Syrian Christian…

Is the Church of England softening its stance on exhumation of ashes?

We feedback any reports we come across in the press on exhumation of ashes, we do this so you can start to understand the stance and precedents set by the Church of England. We hope to help you in deciding whether your case may be considered worthy enough to meet the CoE’s stance of ‘exceptional circumstance’. Recently a lady wanted…

Exhumation is getting the Church hot under the (dog) collar

It seems the national paper picked up on the case of Mrs Gooch, who wanted her mums cremated remains moved as she could not access the grave as she was wheelchair bound. The church refused as it was not exceptional circumstances. The Sunday Express, the Guardian and the Telegraph all picked up on this growing…

exhumation pensioner Norfolk church yard

Pensioner failed to get exhumation order on the grounds of access

A pensioner from Norfolk has failed in her attempt to get the ashes of her mother exhumed. She had partitioned the Church of England’s Consistory Court but to no avail. Mrs Queenie Ivy Gooch wanted the ashes of her mother moved from the Churchyard in Gunton to the nearby Kirkley Cemtery so that she could…

Iconic Buddhist monk’s cremation relics go on display

The Rosemead Buddhist temple in Los Angles is opening its door to the public, displaying a huge collection of relics. This year the collection has even more artefacts, perhaps the most notable of its new relics from the Venerable Thich Quang Duc. The Buddhist monk who in 1963 in south Vietnam set fire to…

A festival that involves throwing cremation ash at one another

Varanasi, India is famous and unique. A holy Hindu city whose principal business is death, many families take their loved ones to be cremated there, while western eyes may view it as macabre, the locals have a very different take. Reincarnation is a fundamental part of the Hindu religion so moving from this life to…

Crazy way to cure an illness: with cremation ashes!

I am not saying Western Medicine is the be-all and end-all, but some supposed cures and remains are just plain bonkers. In Salepur, situated in Odisha north east India, a self-styled godman has come up with an interesting approach to aliments. Pretend you are dead, the evil spirits will think you are dead and then…

Bremen is the first state in Germany to allow the scattering of ashes

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Bremen, the smallest state in Germany, has voted to allow the scattering of ashes. To be honest I knew the name, but I was not aware where it was – and it is small, really small in fact it is two cities that are separated by the larger state of Lower Saxony. You might…

Ashes kept in the house is a ghost more likely to be present?

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Ashes kept in the house is a ghost more likely to be present? If you keep ashes inside your house is this is more likely to retain the ghost of that individual or attract other ghosts in the vicinity? So, we have two conflicting opinions to this question: Those who think a ghost is less…

Why is so difficult to cremate someone in Greece?

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In 2006 the Greek parliament laid a law allowing cremation, yet to date no one has been cremated. Greece suffers a problem, like many countries, their urban cemeteries are overcrowded, it is not uncommon for a body to be exhumed moved after three year to make space for someone else. So one might think that…

St Bartholomew the Great, West Smithfield, City of London

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Soon you be able to inter your ashes in one of London’s oldest churches St Bartholomew the Great in West Smithfield They are awaiting enough reservations to then commission it. The niche columbarium. The niche system, will include decorative coloured stone plinths, that will compliment the design of the church. It will comprise 196 niche chambers with…

Tibetan Buddhist thinking may not favour water burials for ashes

I have often thought that the more you read the less you really know, this I often feel when considering the stances of the various world religions and subdivisions thereof. Tibetan Bhuddiam has a slightly different take on many aspects of doctrine compared to other forms of Buddhism. Mr Khenpo Karma Tharchin Rinpoche, a senior lama of…

Site in the Welsh Valleys used for scattering ashes has been vandalised

The well-known White Cross of Trealaw has been vandalised. The cross in the heart of the Rhondda valleys has been partially dismantled by a group of mystery climbers. The cross was built by Glyn Thomas, of Trealaw, in 2005 as a final resting place for those who wanted their ashes scattered on the mountainside. For…

Make your own ashes: Japanese bone crushing apparatus for rent

Now here’s a franchise opportunity you are unlikely to see on Dragons Den: Rental of bone crushing apparatus. The Japanese tradition is to cremate and then place the bones of the loved one in an urn, I have already posted on this – Japanese cremation. Normally what happens is for the urn to be…

The Balinese ceremony of Ngaben: Turn to Ash

The beautiful Island of Bali in the Indonesian archipelago has a predominately Hindu population, whose belief system varies slightly from the Hindu doctrine in India. And from time to time they hold mass cremations. The cremation ceremony know as Ngaben (which means ‘turn to ash’) is elaborate and expensive and if a family can’t afford…

Ashes dumped in Hampshire cemetery: fee dodging?

