Throughout history, societies have adopted varying approaches to dealing with corpses. Some have buried them in the ground and some have cremated them. Others sealed them away in elaborate mausoleums with food and drink, mummified them, left them for the vultures, cannibalized them and done the unthinkable to the bodies of their loved ones. Presumably, most people simply followed their neighbors’ example in deciding what method to choose.
Since the very beginning of the Jewish people thousands of years ago, although many options were available, Jews have always insisted on burial.
Until recently.
Today, mirroring the developments in Western society, at least 30 percent of Jewish deaths in North America and Europe are followed by cremations, and the percentage is on the rise.
What is the cause of cremation’s increasing popularity? Here are some of the top reasons:
- Environmental concerns: Burial seems to waste land and pollute the environment.
- Mobility concerns: Kids don’t live close anyway. Why feel guilty about not visiting the gravesite?
- Discomfort with decomposition: Cremation seems quicker and cleaner.
- Financial concerns: Cremation seems — and often is — cheaper than burial.
As Professor Stephen Prothero put it, “whether to bury or to burn is … no trivial matter. It touches on issues as important as perceptions of the self, attitudes toward the body, views of history, styles of ritual, and beliefs in God and the afterlife.”1
Because this decision is so important, it is crucial not to leave it until the rushed and stressful times of ultimate grief. Let’s examine the facts.
Environmentalists Are Not in Favor of Cremation.
Why? Simply because, contrary to common perception, cremation is bad for the environment.
Cremation uses a tremendous amount of fossil fuels — over one million Btu’s (British thermal units) per hour with an average cremation lasting between one and a half and two hours, sometimes more – a tremendous amount of energy at a time when, finally, society is realizing it needs to lower the use of fossil fuels.
Environmentalists admire Jewish tradition which prohibits metal caskets and embalming.
Furthermore, cremation released toxic chemicals into the air. The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency estimated in 2001 that cremations accounted for 32 percent of mercury emissions to the atmosphere in that country and a recent Canadian Study found the problem so serious that it recommended simply that “A crematorium should not be sited close to a neighborhood.”2 Finally, there is plenty of land available for burial: When you crunch the numbers, burials in the U.S. use far less land per year than the construction of new Walmarts (187,000 square feet per Supercenter, excluding their massive parking lots). Even if all Americans were buried, it would take over 10,000 years to use up just 1% of America’s land mass. And, of course, Jews constitute less than 2% of the dead, and few cemeteries would last that long anyway.
So where does this misconception come from? Environmentalists are critical of embalming chemicals and metal caskets. They recommend what are called ‘green burials’ without the metal caskets or embalming – and openly admire the Jewish tradition which prohibits both. Environmentalists are against cremation. 3
Cremation Does Not Solve Mobility Concerns
Modern mobility certainly makes cemetery visitation much harder. However, upon further reflection, things aren’t so simple. First of all, it is hard to find an appropriate place for cremated remains. Feels strange to have them in the house. Even when the children do find an appropriate place for the remains of their deceased parents, how long will they keep them for?
Until they switch jobs and move? Until they retire? What will they do with them then? And when, in ten or twenty years, they are no longer living independently, will their children want the remains? Will they take them? What will they do with the remains?
The point is that our homes and families are simply not designed for long term storage of cremated remains. At some point, they are likely to be placed in an inappropriate place, forgotten, or ignored. In all cases, the home option is only temporary anyway. Some choose scattering, however in many families, a child or grandchild will eventually develop a desire to visit the gravesite and re-connect with their loved ones who have passed on. Whether important to you or not, or to the deceased, scattering prevents any descendants from ever having a traditional gravesite to visit. Even in the cases where gravesite visitation will rarely or never occur, burial is the right choice – as witnessed by the case of Moses himself, when God buried him and then hid the place of his burial (to avoid it becoming a site of idol worship). Even when it doesn’t seem like there will be any visitors — the body is at rest, and has found a permanent home.
Decomposition: It’s Never Pretty (Skip this section if you get queasy easily)
Many people believe cremation is quick and clean. It isn’t. To quote Professor Stephen Prothero4:
“Think of the horrors … of the crisping, crackling, roasting, steaming, shriveling, blazing features and hands that yesterday were your soul’s delight. Think of exploding cadavers. Think of the stench of burning flesh and hair. Think of the smoke. Think of the bubbling brains. Then you will be gripped by ‘paralyzing horror’ at even the thought of ‘submitting the remains of … dear departed relatives to its sizzling process.’ Cremation [is], in a word, repulsive: ‘There is nothing beautiful in being shoved in to an oven, and scientifically barbecued by a patented furnace’ ”
True, being eaten by worms is not pleasant either. I’m not claiming burial is ‘less gross.’ On a physical level, they are both pretty disgusting. Burial, however, is a natural process of decomposition that occurs to every human being. Cremation is loud, violent, and unnatural.
Related Article: Planting a Tree of Life
Financial Concerns
Cremations have the reputation of being cheap. It isn’t always so. When all the side costs and hidden costs are added in, “Sheri Richardson Stahl, director of Island Funeral Home in Beaufort, S.C., explained that, “Plenty of times, cremations are just as expensive as burials.”5
There is one type of cremation, however, whose costs can’t be beat: direct cremation. In this type of cremation, a cremation company is contacted online or by telephone. They send someone to pick up the body, deliver it to the crematorium, and deliver to the bereaved family a small can full of cremated remains. Costs are often between $1,000 and $2,000. In an age of worldwide economic difficulty, direct cremations are becoming more common. That is unfortunate.
