The Last Things: Burial – an act of love

By Father Michael N. Lavallee
pastor, St. Peter Parish, Northbridge

The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that the works of mercy are “charitable actions by which we come to the aid of our neighbors in their bodily and spiritual needs.” The catechism goes on to note that the corporal works of mercy are “feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, sheltering the homeless and burying the dead.” These corporal works of mercy find their origins in Scripture, particularly in Matthew 25:31-46. In this passage, Christ the King separates all of humanity into “sheep” and “goats” at the last judgment. As he does this, he declares to the saved that “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me ….” The saved then question the king, stating “When did we see you hungry and feed you or thirsty and give you drink…?” The king responds to them definitely, “whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” In this way, Jesus teaches us that he lives hidden within each human being he has created, and that charity shown to our neighbor is actually love shown to him. He also makes it clear that we will all be judged by God on how well we have loved him and our neighbor.

It is significant that “burying the dead” is included in the corporal works of mercy. The inclusion of this important teaching in the corporal works of mercy has great relevance in our exploration of Catholic teaching concerning death and burial practice. Simply stated, “burying the dead” is a matter of love, shown towards God and our neighbor. In our contemporary society, this fact is often obscured as modern trends concerning death and burial sometimes confuse the Church’s faithful about the central importance of exercising charity towards the deceased by giving them a respectful and proper burial.

In the Order of Christian Funerals, the official liturgical text that directs the celebration of all funerals in the Church, the burial rite is called “the Rite of Committal.” This rite follows the “Vigil for the deceased” and the “Funeral Liturgy.” In the Order of Christian Funerals, the Church states that the Rite of Committal is “the final act of the community of faith in caring for the body of its deceased member.” In these words, then, the Church reminds us that Christian burial is about “caring” for the body of a deceased member of the Church. This reminds us of the corporal works of mercy which unambiguously teach us that “burying the dead” is an act of love exercised towards God and neighbor. But we may ask, why does the body or the cremains of a deceased member of the Church need to be buried at all?

The Catechism of the Catholic Church begins to explain why burial is necessary by teaching us that “the believer’s body and soul already participate in the dignity of belonging to Christ. This dignity entails the demand that he should treat with respect his own body, but also the body of every other person…” Through baptism, Christians become members of Christ’s body, the Church, and come to belong to him through this sacrament. This is the basis of our respect for our own bodies and the bodies of others.  

In addition to the Christian’s body belonging to Christ, the Church teaches us that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. This teaching is based in Scripture, namely in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20. The catechism elaborates on this biblical truth by observing that “the human body shares in the dignity of ‘the image of God.’ It is a human body precisely because it is animated by a spiritual soul, and it is the whole human person that is intended to become, in the body of Christ, a temple of the Holy Spirit.” Thus, the human body is to be respected because God himself, in the third person of the Holy Spirit, resides within it. As it is God’s temple, the body has an inherent dignity which should not be compromised or negated.

In October of last year, The Catholic Free Press reported that Bishop McManus had invited funeral directors in Worcester to release unclaimed cremated remains to the St. John Cemetery system. This was so that these unclaimed remains received proper burial by the Church. On All Souls Day last year, Bishop McManus’ celebrated the first Mass for the deceased persons whose cremains were given to be entombed. The bishop decided to do this after reading about those left at funeral homes. He reasoned that in Worcester “the vast majority would be Catholics, or at least Christians.” Therefore, such unclaimed remains need Christian burial. This burial necessarily includes prayer for those who were cremated, but whose cremains were not claimed by family or friends. By authorizing the collection of unclaimed cremains by the St. John’s Cemetery System and by offering Mass for the deceased persons whose cremains were given by Worcester funeral directors, Bishop McManus teaches about the duty in charity we all have towards our deceased loved ones and towards those who die without family or friends. Burying the dead respectfully recognizes their inherent dignity, whomever they may be, as images of God, temples of the Holy Spirit and members of the Body of Christ. This burial of the body or cremains of the deceased shows proper care and concern for them by family, friends and the Church.

In the Order of Christian Funerals, the Church instructs us that “the cremated remains of a body should be treated with the same respect given to the human body from which they come. This includes the use of a worthy vessel to contain the ashes, the manner in which they are carried, the care and attention to appropriate placement and transport and the final disposition.” The order continues to teach “The cremated remains should be buried in a grave or entombed in a mausoleum or columbarium.” The Church makes it clear in the order that “the practice of scattering cremated remains on the sea, from the air, or on the ground, or keeping cremated remains in the home of a relative or friend of the deceased are not the reverent disposition that the Church requires” of the faithful.

The Order of Christian Funerals tells us that Christian burial or “the Rite of Committal” may take place at “the grave, tomb, crematorium … and may be used for burial at sea.” The order goes on to explain that “in committing the body (or cremains) to its resting place, the community expresses the hope that, with all those who have gone before marked with the sign of faith (baptism), the deceased awaits the glory of the resurrection.” The order also states that “The Rite of Committal is an expression of the communion that exists between the Church on earth and the Church in heaven …”  The liturgical structure of the Rite of Committal includes an invitation to prayer, the reading of Scripture, prayer - intercessions for the deceased, the Lord’s Prayer and a blessing.

The Order of Christian Funerals provides a moving prayer for the committal of cremated remains. This prayer reads, “In sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ, we commend to Almighty God our brother/sister and we commit his/her earthly remains to the ground, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” Thus, the burial of a deceased Christian is an exercise in hope, as we trust that on the last day, the one we bury with love and dignity will rise again to new life.