The Vicar of the charming village of Lyndhurst in Hampshire has got hot under the collar. The Rev Dr James Bruce spoke out after it was revealed that the ashes, of what appeared several people, had been tipped onto the grass at the graveyard near his church. The ashes were discovered by a maintenance worker,…

Japanese Buddhist temples criticised for interring ashes sent through the post

Japan is a predominantly secular country although nominally a third (about 90 million people) follow the Buddhist tradition. Now a small number of temples are offering a postal service accepting cremation ashes through the post, which the priests then inter at the charnel house. This has come under some criticism. The reason given is…

New cremation law to be introduced in the Republic of Cyprus

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The Republic of Cyprus (the southern bit) is looking to introduce some laws on cremation. Within these is all the sensible one might expect: stuff thou shalt remove all pacemakers along with all clothing or footwear containing rubber or PVC, earrings, bracelets, rings, glasses, and any foreign material which cannot be cremated. However, dental implants…

New Zealands Hindu’s and Maori’s a clash of ash culture

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The scattering of cremation ashes in New Zealand is becoming more contentious as time goes by. Why? Well the reason I believe is because of two main factors, the general rise cremation and scattering as an option, but also the rise in in the number of Hindus in the country, which according to Wikipedia’s…

Exhumation of ashes order not granted: plea not considered to be exceptional

© Copyright Oast House Archive Previously we have reported on success stories where a family has managed to secure the approval for exhumation of ashes via the Church of England’s Consistory Court. We had pointed out exhumation orders on church consecrated land were rare. Here is a story from the news website KentOnline about a lady…

What do these Greeks have in common…

People who commit suicide, untoothed children and persons struck by lightning? The answer: they were not allowed to be cremated. It would appear that in pre christian times cremation was the standard form of funeral and that as christianity took hold, a distinction between the old and the new must be established and previous practises were considered…

columbarium baptist st john catholic anglian

Columbarium: St John the Baptist in Norwich

This is a real beauty, the Cathedral of St John the Baptist in Norwich has a wonderful columbarium in its vaulted undercroft at the east end of the Cathedral. St John’s is the second largest Catholic cathedral in the UK. The niches are finely worked bronze cabinets containing individual urns and are sited in the…

Scattering Ashes biblical reference Psalm 147:16 – Origins Part IV

Psalm 147:16 Here is how it is written in the King James Bible: He giveth snow like wool: he scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes. Firstly, in no way do I express to be a translator of the Bible. So sorry to those of you that are, please don’t mind my thoughts they designed not…

Interring cremation ashes in the Holy Land

Should it be your last wish to have you ashes interred in the Holy Land then we can help. We have teamed up with a company that runs two sites in Israel, one near Jerusalem – in Kibbutz Kiryat Anavim, and the other at the Sea of Galilee – in Kibbutz Maagan. Both places are very evocative with huge biblical and historic significance:…

Cremation is on the rise for American Jews

It would appear that there is an increasing number of American Jews are opting to be cremated rather than buried, which some parts of the community are quite unhappy about. Jews have a long tradition of burial, and more orthodox elements find cremation abhorrent. I have posted on the about this before and the scriptures…

Archdiocese of Washington’s thinking on the scattering of ashes – in short they don’t like it!

Ashes to Armaments Dust to Detonation – A Brief Essay on What NOT to do with Cremated Remains Author Mr Charles Pope “Cremation, though permitted by the Church, often presents pastoral problems for the Church. For, as experience shows, many people treat cremated remains (aka, cremains) in ways that would be unthinkable in terms of…

The Catholic Church: cremation, cremated remains and scattering ashes

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Previous postings have referred to the Catholic Church requiring the burying or interring of a loved ones ashes, very recently I came across this very comprehensive article explaining why. I have copied in full and the author has been credited at the bottom it a) it is well written, b) concise c) well referenced,…

Scattering Cremation Ashes: Catholic Church’s stance

The Catholic Church consider that ashes should be buried, here is their response: “The stance of the Catholic Church is that ashes should be treated in the same way as the bodies of the dead. They should be returned to the the earth. The Catholic “Order of Christian Funerals” provides a Service for the…

Cremation Ashes – Church of England’s stance

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We contacted the Church of England as one of the country’s biggest land owners and obviously it’s leading religious faith, unsurprisingly this matter is dictated by a Canon and this is what they said: “So far as the Church of England is concerned, the matter is governed by Canon B 38.4(b) which provides as…