Cremation in Greece

An Orthodox view of Cremation, etc.: Sad situation in Greece

And my own added comments:  In originally Protestant-cultured America, prayers for the dead are unknown, rejected in the Protestant Reformation. But until recently, still, in general we preserved some ancient Christian customs, as whole body burial in a proper cemetery . .with some vague notion of it being 'consecrated ground'. But with the ever changing post-Christian values of this society, now, what seems to matter, is expediency and cheapness in the end of life costs, and the fact that many really do not believe in an afterlife, or the Resurrection of all. And too, expensive [and also un-Orthodox], embalming.... is not always needed now, when a cremation is planned. And no expensive burial plot in a cemetery is required. Plus cremation is generally perceived as 'clean'...and thus does not allow the ugly natural decay decomposition process in the dirty ground, to take place. Thus too, no possibility of ...worms. Since the living are, ourselves,  no longer sacred (example: the millions of aborted/murdered  human babies), not to mention the devaluation of the lives and worth of the useless and burdensome elderly,) why should anyone care about the earthly bodily remains of humans?...or to worry about commemorating them, with a decent traditional grave in a cemetery with a headstone, [ crosses are not fashionable anymore, anyway], with their names on it, etc....where no one will come and pray for their souls, anyway. No, all that matters to most now, is...convenience and to  dispose of human remains as cheaply and as fast as possible...as if  they [ we] are rubbish. Adopting  the Hindu practice, [ which in their religion has the meaning of burning the body to release the imprisoned soul], of burning the human bodies, that is seen as 'clean' and,  cheap, modern, and preferable....and more and more, without any pretense of a funeral....especially so, as too often the deceased did not belong to any church nor believe in God. Sometimes what is conducted, around the container of the ashes, is a pathetic 'Celebration of Life' sentimental and short gathering. Then, the ashes [ the 'cremains'],  are strewn over...hither and yon, on top of mountains, or in the ocean or into lakes or rivers or swamps, [ sometimes, simply along the sides of highways!], etc. without any grave marker, so that future generations of their descendants might at least be able visit it and remember them,  ..to at least testify that that human being, their ancestor,  ever lived even. Yes, some ashes end up in canisters in modern styled memorial columbariums, [ which often resemble miniature modern styled apartment buildings...for the dead though], with the name of the departed, but that is a very small percent. That costs too much! In this western region of America, a local funeral director told me, that about 80% or more,  of burials are via cremation, and then strewing the ashes....without any markers.  On the east coast, there are still more bodily burials, than cremations, or so he thinks. Even the once staunch Roman Catholic church, which previously firmly forbade cremations, has given way to the popular demands. In America, virtually all churches,  to my knowledge,  even the Worldly-Orthodox, allow cremations,[ or anyway, cannot stop them]  combined with or without funerals, or any prayers being said over the departed's remains...or their place of burial, or the place where their ashes are strewn or...dumped. Thus, our modern progressive lives and culture are further cheapened and de-sanctified, GODLESS! There is no fear of God, nor hope in a general Resurrection, nor of a life of an age to come. All that matters now, is our brief earthly physical 'happiness' and ...feeling good, raw and unashamed godless materialism in full force. Yet, no one, even the hardened atheists can deny, that.. when this life visibly and undeniably comes to an end for us all, and then there is no more material or bodily pleasure. What happens then? The unbelievers have no answer, none at all. To them, that means total oblivion, that's all. 'Here today, gone tomorrow!' They do not believe in the efficacy of the living praying for the eternal benefit of souls of the departed, [intercessory prayers of the living members of the Church for the departed members of the Church] nor in the living doing good works, 'in their memory', [ VICARIOUSLY ...ON THEIR BEHALF, as is our Orthodox belief], ..i.e. good works which we believe may... help the souls of the departed. Thus seems to be fulfilled the biblical curse: "Even the name of the wicked shall be blotted out of the earth, forever!" Rd. Daniel CHRIST IS RISEN!      XRISTOS ANESTI!      XRISTOS VOSKRESE! Sent: Saturday, May 09, 2015 2:01 PM To: Undisclosed-recipients: Subject: Sad situation in Greece XB!  Read the second part first! Begin forwarded message: From: Bishop Chrysostomos Subject: Sad situation in Greece Date: 9 May 2015 16:41:08 GMT+01:00 Dear Andrei: Christ is Risen! May God bless you. You are absolutely correct: a sad situation. But also a false crisis. Ossuaries house immense numbers of bones, many of which eventually deteriorate naturally. This false crisis is just part of the modernist, anti-Christian idea that it is more convenient and cheaper to cremate bodies. It is also the case that cemeteries occupy prime real estate, which invites greedy interests from that perspective, too. The ultimate loss is one of respect for Holy Tradition, the sacredness of the body, and the literal image that we attempt to preserve, as Orthodox, in the notion of the Resurrection of the body. Falling to the looseness of western Christianity and deviations from Holy Tradition, Orthodox find it increasingly meaningless to keep intact the nexus between belief and practice and symbol and spiritual reality, as well as the relationship between the body and soul, wherein we affirm that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. The holiness of the flesh when we are restored in Christ and become one with Him in theosis is a basic precept of our Faith. Cremation of the body is just one more step towards a materialistic view of man. We as Orthodox are saved body and soul, not just as some abstract energy separate from our bodies and persons. The latter are made new in Christ. Since western Christianity has also lost any respect for Relics and the evidence that they offer of the effect of spiritual power and Grace on the human body, as well as the soul, this important dimension of our opposition to cremation—a pagan practice—is also being lost. Sad, indeed. We have almost lost the tradition of avoiding the embalming of bodies. Cremation is just a final step towards full paganism.  In the Resurrected Christ, † Bp. Chrysostomos ------ On May 9, 2015, at 7:45 AM, C wrote: SHORTAGE OF GRAVE PLOTS REVIVES CREMATION CONTROVERSY IN GREECE May 8, 2015      The shortage of space in graveyards along with burial costs bring back the controversial issue of cremation in Greece. At the moment, graveyards in Greece’s capital and second largest city, Thessaloniki, are overcrowded to the point where a burial is essentially leasing a grave plot for three years. After three years, relatives can pay to have the bones of the buried in communal storage called an ossuary. Cremation would have been a solution to solve this increasing problem. However, the Greek Orthodox Church prohibits cremation as a violation of the human body. Priests are not allowed to conduct funeral ceremonies for deceased whose relatives ask for cremation. Controversy has arisen in recent years with more and more Greeks espousing the idea of scattering the ashes of their loved ones in the place of their birth or in a place the deceased has asked. Also, with burial costs starting at 2,000-3,000 euros, cremation would have been a less costly solution. Yet, the Church of Greece is adamant that no cremation can take place on Greek soil. Thereby, there are no cremation facilities in Greece. The prohibition of cremation and the absence of facilities, has forced a number of Greeks to travel abroad and have cremation services performed in neighboring countries, such as Bulgaria. Last year, and despite the church’s resistance, Mayor of Thessaloniki Yiannis Boutaris petitioned the environment ministry to change legislation regarding locations for building crematoria. The bill was amended making it possible for crematoria to be built outside graveyards. Boutaris has pledged that Thessaloniki will have a cremation facility by 2016. GreekReporter.com