Here is why: For some things in life, it is certainly appropriate to find the cheapest solution possible. Times are tough, and we need to live within our means. However, for some life decisions we manage to find the money to do the right thing. For example, I will do whatever is necessary to send my children to a decent school, rather than “going cheap” and putting them in a bad environment. If a loved one needs a medical procedure, I will somehow arrange to make it possible.
Choosing burial is important. Even in the cases when it is more expensive. Here’s why.
The Meaning of Burial
When a body is buried, the ground is opened up. A tear in the earth appears. The gaping hole declares, “Something is not right here — there is a tear in the human fabric of life. Take note, world, don’t rush through this moment. Recognize the loss. Remember the life.” When the body is gently placed in the ground, a new message is given — the calm return to nature, the source of life.
“After decades of denying our mortality, Americans are starting to accept, if not embrace, this fundamental fact of biology: that the natural end of all life is decomposition and decay. Instead of fighting it at almost all cost as we have for the better part of the last century — with toxic chemicals, bulletproof metal caskets, and the concrete bunker that is the burial vault, all of which will only delay, not halt, the inevitable — we’re finally seeing the wisdom of allowing Mother Nature to run her natural course.”6
The earth, the dirt, is indeed “the Mother of All Life.” The earth provides our sustenance, like a mother who gives birth to and feeds her young. And to it all creatures return, to begin the cycle once again. As British dramatist Francis Beaumont put it,
“Upon my buried body lay
Lightly, gently, earth”7
Returning the body of someone we cared for to the earth is a sign of love. Do we burn things we love? Think back to your first pet: "We burned the trash and buried the treasure. That is why, faced with life’s first lessons in mortality — the dead kitten or bunny rabbit, or dead bird fallen from its nest on high — most parents search out shoe boxes and shovels instead of kindling wood or barbecues…"8
The Talmud compares burial to planting.
Burial and cremation usually reflect two radically different attitudes, and two mutually exclusive ways of seeing the world and understanding our place in it. Decomposition and burning are vastly different from one another and, in many ways, complete opposites. Decomposition of
a plant or living creature creates fertilizer. The intrinsic elements of the matter are not changed — rather they are given back to the ground. No wonder that the Talmud compares burial to a type of planting.9
Cremation, on the other hand, leaves only burnt ashes, its elements forever changed and almost entirely burnt off. Try burning a seed before planting it — nothing will grow. In choosing cremation, humanity shows its power, but to what end?
The message of cremation is to side with man as conqueror, using fire and technology to interfere with and control nature — rather than peacefully accept it. The message of burial is one of respect for the cycle of nature.
When burying the remains of our loved ones, we calmly return what we have received. Burial reflects the rhythm of the universe.
Furthermore, burial is a Torah commandment. Deuteronomy 21:23 discusses the rare case of an evil criminal who is put to death. Even in that extreme case, the command is given, “You shall surely bury him,” teaching a general principle for all cases. The obligation to bury is so strong that even the high priest — who zealously avoided all contact with all forms of death — must personally give the dead a proper burial if no one else can do so. The Talmud, Maimonides, and the Code of Jewish Law all codify the commandment to bury the dead.10
Spiritual Ramifications
The severity, repetition, and focus on providing proper Jewish burial in the Bible, Talmud, and books of Jewish law are remarkable, and hint at its important spiritual ramifications. Jewish mystical works do much more. They explain core concepts about cremation and burial that change the way we think about death — and life. In order to begin to understand the issues (a full understanding would require too much space for this article), here is a point of departure:
Who are funerals for, anyway? It sounds like a silly question, but the answer forms the basis of many decisions made at this sensitive time. Some believe that decisions made after death — for example, whether to bury or burn, and what type of service to conduct — are for the living. To give a sense of closure. To provide comfort. After all, the dead person is … dead. Whatever we do doesn’t matter to him anyway. He or she is already in a “better place.” We presume that the dead don’t feel what is happening to the body, don’t really care, and probably aren’t even aware anyway. Mourning practices, then, are understood to be for the mourners.
The Jewish view is different. While providing comfort to the bereaved is central to Jewish tradition (and is crucial to mourning practices), it is not the only factor to be considered. The soul of the departed needs to be taken into consideration as well, and some questions (what is done with the body at the time of the funeral, for instance) focus almost exclusively on the needs of the soul, rather than on the mourners’ needs.
What are the (departed) soul’s needs?
When death occurs, the soul still feels close to the body.
In Jewish thought the body and soul are not enemies. The body enables the soul to dwell in this world, to bring meaning into daily life. Without the body, the soul could not fulfill its mission. Body and soul are partners, together for a lifetime. Since they are partners, the soul becomes attached to its body. When death occurs, the soul does not depart immediately. It still feels close to the body.
Jewish mysticism compares body and soul to a loving husband and wife. When a husband departs this world, can a loving wife immediately move on? The bond is so close that time is needed to adjust to the new reality. The soul, then, does not abandon the body immediately after death. Since it is confused and disoriented, it stays close to what it knows best — its body. It hovers around the body until burial, and shares in the mourning, going back and forth from gravesite to the shivah house.11
The soul is fully aware of what is happening to ‘its’ body.12 One way to understand this soul-knowledge is to consider that upon its departure from the physical world, the soul achieves greater closeness and knowledge of God, Who is the Source of all knowledge, and thus the soul shares in God’s knowledge of what is happening to its body on earth. This is why traditional Jewish funeral practices are marked by tremendous respect for the body — it is painful for a soul to see its body mishandled, abandoned, or defiled.
Traditional Jewish burial gives the soul great comfort, and provides the transition it requires to enter the purely spiritual world. Cremation, on the other hand, causes the soul tremendous — and unnecessary — agony. The soul cries out in pain as its partner, the body, is burned rather than caringly returned to its Source. The soul is prevented from gently returning to God, instead needing to go through a lengthy and difficult struggle to adjust to a new reality.
Despite Judaism’s great insistence on listening to parents and honoring their wishes, we can now understand why proper Jewish burial overrides a parental request for cremation: Once the body is dead, the soul gains greater closeness to God and therefore greater understanding. It knows what pain cremation will bring and what eternal meaning burial provides. Now, the real ‘parent’ – their inner soul – wants to avoid the pain and separation of cremation more than anything we can imagine.
To Die as a Jew
Finally, for thousands of years, Jews and Judaism have insisted on proper Jewish burial. Roughly 2,000 years ago, Roman historian Tacitus wrote that “the Jews bury rather than burn their dead.”13 Even today, the Israel Defense Forces spends and enormous amount of time, energy, money and resources trying to ensure proper Jewish burial for its fallen. Jews will fly around the world in order to recover ancient Torah Scroll and give it a proper burial – and people are more important than even a Torah Scroll..
By choosing burial, we are aligning ourselves with Jewish history and the Jewish people. In our ‘last act’ on the planet, choosing Jewish burial means declaring, “I may not have been a perfect Jew. But I’m proud to be one, and I want to die as a Jew.”
Adapted with permission from Cremation or Burial? A Jewish View by Doron Kornbluth (Mosaica Press, 2012).
- Stephen Prothero, Purified by Fire: A History of Cremation in America (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2001), 5
- Veerle Willaeys, Public Health Impact of Crematoria, Memorial Society of British Columbia, 2007
- For more on burial and the environment, see: (1) Harris, Mark. Grave Matters: A Journey through the Modern Funeral Industry to a Natural Way of Burial. New York: Scribner, 2007; (2) Butz, Bob. Going Out Green: One Man’s Adventure Planning His Own Natural Burial. Traverse City, MI: Spirituality & Health Books, 2009; (3) Lubowski, Ruben N., Marlow Vesterby, Shawn Bucholtz, Alba Baez, and Michael J. Roberts. Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2002/EIB-14. United States Department of Agriculture: Economic Research Service, May 2006, http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/eib14/; (4) Wikipedia, s.v. “Cremation.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cremation; and (5) my own Cremation or Burial? A Jewish View (Mosaica Press, 2012)
- Ibid, p. 67
- Molly Kardares, “Another Sign of the Recession — Cremation on the Rise,” CBS News, March 20, 2009, http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/03/20/business/econwatch/entry4879269.shtml.
- Mark Harris, Grave Matters: A Journey through the Modern Funeral Industry to a Natural Way of Burial (New York: Scribner, 2007), 186.
- Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher, The Maid’s Tragedy, ed. T. W. Craik (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1999), II:i.
- Lynch, The Undertaking, 96.
- Tractate Sanhedrin 90b and Ketubot 111b
- Sanhedrin 46b, 29 Sefer Ha-Mitzvot 231, 536; Laws of Mourning, ch. 12, Yoreh Dei’ah 362.
- Zohar 1:122b. Based on Kabbalistic sources, the Gesher HaChaim (1:117) outlines seven stages of departure: (1) Thirty days before death, the soul begins a partial separation from the body. (2) In the last hours before death, there is a further separation. (3) At the moment of death, the soul leaves the body and meets its Maker. (4) For the first three days after death, the soul is confused. It believes it will reenter the body and therefore stays closely attached to it. After three days it ceases trying to reenter the body, but remains confused. During the shivah, the first week after death, the soul goes back and forth from the grave to the shivah house. (5) Between shivah and thirty days, the soul rises in Heaven, but is closely attached to the gravesite. (6) Between thirty days and the first year, the soul rises higher in Heaven, but still returns periodically to the gravesite. (7) After one year, it stays in Heaven, except for a small part of it that remains connected to this world and its body.
- Talmud, Tractate Berachot 18b; Tosafot, Shabbat 153a, s.v. “venishmato”; Talmud, Tractate Sotah 34b; Rabbi Aaron Berachyah, Ma’avar Yabok 2:25; and Menashe ben israel, Nishmat Chaim 2:22.
- Tacitus, Histories 5:5.
(66) Miriam Wolkenfeld Cohen, October 22, 2020 4:13 PM
No cremation for me
The ultimate decision was for me to think of the indignity of the Nazis Crematoriums for their mostly Jewish victims. And my sister-in-law who married out and was cremated,as was her Gentile Husband,now both stored in metal vases at Arlington Cemetery, I doubt that her kids and grandkids visit, for me, once was enough.
(65) Francesca Dodds, September 9, 2020 12:24 PM
Regret
I am not Jewish but I had a loved one cremated as a hasty decision. I am consumed with regret. I no longer enjoy life.
(64) Anonymous, January 31, 2017 3:24 AM
Very well said! Thanks for posting!
(63) Anonymous, November 27, 2015 6:11 AM
Ashes to ashes
Ashes to ashes dust to dust. We go back where we came from is how we eere taught
(62) Anonymous, October 11, 2015 5:56 PM
excellent article... I have been waiting for this and would like a small book to be printed so that secular Jews.... all Jews could read about it
(61) Anonymous, October 11, 2015 3:36 AM
Cremation or burial
I just wish to mention how glad I was to read your article
why to burial and NOT cremation.
My own mother have been send for cremation by one of my siblings without my notification. I was total horrified when I got to hear about it after the fact. I am so happy that more people like myself and God have the right approach how to give our last respect, Two thumps up for this article. Christine from Canada
(60) Miriam, October 9, 2015 10:51 PM
Great article
A wonderful, thought provoking, and logically presented article. If only the family would read it...
(59) shoshana, October 9, 2015 3:09 AM
garbage or treasure?
As I saw written somewhere: you bury treasure, you burn garbage...
(58) Anonymous, October 9, 2015 2:06 AM
Question cremation/burial
What happens to those who for example die in an explosion and their body is instantly cremated. How is that explained in Jewish law?
Thank you,
(57) valerie, October 9, 2015 12:56 AM
burial/cremation
being cremated is something that i would not want - but it sure seems to me in the Torah, early - even well known - Jewish people were embalmed -- can someone verify that?? thank you
(56) Lea, October 8, 2015 11:55 PM
Cremation is a pagan practice
The Hindus have millions of gods, not just one.
On another note, you can purchase a funeral plan, kind of like a life insurance policy, before you die, and pay it in payments for up to 10 years. This guarantees the price when you die, and it is already taken care of for your loved ones. You pick out your casket and it is all done. If you die before the 10 years is up, it is covered and no further payment is required.
I am Christian, but my thoughts have always been that cremation is a pagan practice, so I would never want to do it. I also do not want embalming, which is also a pagan practice.
(55) Miriamwcohen, October 8, 2015 10:02 PM
If you no longer are part of Jewish Life
My husband's first cousin just died, felt she was no longer Jewish, no practices, became a Hindu, and therefore chose cremation, gave up her plot on the family cemetery. And there are a lot of Jews like that, so that is their choice. Her daughters planted a tree In her memory, but that was it. Nothing to pass on, no connection at all.
(54) Leo Knoll, October 8, 2015 9:15 PM
What do people think about this explanation?
Some Jews may not want to be buried because they have seen what happens to cemetaries in places where Jews have been expelled. There's no one left to care for the graves!
They become over ridden with weeds or desecrated by vandals and anti semites. Tomb stones are knocked over or destroyed, and no one comes to visit them or put a rock on their grave because all the Jews are gone who used to live there.
(53) Anonymous, October 8, 2015 7:26 PM
Only the wealthy can afford burial
If you are poor, you have no choice(s). Death, as in life, is a matter of financial consequence. Until those values are changed in the minds of men, only those with money are 'people'.
fay, November 4, 2015 11:30 PM
This is not the case for jews
There are "hebrew free burial societies" or equivalent in almost every major Jewish community that enable every Jew to choose a proper burial, regardless of their financial status.
(52) DAS1951, October 8, 2015 5:06 PM
Hindus cremate
Interesting article...I must admit had never thought of environmental concerns in the discussions about cremation.
In the points about the general pluses and minuses it was overlooked that a very large religious group (that also, maybe to the surprise of some) also believes in one God (though one with many specific manifestations) and that has cremation as the sanctioned method of disposal of dead bodies, namely Hindus.
(51) Jonathan, October 8, 2015 3:26 PM
BURIAL HERE IN SOUTH AFRICA
We have the same options here as anywhere else i.e. burial or cremation. Burials are carried out using a plain Pine casket which is in direct contact with the earth. I agree with some of what was said above i.e. that we should be buried "close to the earth" - and I feel that a plain Pine casket (without handles) is ideal. Like the body, this will eventually disintegrate and the body will be re-united with "mother earth." "From dust to dust."
(50) betty, October 8, 2015 2:38 PM
BURIAL IS MY FIRST CHOICE. HOWEVER, IF ONLY OSTS WERE NOT THAT EXHOIRBATANT, I FEEL MORE WOULD OPT FOR THAT. WHEN YOU CONSIDER THE COST OF A BURIAL PLOT, THE HEAD STONE AND SOME OTHER THINGS THAT GO ITH IT, IT SEEMS OUT OF REACH FOR SOME. WHY CAN THE AUTHORITIES NOT MAKE IT MORE AFFORDABLE FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS JEW ?
(49) Anonymous, August 2, 2014 12:32 AM
This article has given me peace.
I currently have Cancer and while not close to death I do think about it. So many of my cousins chose to be cremated and I made my husband start to buy and pay off burial arrangements for us both. We chose a site where our parents and a child are buried. I am now very thankful. Shirley Newman
Merav, August 21, 2014 1:23 AM
burial
II have stage 4 cancer and don't know how long I have. I live in Israel and burial in the municipal cemetery is very inexpensive. I'll prepay the headstone and death announcements so my parents won't have to deal with it.
