The ashes symbolize both death and repentance. During this period, Christians show repentance and mourning for their sins, because they believe Christ died for them.
However, it's important to remember that the Bible does not explicitly prohibit or endorse cremation or the keeping of ashes. Ultimately, the decision of what to do with the ashes of a loved one is a personal one, and should be made based on what feels right for the family.
God is stating that he is going to wipe out the ashes upon your head and replace it with a beautiful headdress. Isaiah also tells us we will be anointed with oil. This was a common practice in his time and was usually done in times of festivity. God is also going to clothe his people with a garment of praise.
This tradition has its roots in the Old Testament, where wear- ing ashes was a common sign of repentance for sins, and a sign of one's humility before God. Since Lent is a season of penitential renewal through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, it's appropriate that this ancient sign marks the beginning of the season.
By keeping ashes in the house, you will be allowing the psychic connection between the deceased loved one and the remaining family members to continue, which often helps grieving families come to terms with their loss.
4. How do you get ashes? Ashes are blessed and distributed on Ash Wednesday, often during Mass or a prayer service. People walk up to the altar using the same process as Communion.
The Vatican decreed that the ashes of loved ones have no place in the home, and certainly not in jewelry. It urged that cremated remains be preserved in cemeteries or other approved sacred places.
The visible anointing of ashes in the sign of the cross signifies to us the fragility of our humanity – you are dust and to dust you shall return – and our desire for the divine.
This term refers to the ancient Hebrew custom of indicating humility before God by wearing a coarse cloth, normally used to make sacks, and dusting oneself with ashes.
In the Bible, there are no passages that prohibit or encourage cremation and scattering of ashes. However, many Christian sects believe a burial funeral aligns with best end-of-life practices. As a result, some Christian clerics may discourage cremation or prohibit it entirely.
"The Church raises no doctrinal objections to this practice, since cremation of the deceased's body does not affect his or her soul, nor does it prevent God, in his omnipotence, from raising up the deceased body to new life." Even bodies buried traditionally eventually decompose.
Is there energy in cremation ashes? The truth is, there is an essence of your loved one that lingers with the cremation ashes. While it may not be a consciousness, it is a little of their energy that stays behind, almost like someone's perfume that lingers in the air even after they have left the room.
For most Christians today, the question of cremation is largely left to individual discretion. Many Christians choose cremation as an alternative to burial, while still retaining those aspects of their traditional funeral practices that allow them to honor the lives of their loved ones and glorify God.
In Old Testament times people used ashes as a sign of repentance. They would sit in ashes, roll around in them, sprinkle them upon their heads, or even mingle them with their food and drink. They did this as an outward sign of their inward posture of repentance. Check out Daniel 9:3-6, for an example.
The liturgical use of ashes originated in the Old Testament times (Esther 4:1; Job 42:6; Daniel 9:3; Jonah 3:5‐6). Ashes symbolized mourning, mortality, and penance. The Old Testament examples give us evidence both a recognized practice of using ashes and a common understanding of their symbolism.
ashes to ashes, dust to dust [Rel.]
A phrase from the burial service in the Book of Common Prayer: 'we therefore commit this body to the ground, earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal life. '... ...
Nor can the ashes be scattered in the air, land or sea since doing so would give the appearance of "pantheism, naturalism or nihilism," the guidelines said. It repeated church teaching that Catholics who choose to be cremated for reasons contrary to the Christian faith must be denied a Christian funeral.
Isaiah 61:3
To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Your loved one's ashes don't have to stay together either. Families can choose to split the ashes of the deceased among the wider family, where the individual families can choose what they want to do with them.
There is no requirement to keep ashes on the forehead all day or for any period of time after they are given, but many Christians choose to keep them on their foreheads throughout the day on Ash Wednesday.
It is typical to receive ashes on your forehead in the Sign of the Cross. Similar to taking communion at Mass, you usually process toward the altar to get ashes. The priest will make the Sign of the Cross and say one of two things: “Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.”
As we scatter his (her) ashes, we commit his(her) body to you and pray that he finds eternal rest for the glory of your holy name. Lord, forgive us where we have strayed during this grieving season. Fill us with thanksgiving for his well-lived and full life. In Jesus' name, we believe and pray, Amen.
A: In the Bible, cremation is not labeled a sinful practice. Frankly, the topic is not dealt with at all in terms of the detailed lists of instructions for living and dying set forth by almighty God in the Old and New testaments. The short answer to your question appears to be no, cremation is not a sin.
Of all world religions, Islam is probably the most strongly opposed to cremation. Unlike Judaism and Christianity, there is little diversity of opinion about it. Cremation is considered by Islam to be an unclean practice.
In Christian countries, cremation fell out of favor due to the Christian belief in the physical resurrection of the body. Christians also used burial as a mark of difference from the Iron Age European pre-Christian Pagan religions, which usually cremated their dead.