Cremation is one of the ritual processes of burial. The procedure involves the burning of the human body. Subsequently, the burnt ashes are collected in special bins. The methods of burial of cremated bodies are different. They depend on the worship of the deceased.
History of Cremation Ritual
The tradition of burning corpses has been known to mankind since ancient times. According to archaeologists, this procedure was first applied in the Paleolithic era. Later, this burial process spread throughout.
There is a legend about the burial of the Buddha, according to which, his body was burnt, 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 will help a person move into the afterlife.
The Christian religion did not initially accept the cremation procedure. The Orthodox burial process was carried out by corpse burial. The burning of the human body was a sign of paganism.
Later, in connection with the development of Christianity in European countries, cremation was banned. The punishment for breaking 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 the Russian Federation. This is due to the increase in population in large cities and the lack of places in the cemetery. This is 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 carry out the will of the deceased, who before death expressed a desire to be cremated.
Christian burial traditions
The burial of the body in the Christian religion combines Orthodox and pagan elements. It is important to conduct the burial ritual correctly and to observe all national and religious traditions. This will help the deceased to go to another world.
The following rites are:
- washing the body of the deceased;
- the process of dressing in special clothes;
- wires;
- parting;
- funeral service;
- burial;
- mention.
The preparation of the funeral is carried out in a thorough manner. The deceased is washed with water. According to tradition, a person must appear before God purified bodily and spiritually. After that, the body is dressed in the best clothes. In ancient Russia, these were white robes. They clothed both women and men. In the modern world of men, it is customary to wear classic black suits and light shirts. Women are buried in dresses of light tones. Now there are many ritual services in which you can buy everything you need, including outfits.
The dead unmarried girls are buried in wedding dresses, a veil is placed next to them. This is a sign of purity and innocence. Young men put on wedding rings and wedding suits. Perhaps the presence of some wedding traditions. For example, drinking champagne.
Burial is carried out on the third day after death. All this time the body is indoors. They have it facing the icons. Mirrors are shut throughout the house. This is also a kind of tradition with its own history. Extraneous sounds are not allowed. They put a prayer in the hands of the deceased, a whisk on the forehead. A cross must be worn on a person. The room is lit with incense and burns church candles.
Escort a person 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 human body to the cemetery, where the burial takes place.
Mandatory rite of the funeral of the soul of the deceased priest. This is a necessary measure for the remission of sins of the deceased. In the Orthodox religion, suicides are not funeral. There may be exceptions, but they need the permission of the Patriarch of All Russia.
After the burial, flowers and wreaths are left on the grave, a wooden cross is placed.
Upon arrival from the cemetery, a wake is traditionally held. They set tables, read prayers, sing special songs. As a rule, commemoration is carried out on the third, ninth and fortieth day. It is believed that on the fortieth day the soul leaves the human world and passes into the kingdom of God.
Christian Cremation Attitude
In large cities, cemeteries have less and less space for burial of people. Today it is a major problem for megacities. There is practically no room for assignment for new cemeteries. In this situation, an alternative solution to the problem is cremation.
How does the church relate to cremation? The Christian church promotes the burial of the body in the earth. This tradition is associated with the burial of Jesus Christ. Many scriptures say that man was created in the image and likeness of God. Therefore, after death, the body must go to the ground. Therefore, the Orthodox faith cares about the preservation of the body.
Cremation is permitted by the church, but only as a necessary measure. Place in the cemetery is expensive. Not every person has the means to acquire it. Burning the body and burying the urn with ashes is much cheaper. Of course, burning the body does not mean hindering the transition to another life. The church does not refuse to burial to relatives who decided to cremate the body of the deceased. This action is not recognized as 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 the destruction of human remains. Regardless of the form of burial, all the deceased commemorate the liturgy and memorial services. Nevertheless, the church’s attitude towards cremation is negative.
The meeting of the synod of the Russian Orthodox Church
In May 2015, a meeting of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church took place . This event was held at the Danilovsky Monastery in Moscow. At this event, an important document "On the Christian burial of the dead" was adopted.
The project was developed over several years. The Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia participated in its revision. This document describes the burial standards of Orthodox believers.
Of course, there are situations in which the funeral service and burial of the body becomes impossible. It can be air crashes, floods (when the bodies are carried away by water), terrorist acts, fires or some other tragic situation. In such situations, the funeral of the dead is possible. They are prayed for in the same way as those buried in the earth. The clergy pay great attention to the relatives of the victims. They are taught fervent prayer for loved ones.
The essence of the document "On the Christian burial of the dead"
The clergy meeting clearly described their position in the burial document.
According to the Holy Scriptures, the human body is the temple of God. There should be a respectful attitude to the body of the deceased. According to the Christian faith, a person comes from dust and after death his body should turn to dust. In such a state, it must rest until the day of resurrection, when "the seed of corruption will 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. Burial in caves and crypts is possible in compliance with the necessary standards.
Cremation is not recognized as a burial norm. At the same time, the church says that the Lord God is able to resurrect any body that has undergone any element.
Human Cremation Procedure
The process of cremation of a person occurs according to the preliminary will of the deceased. It takes about an hour and a half. In the Russian Federation, the proportion of cremated burial sites is small and amounts to approximately 10%. But in large cities, mainly Moscow and St. Petersburg, this method of burial prevails over the traditional. Its share is 70%. Of course, before deciding to burn the body, you need to think about all the subtleties of cremation, you must definitely weigh the pros and cons.
This procedure is carried out in specially designated places, crematoria. Here are furnaces, the temperature of which varies from 900 to 1100 ° C. After the procedure, the dust is only 2-2.5 kg. First, it is placed in an iron capsule, which is subsequently sealed. You can store the ashes in an urn. Relatives of the deceased buy it themselves. Ballot boxes can be varied in design and shape. Employees of the crematorium move the ashes from the capsule to the urn.
Only relatives can pick up the ashes. Shelf life in the crematorium is 1 year. Sometimes more. If the ashes remained unclaimed, after the expiration of the storage period a burial takes place in a common grave. At every crematorium there are such graves.
Cremation furnace
How are people cremated? Modern cremation ovens consist of two chambers. The coffin with the body of the deceased is placed in the first chamber. Here is the first stage of human cremation. Burning occurs using hot air. Hot jets cannot burn the body completely. Therefore, the remains are sent to the second chamber. It is called a afterburner. The remains of organic tissues are completely burned out in it.
From the cremation furnace, the remains are sent to a cremator, where they are crushed to dust. Unburned metal products are removed with special magnets.
It is impossible to mix up the remains. Before burning, a metal number is placed in the coffin. After the procedure, he is pulled out of the dust.
Land for burial
The state has not allocated special places for burial of ashes. Relatives of the deceased dispose of the urn at their discretion or carry out the last will of the deceased. The procedure for burial of the ashes is more convenient than the traditional burial. The urn can be placed in a related grave. At the same time, it is not necessary to maintain a sanitary period (15 years).
You can buy a place in a columbarium open or closed. Some just dispel the dust in a particular place.
Columbarium is a place to store urns with the ashes of the deceased after the cremation procedure. For the first time, such repositories were built during the time of ancient Roman civilization. Columbarium is a structure divided into many cells. Such storages 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 outdoor columbarium is set up on the street. 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 are cells designed to store dust. Cells can be concreted after placing urns in them. Then on the cell is a portrait of the deceased person and various inscriptions.
Basically, columbaria cells are closed with glass. Relatives and close people usually put memorabilia and photographs of the deceased along with the urn.
There are family columbaria. By meaning, they can be compared with family crypts or with family graves in a cemetery. One such cell holds up to four urns with ashes.
Crematoriums of Moscow
There are three crematoriums in the city of Moscow. All of them are located in cemeteries: Nikolo-Arkhangelsk, Mitinsky and Khovansky.
Addresses:
- Nikolo-Arkhangelskoye Cemetery - Moscow, Saltykovka microdistrict, ul. Okolnaya, 4.
- Mitinsky cemetery is located outside the Moscow Ring Road, the city of Moscow, Mitinsky district, Pyatnitskoe highway, 6th km.
- Khovanskoe cemetery is located in the city of Moscow, the settlement "Mosrentgen", st. Admiral Kornilov, Kiev highway, 21st km.
To find out how people are cremated, you need to contact the crematorium administration. Here you can clarify the cost of the procedure.
Most crematoriums provide services at various levels. The price depends on the choice of the hall for farewell to the deceased, ritual accessories, etc.
Burial of ashes at the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery
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 in the territory of the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery in Moscow. This is a large building. The crematorium holds up to forty cremations per day.
Mostly the relatives of the deceased do not pay attention to how the church relates to cremation. The fact is that the cemetery is closed to new graves. Burial is allowed to be carried out only in related graves or previously purchased places. The traditional method of burial in a family grave requires compliance with the sanitary deadline. This condition is becoming a major problem for megacities. Therefore, the cremation procedure is resorted to by a large part of the population of large cities.
On the territory of the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery there are open and closed columbaria. Unlike places for traditional burials, a place to store dust here can be bought without problems.
The open columbarium of the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery is located on the street. These are rows of long walls divided into small cells. The ashes of the deceased in an open columbarium are concreted. After which the relatives do not have access to the ballot box.
An indoor columbarium is located in a separate building. This is a room whose walls are also divided into cells. Here the urn is located behind a glass door. In addition to the urn, it is possible to put small things dear to a deceased person in a cell: photographs, caskets, etc.
The prices for open and closed columbaria cells are different. In addition, the cemetery may charge an annual fee from the relatives of the deceased.
Various services are provided at the cemetery: a monument store, a morgue, and grave care. Grave care equipment can be rented. In addition to the general crematorium, there is also a private one. It is located at the main entrance to the cemetery.
On the territory of the cemetery, the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary was built, as well as a small chapel.
Based on the above clear conclusion about how the church relates to cremation, it is impossible to draw. On the one hand, the Christian faith promotes the traditional burial of the body of a deceased person. This is a natural way. He repeats the burial of Jesus Christ. On the other hand, cremation does not mean the refusal of the clergy from the funeral service and the intermission of the dust 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.