(48) romeo, December 30, 2013 2:45 PM
Respect for the soul
I'm not a Jew but I've always known that when someone dies, it is only befitting that the body returns to the ground. And I think this is the most respectful way of caring for someone who was once a living soul. For some reason, I do have that weird perception that my soul would somehow stay for a while when I die.
(47) Anonymous, August 10, 2013 7:54 AM
Don't agree with cremation, but family did it anyway
My brother in law died very suddenly this week, leaving no will. Our family is Jewish but my in-laws are not religious. I am also Jewish but I didn't know much about Jewish funerals or what is required except about Shivas. Anyway my in laws decided to cremate him. I'm really not happy about it and I feel like he isn't resting in peace. Now after reading this article I am really sick about their decision. I can't believe they did this and I think it was just out of cheapness! I don't know how we will live with this. I don't think it's what my Brother in law would have wanted. I don't even know what they will do with the remains. So sad about this. Everyone needs to make a will so there is no confusion.
(46) Beverly Kurtin, July 29, 2013 11:59 PM
What kind of fuel am I?
For awhile I wanted cremation. Now, I wish I could be buried without a casket,just a shroud and perhaps a canvas bag so that I could return to the earth more quickly. If I have to be buried in a casket, then I want my plain pine casket to have direct connection with the earth.
Most cemeteries in my part of the world insist on using a concrete vault so the earth above will not sink. That's fine, as long as the vault is ABOVE my casket with an open bottom; such vaults are readily available.
I plan on living beyond 100 because I need to see so many of my physicians buried...and I wish them a long, healthy, and happy lives. But some of them had made grievous errors, such as not realizing that I was about to have a stroke, and telling me after the stroke that I would never walk, talk, or work again. I return to work six months to the day of my stroke.
Another doctor refused to let me switch anti-seizure medication, and as a result, I have multiple neuropathies and dystonias that have caused me untold agony.
I've never sued any of them, it isn't in me to harm others financially or otherwise. They're just human beings who make mistakes. Why hurt them?
Aging and healing are a matter of attitude. My soul and I want to continue what we've been doing. We lack nothing except cash money. But we've food, clothing, shelter, and wonder what else we need.
(45) onyx, July 26, 2013 2:57 AM
now i understand
i prefer cremation before i encountered this article, its the common way here in asia to save land and the costs, now i understand...
its true, we dont burn something we love...
(44) George, July 9, 2013 9:45 PM
Our body is a temple which houses the soul, both of which God has given us,
Timely discussion, at 60 yrs old, knowing my mother will be buried in adjacent plot to my Jewish grandmother along with all the other family members going back 100 years, gives me the comfort of knowing my family, keeping them in prayer. It is a recognition that our lives, body and spirits,are not simply dust to be scattered, but rather a soul, born of God, Which cannot be destroyed and scattered across the earth, and the memories erased in a cloud of dust.
(43) Anne, July 9, 2013 4:32 PM
I disagree
When I die, my soul will leave my body, which will then be useless. My soul will be reincarnated! I am Jewish and I want to be cremated. Ideally, my cremains would be mixed with cement and be used to construct a foundation structure for a coral reef!
Anonymous, July 22, 2013 8:21 AM
think again
cement production.... hm great for the environment. complete waste of resources and money. body is only useless if you burn it, otherwise the nutrients go back to the planet
(42) JANKEL, July 9, 2013 4:22 PM
Affective Demonstration
all this stuff is pure tautology and sentimental thinking with no serious arguments but affective bound to childhood when not childish traditional view.
People now don't believe in Souls tales and didn't dare to tell it in the States, a bigotry empire...They just do for after death what they thought long ago but kept silent.
Anonymous, July 22, 2013 8:23 AM
huh?
no idea what you are talking about. environmentalists are against cremation and so is Judaism. what is tautological? think before you write, please
Beverly Kurtin, July 29, 2013 11:45 PM
I feel sorry for you
Yankel, I grieve for you and your assumptions. You dare assume that "People now don't believe in Souls tales..." I dare say that you are wrong, wrong, wrong. The longer I live, the more friends who have passed from this world, the more convinced I am that we are souls running a human body. Many people who feel as you do, have nothing to look forward to except complete extinction. I've friends who feel as you do. Their overall attitudes seem to be more negative than those of us who still know there is a soul in addition to our bodies. Although you are more than fee to believe how you believe, but please, do not say that "People" no longer believe in souls. You do have a soul whether or not you believe it. You will eventually know it.
(41) Betty McCain, June 3, 2013 1:50 AM
Repulsive
I am a non Jew and I totally agree that buriel is a must. I will never understand how a human being could ever think it's ok to burn the body of someone they claim to love or even someone whom they do not love. The very idea is repulsive..
(40) Jane, November 2, 2012 7:27 PM
I'm a Christian but agree with this article completely. I mourn for those who choose cremation. It's so cold and without care for the family. While some see it as being considerate, I see it as the ultimate inconsideration. I pray at the gravesites of my family. Thank you for an insightful article.
(39) Keith Gentles, March 6, 2012 9:44 PM
Cremation or burial ?
