Christians vs cremation; where in the bible is this forbidden?

Question

During bible study last night, one of the Pastors was asking what he should say to Christians when they challenge the question about cremation. Somewhere, I have heard that cremation should not happen but I can not remember what gave me that idea. I know that our bodies are a vessal but are we not in a shell after baptism? What about those Christians who die in a fire; does this mean they will not get to heaven? Please, put my mind to rest. This would help me immensely. God bless.

Answer 1

Cremation is not the traditional way of disposing of bodies, in Christianity.

Jews buried the dead, to differentiate themselves from their pagan neighbors, that either mummified, or cremated the remains.

In the Tanakh, burning people is typically used as a form of punishment. From that, one can infer that cremation is not a preferred way to dispose of the body.
* Genesis 38:24
* Exodus 32:20
* Leviticus 20:14
* Leviticus 21:9
* Numbers 16:35
* Deuteronomy 7:25
* Joshua 7:15-25
* Judges 15:6
* 1 Samuel 31:11-13:
* 1 Kings 10:26
* Jeremiah 29:22
* Amos 2:1

The only references to burning people, or objects in the New Testament are:
* Acts 19:19 --- which is about burning the tools for sorcery;
* Revelation 20:15 --- which is eternal punishment for sinners;

1 Corinthians 15:35-44 is the usual Protestant Christian justification for burial, instead of cremation. The theory is that ashes can't be reconstituted into a physical body.

Answer 2

As far as I'm aware, it's to do with judgement day. On judgement day, the dead will rise from the earth to be judged by God. If you've been burried, then even after thousands of years you're going to be a skeleton. If, however, you've been cremated, then you can't really rise up and be judged. Like a lot of Christian practices, I suspect this is one which has evolved with the societies and necessities of the believers, rather than being something taken strictly from the Bible.

So, basically, if you're nothing but a pile of scattered dust, then you can't be judged. Of course, when someone is cremated, a lot of larger places will do three or four bodies at a time, and what the relatives are given is a pot of ash roughly equilivent to one person, so there's probably parts of four people in the urn. Again, makes rising up for judgement hard.

Answer 3

There is no prohibition against cremation; but people think that we'll be raised in our same body. Paul however says that the body that is resurrected is different from the body that died, just as a seed is different from the plant it produces. Our mortal body is transformed into an immortal body. We know we will have one, because Jesus did when he returned after the Resurrection, but we won't have all the physical problems to deal with that we have here, as there is no more pain or sorrow. What our bodies will look like...well, we'll see when we get there.

Answer 4

My mother, father and husband were all cremated and I have no problem with that and will also be when the time comes. To say that our BIG GOD, who created the heavens and the earth and foundations of the world, as well as you and me and all the other miracles he has performed, is incapable of reconstructing a persons body once it has gone to ashes, is nonsense, and very insulting to our LORD I feel. What about those who have been blown up, or had the misfortune of being lost at sea, with all their remains being eaten by the fish. It makes no difference. Also, when the dead in CHRIST rise first, they will be raised up in their new glorious body, so this makes burial, or cremation immaterial.

Answer 5

I don't think it is in the Bible, but early Christians opposed cremation because pagans often cremated their dead as a sign of disdain for the Christians’ belief in the physical resurrection of the body. To protect belief in this doctrine of faith, the Church forbade cremation. That prohibition was lifted in 1963. The Church still recommends that the faithful be buried, but Catholics may be cremated so long as cremation does not demonstrate a denial of belief in the resurrection of the body (Catechism of the Catholic Church 2301).

Answer 6

There is nothing in the Bible that speaks against cremation that I have ever found. My Grandmother is a devout Christian and she is totally against it because she believes you should be buried.( I don't think she even knows why she thinks what she thinks.) If you are a Christian, it doesn't matter what happens to your body. When the dead are resurrected they will come from the grave, the ocean, anywhere they died.... If God needs to gather them from the winds, he will do it. No worries! :)

Answer 7

I know of no scripture that challenges cremation. Regardless of how we die, if we have been born again, we will be with our Heavenly Father. We read that "the dead in Christ will rise" when the world ends, and whatever happened to our bodies after we died is irrelevant. If we do assume our earthly bodies in Heaven, the God of all creation will have no trouble in "putting us back together again"

Answer 8

I think some people are aganist cremation cause no christian in the bible was burned. They was all buried. As far as I know there is no verse that speaks aganist it. I myself will be creamated cause its cheeper. I see no need in spending thousands of dollars when I will not need that body anymore. Jesus will give me a new body.

Answer 9

There is no command in the Bible against cremation.

Answer 10

I don't think there is a problem with cremation in the Bible.