Is it wrong to exhume a deceased loved one for cremation?

Answer 1

(NOT A PROFESSIONAL ANSWER HERE)

My mother, expressed her desire to be cremated,,,,,,,,and Father was against it. She was buried in a regular family plot. Now that he has passed on, I truly wonder if I should have that done for her?

Answer:

There are numerous considerations here, ranging from the Bio-ecological to the financial, as well as the spiritual aspect. (if that is an important element of your composite).

Burial practices vary from country-to-country and even by region or province. Countries such as the United Kingdom still predominately adhere to customs of perhaps a gentler time. Coffins are extremely simple - constructed of particle board with a veneer and simple faux furniture or hardware. (handles, etc.). And embalming is almost unheard of.

Burial plots are often dug deep enough to accommodate up to six (and occasionally eight) coffins. And ultimately, the actual burial plot is, in fact, a leasehold. (Long-term lease). Eventually, the plot will most likely be renewed.

In countries such as the US, many complain that they've become victimised by a cunning funeral industry that uses highly emotive marketing tactics which intricately interweave religious hyperbole, palpable fear, and naïveté in promoting a marketing lifestyle concept, rather than the realities of a death and funeral.

The reason this is shared here is that there may be complex and costly steps you must take to achieve your goal. For many, the costs alone could be so prohibitive that alternative considerations should prevail.

For your mother; did you pay for an extravagant funeral that included a steel-gauge coffin or casket? We're you compelled to pay for a vault as well as a perpetual-care contract for the maintenance of the grave? And did you pay for a memorialisation in the form of masonry?

If so, those costs were most likely extremely high. Should you decide to have your mother's remains exhumed, the application fees, solicitor/attorney costs, court costs, etc., may very well run as high as the original cost of the funeral. Add to that the costs for the reopening of the grave, displacement fees, (should there be anyone else buried above your mother), and removal of any masonry.

Then there are the Bio/Eco considerations: In addition to your court order you would require the services of the local health department, police services, (usually a minimum of four officers), certificate costs for disposal of a substantial non-organic Bio-hazard (the coffin), a Bio-hazard transport vehicle to transport human remains to the crematory. Then there will be the crematory fees, including any environmental fees or taxes.

The Bio issues are dependent upon a number of unknown variables: the period of time since your mother was interred and to what degree (if any) was her embalming. It is often surprising to the uninitiated, but embalming does not necessarily ensure preservation. In most instances the process merely serves in delaying for a few days God's mandate.

From a spiritual perspective; perhaps you would consider having your father's ashes interred in the same grave as your mother? This may serve as an element of comfort for you, realising that their earthly remains are together.

You may find further comfort in the thought that your parent's earthly bodies are mere shells and that all the warm, loving memories you have of them remain where they should be - within your heart. And perhaps the added thought that perhaps your mother would be proud of you for having such a nurturing concern over something that is, so to speak, long done and 'dusted.'

Answer 2

Different religions have different views on the subject of cremation. I do not think it is wrong myself.