If we are human's on a spiritual journey then this question may be important , but if we are spirtual beings on a human journey then I don't think it would.
(38) Frank Adam, March 4, 2012 9:40 PM
Needs some nikudot
In Tenach and Second Temple times the body was buried or left to rot to the bones in/on sarcophogi,literally Greek for "flesh eating" - family catacombs and tombs as visible at Bet Shearim near Kiryat Tivon SW of Haifa. After the year or whatever, the bones were, "gathered to his fathers," in the Biblical phrase ie piled up at he end of the chamber to leave the "bed " clear for the next family death. By Temple II times ossuaries were used to box individuals' bones within the family cave or as medieval Engllish has it : charnel houses. Remember all Mediterranean countries are basically limestone without an excess of good corn land (and no potatoes till after 14 & 92/ Columbus sailed the ocean blue). This is why burial customs used to, and still do (I have seen television clips of as much in the Naples area) center on caves either natural or artificial and nowadays on stacked tombs like monster pigeon holes as in Venice. By the historic fluke of most European Jews spending centuries in the plentiful land for small populations of Northern Europe before big industrial towns we have a tradition of personal graves for all, but especially in Britain and Germany I do not see this lasting beyond this century longer which is why cremation has revived as in Graeco-Roman times. True that is energy expensive but we can always return to burial for a year and then putting the bones in (stacked) ossuaries in charnel house type family tombs or columbaria (pigeon holes) as cremations already do in many places - but bigger.
(37) Anonymous, March 4, 2012 2:35 PM
What if you don't believe that we have a soul?
My brother, who follows Buddhost teachings, disavows belief in the "duality of soul and body." He also intends to be cremated...why not, if there is no soul and no afterlife? I have resolved that I will support kiruv organizations as a measure to prompt his return- even if at the last moment of his lire.
(36) Anonymous, March 1, 2012 5:40 AM
Not for Jews - Cremation
My Great granmother perished in Auschwitz after being forcibly taken there in The Holocaust from Slovakia. She was killed and was most probably cremated. I am at a total loss why this is so appealling to some people? My Dad ad 120! a survivor wishes there was a grave he could go to; to mourn proerly at.
(35) emmy zitter, February 29, 2012 9:56 PM
what burial means to a Shoah survivor's family
Having a proper place of burial means alot to me, perhaps because all of my grandparents and most of my extended family were murdered during the Shoah and not given a Jewish burial. I know how much my own parents, who survived, missed having their parents' burial place. More, the idea of a Jew choosing cremation, when millions of our people were cremated against their deepest beliefs, is unfathomable to me. Every proper Jewish burial is part of our response to those who murdered Jews and then burned them in Europe's ovens. Today, thank G-d, the Jewish people live on--in life and even in death.
(34) Anonymous, February 26, 2012 5:27 AM
I feel that especially Jewish bodies should not be cremated. Enough Jews were burned to death during the Holocaust. My husband recently passed away and over the years he always talked about being cremated. I made it quite clear to him that if he went first I would not allow cremation. When we made our pre funeral arrangements he was in complete agreement with me and was buried. People should think twice or even three times re cremation.
(33) cb, February 24, 2012 8:51 PM
This is interesting because it really comes down to a question of faith. Those opting for cremation do not believe their souls will be bothered. I tend to agree. I'll be dead. Let the doctors use whatever organs they can to save someone else's life. Until someone presents hard proof either way.......
(32) Neicee, February 24, 2012 7:11 PM
Inspiring
This brings up a problem I have. I was widowed at a young age. I planned to be buried with this lovely man and even had the tombstone engraved. Ten years later I met and fell in love with another lovely soul. It was the understanding then that when the time came I would be buried next to my first husband. We've now spent 20 years together and it's bothering him now that we won't be together in death. But, he believes in cremation and I don't. Not one person in my family has ever been cremated, where it's a tradition in his. I've told every single family member and close friends how they are not to allow me to be cremated. Will he follow my wishes or do as he pleases should I go first? We joke about it, but really, it does worry me. Yes, it's in my Will but that's usually only read and probated after burial.
Shilah, February 25, 2012 8:47 PM
Put your wishes in other forms ALSO, not only in your Will.
shalom, you are wise to be thinking in advance of this important decision. And it's kind of you to make it clear what you want done. Confusion or uncertainty regarding the loved one's wishes is always hard on the survivors. But in this matter you need not only spoken instructions for your family, but written instructions that are accessible even in the event of an illness or injury! Often the telephone call to a mortician is made from the hospital, by a nurse; there won't be much time to go to the bank, open the deposit box, & read the Will. (A copy of your Will should be kept at home in a safe place, and another copy in another safe location such as the home of your Executor.) In addition to a Will, you would do well to have a "Living Will". Many states require this to avoid costly or traumatizing actions that can occur around the time of a death. Please see an attorney you trust, and have a document drawn up for you, that will clearly express your views & wishes. You might also consider informing the funeral home(s) most likely to be used by your family. Some funeral homes will even make "pre-arrangements", so that many decisions and even costs are taken care of ahead of time.
