Mothers of Held Angels (mohanetwork.org) Podcast interview with our veteran funeral director, Debbie Ross.
Police warn thieves could target victims during funerals:
Eight tips for pre-planning your funeral service:
Ten Things Catholics Should Know About Cremation.
1. You can have all other funeral rites before a cremation. For Catholics, cremation should be the LAST step, not the first step. The Catholic Church does not require this but prefers the natural body of the deceased to be present at Mass, in a closed-casket, before the cremation. After the Mass, the Church preference is to then have the cremation, followed by ground burial.
2. Cremation is not a fast process. On average it takes roughly one to two weeks for a cremation to be complete from the date of death. There are several documentation steps involved in the cremation process. In order to cremate, a death certificate must be prepared, signed by a doctor, then filed with the county clerk. A cremation permit is then obtained, the cremation is scheduled with the crematory, then the cremation process may begin. The process of incineration takes roughly 2-3 hours.
3. Cremation often delays the natural healing cycle. The stages of grief and mourning are well known and well understood because they follow a cycle that is instinctive to humans, not learned. Because many families cremate first instead of last, everyone (including those closest to the decedent) are left with no other option than to put the natural cycle of grief and mourning “on-hold.” The emotional damage this often creates is hard to detect, and therefore hard to mitigate, as many people repress this natural sadness so as to appear as though nothing is wrong.
4. Cremation is unfortunately not “green” nor environmentally friendly. The amount of natural gas used in one average adult cremation is a similar amount used to heat one home in the northeastern US, in the winter, for one month.
5. The Catholic Church says cremated remains are to be buried. Scattering or putting an urn on display in the home, for example, are prohibited by the Catholic Church.
6. There’s more than one way to be cremated. Alkaline hydrolysis (AH), aka water cremation, is practiced in roughly half the US. Texas does not currently allow for AH.
7. Commingling. Because the inside chamber of a cremation retort is made of brick, it is porous. Thus, it is impossible to fully and completely separate one cremation from another. The cremated remains given back to a family, for example, also contain the cremated remains of previous cremations. This point is typically outlined in any standard cremation authorization form.
8. Cremated remains were not allowed inside a Catholic church for a memorial Mass until 1994.
9. Cremation generally requires the permission from the next-of-kin. If you choose cremation and are single with no children (no known next-of-kin), it is suggested you have an agent (a close friend, for example) indicated IN WRITING.
10. Cremation is rarely practiced amongst the Catholic clergy.
Police warn thieves could target victims during funerals:
Eight tips for pre-planning your funeral service: