Burial, Cremation, or Composting?

Amid Catholic Opposition, States Are Legalizing Composting of Human Remains

Washington, Colorado and Oregon are now among the U.S. states that have legalized the process of converting human bodies into soil, a procedure the Catholic Church said fails to show “respect for the body of the deceased.” Meanwhile, California and New York are seeking to be next in line to allow human composting.

The process for composting a body was introduced by the Seattle-based company Recompose, which is now open for business after the state of Washington legalized the process in 2019. Colorado was the second state to legalize it, followed by Oregon, when Gov. Kate Brown in mid-June signed House Bill 2574 into law.

Here’s how it works: A dead body is broken down through a process known as Natural Organic Reduction by placing the body in a reusable vessel, covering it with wood chips and aerating it, which creates an environment for microbes and essential bacteria. The body, over a span of about 30 days, is fully transformed into soil. Read More

Christian Burial: Dividing Up Cremains and Other Troubling Habits

Over the past generation American Christians, including and perhaps especially Episcopalians, have increasingly favored cremation over casket burial. This shift has happened for a variety of reasons: cost, concerns about the sustainability of burial space, the ability to have a funeral at a much later date for the sake of family traveling (yet another societal shift, families spread out across the nation).

Certainly the God who raised Jesus from the dead can and will restore us bodily on that last and great day whether we are cremated or buried in a casket. Regarding this promise, Christians should not worry or have reservations. In other words, cremation is an option for believers. But there are other issues that lay beneath the surface, as well as some unexamined and frankly bad practices that have emerged along with the shift, and these warrant some exploration. Read More