(31) Joanna, February 24, 2012 6:37 PM
I don't understand
It doesn't make sense to me why so many people are arguing with this beautifully written, and highly convincing article. The author has laid out the numerous arguments for cremation and successfully refuted them all. What I see here is a group of Jews who are trying to rectify their own positions against a Torah that is clearly telling them cremation is forbidden. Guilt is the most powerful influence for these arguments, however, so before touting cremation as the "right way for you" re-read this article and see if your protestations are valid, or merely self-justification for what you know is not the right way.
(30) Ilene, February 24, 2012 12:28 PM
I am wondering if organ donation and/or autopsies are still against Jewish law, and if so, why? I would like to donate my organs, but still have a proper Jewish burial one day (a long time from now, please) :) Has Jewish law changed with the technology?
(29) Joseph Omemo, February 23, 2012 11:01 AM
Remember the valley of dry bones? People are trying very hard to discredit God. Whatever ones beliefs, there is resurrection! Ashes that have been strewn in the mountains and oceans shall never ever resurrect! Let's not play God!
(28) Antonio Carlos de Azevedo, MD PhD, February 22, 2012 9:49 PM
The Book of Job support to the Jewish Tradition on burial.
Job 1:21:כא וַיֹּאמֶר עָרֹם יָצָתִי מִבֶּטֶן אִמִּי, וְעָרֹם אָשׁוּב שָׁמָּה--יְהוָה נָתַן, וַיהוָה לָקָח; יְהִי שֵׁם יְהוָה, מְבֹרָךְ. And he said; naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither; the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.
(27) Anonymous, February 21, 2012 11:18 PM
Thank you!
This article puts everything in perspective for my husband and I. He is in the US Army and is deploying soon again to Afghanistan and with that we had to talk about his wishes/requests. At first he thought creamation, but after reading this we understand why this is not suitable for anyone Jewish. As his wife, if anything happened to him, I would not want to cause his soul agony. Thank you a thousand times over for explaining this and helping us!
cb, February 24, 2012 8:46 PM
Good luck to your husband on his deployment. It's a wonderful thing to serve your country. You should be very proud of him.
(26) iris, February 21, 2012 9:37 AM
very important article
Thank you for writting this very important article ! Personally, I am extremly diswrought about some of my family members choosing cremation over burial and I have pleaded my case in favor of burial to these loved ones . As you have stated there are many reasons why some Jews chose cremation, and I have heard them from several of my closest family . I have forwarded this article to them with great hopes that they will reconsider their choice ( one already has thank G-d ) . Thank you again, iris
(25) smb, February 21, 2012 5:23 AM
i agree that if we respect and love the person, burial is better because like you say, the soul sees what is happening to it's body and it would be very painful for it to watch the body being burned. Our tradition says to bury as soon as possible because the soul doesn't have peace until it's buried.
(24) Mary Hayes, February 21, 2012 4:39 AM
I have always hated the idea of Cremation. I cringe at the thought of taking the body of someone you love so dearly, and then giving it into the EXTREME heat that is required to burn it up. I feel like it is putting them into a HELL place, and will never have Not One of mine Burned.
(23) TMay, February 20, 2012 9:38 PM
Thank you.
Good article. Ruth Housman, Thank you for the point you made.that If we experience reincarnation, we have more than one body therefore if one was burned by the Nazis, there is another body that was buried properly. I'm sure God can do what he wants, it might just be more efficient if Jews are buried in Jewish cemeteries with their names and with their bodies identified. It reminds me of the joke about the Jew praying to win the lottery and God.
(22) Anonymous, February 20, 2012 8:27 PM
Regarding footnote 11, I'm sure the Kabbalistic scholars gave it lots of thought and analysis, but, absent a seance, how could they know what a soul goes through?
(21) John Rogers, February 20, 2012 11:50 AM
Cremation serves me well enough.
I do not find your environmental comments convincing. My reason for cremation is economical and practical. I wish to have my ashes scattered over the Pacific Ocean. BTW, using Swedish ecological reasoning suggests to me that you should have simply said burial is the customary Jewish method of interment. Sweden, in my opinion, has slipped over into fantasy land where the environment is concerned.
(20) Dorothy, February 20, 2012 5:39 AM
My experience with my husband's death
Jewish funeral homes are extremely expensive in the Chicago area. It's a closed market. I had to settle for a secular burial in a local community. A rabbi came out of charity. These funeral homes operate on the belief that all Jews are rich.
(19) David B., February 20, 2012 1:45 AM
hard to understand........................
Considering our recent History,its hard to comprehend a Jew,choosing cremation! We know fire reduces matter to Nothing,why? would a person,want to completely wipe away soul, along with the Body? Self hatred,maybe?
(18) Anonymous, February 20, 2012 1:36 AM
when I heard that Amy Winehouse was cremated, I was APPALLED!. Don't her parents know anything about kavod hames (honoring the deceased)? The funeral, the nice things said about the person who passed on, the fact that the body must be buried as quickly as possible, no autopsies permitted, the cleansing of the body prior to burial, all of these things are to ensure that the person who passed on receives honor, even in death this is important. These things happen because of utter ignorance of Jews who refuse to learn about their traditions. Her parents should have known cremation is forbidden.
(17) ruth housman, February 20, 2012 1:12 AM
what happened to us, in the camps
I wanted to add this, because I think this is very important to think about, and that is, we were cremated. We were gassed and cremated by the thousands, in the concentration camps. I need to say this, because all these souls, well, I do totally believe, they came back to G_d, and that maybe they even have circled back to earth. So this is something to think about in talking about the journey of soul and what happens to us, when we die.
(16) Irving Finver, February 19, 2012 10:24 PM
When my wife was very ill we discussed her burial vs cremation. She suggested cremation. "The Rabbi does not know me. He will come to the house the day before the burial to learn about me. The next day he will tell all assembled what you told him the day before. After discussion we decided in favor of cremation. I picked out the Urn which is in my home. with the askes. My son knows that when I go he will put the Urn in the casket with me and we will be buried together.
(15) shoshana, February 19, 2012 8:06 PM
what if you can not affroad to pay for your burial
Great! both for of burial are very expensive. What happens if you can not afford the cost of your own dead. That is the position may find them self's into, today?
(14) Tom, February 19, 2012 7:04 PM
For me it is not so much dust to dust or the soul. It is my Jewish heritage and even more importantly, perhaps, and more specifically, if the Nazis did not succeed putting me in the ovens, there will be no cremation for me. Period.
(13) Danny, February 19, 2012 6:44 PM
What dies Torah say about it?
It would seem to me that this is a spiritual matter. Dont spiritual matters belong to G-d?
(12) Anonymous, February 19, 2012 5:54 PM
Moshiach
At the time of the redemption - the souls of the departed return to their bodies which are raised from the dead. For those cremated and it does not seem to matter if it was done in ignorance or in criminality (the Holocaust) the return seems to be compromised. We are taught that every mitzvah we do brings us closer to the redemption - burial is one very important element to this and the sanctity of the Jewish body is also an issue for organ donation. We even bury a foreskin or a n amputated limb - why would we permit such an action to come between us and ultimate redemption? One obvious question is of course concerned with the return of the souls of the Holocaust victims on redemption and how this will occur - after all they were all innocent and had no part in the final atrocity committed to their bodies. Surely some mercy should be warranted but it begs the question as to how.
(11) DRAGA, February 19, 2012 5:11 PM
OPINION
TO RUTH HOUSMAN: VERY WELL SAID . HAVE A GREAT DAY!! SHALOM DRAGA
(10) Linda Levitan, February 19, 2012 5:08 PM
Left without a choice
My father, a professed nonbeliever, chose cremation, even though he had appeared to accede to my appeal to have a kosher Jewish burial. Not even my Lubavitch rabbi could dissuade Mom from carrying out his intentions. I was left to cope with the consequences, and took responsibility for picking up and disposing of the ashes, since they were still at the funeral home that handled the arrangements when I returned to my hometown a couple of months after his death to clean out the attic and spend time with Mom. (He wanted half of his ashes strewn in front of the building where he had his longtime podiatric practice, and half in the backyard of his duplex.) I was counseled to do sitting shiva, keriah, and Kaddish nonetheless, since he could be considered ignorant of Yiddishkeit. So even though he flouted Yiddishkeit, I took on the responsibilities of an aveylit. Mom told me that she believed that he chose cremation to lighten the burden on her—no funeral, no visitations, no having to find rides to the funeral home or cemetery, no having to purchase a casket, etc., etc. Of course, my father never considered how I might feel. So typical. It was traumatic enough to deal with his death. It wasn't tragic; he had lived a long, full life (almost 93 years) and had been blessed with robust health through most of it. Having to deal with the cremation added an inexpressible anguish. The Lubavitchers were incredibly kind and supportive, as were my friends. I will always be grateful to them for their support and the real comfort they provided. Nothing can change my father's decisions, and nothing can undo his choices. There will be no further discussion. Whether or not his neshoma is annihilated, punished, or purified is up to Ha-Shem.
(9) Shoshana Stubin, February 19, 2012 4:21 PM
Another reason my father is choosing cremation . . .
My father strongly believes that donating his body to medical science and having the remains cremated is the right thing to do. After all, why shouldn't other lives be saved? He can't use the parts anymore. Although my husband & I have stated that we would find it comforting to have a grave to visit, he insists that that won't be "him" anymore - the essence of the person is gone. What can I say to change his mind? Is there a way to donate parts and have the remains buried within Halacha? And what about kibbud av?
(8) Gregory K. Tobkes, February 19, 2012 4:16 PM
Beautiful way to close the Book of Life
About the best and most logical argument for the Jewish Burial tradition.
(7) Debra, February 19, 2012 4:09 PM
Great Article
I always knew deep down that burial was the one and only correct way. Thank you for helping to let others see the truth between burial and cremation.
(6) Sandra Ireland, February 19, 2012 4:05 PM
What aboutThe souls of those who were murdered and burned by the Nazis?
After reading the above burial and cremation pros and cons, I worry about the souls of those whose burials were denied by the ovens in the Camps. Surely their souls have not been abandoned.
Anonymous, February 21, 2012 5:56 PM
To Sharon & Sandra
They had no choice. Someone who is killed for being a Jew, thus sanctifying G-d's name, reaches the highest level in closeness to G-d similar to that of Rabbi Akiva who was tortured by the Romans in 138 CE and died by being combed with an iron comb. That is way different than choosing to be cremated, thus indicating a disbelief in the eternity of the soul and afterlife, which are one of Maimonides' 13 basic principles of Jewish belief as well as the holiness of its body "spacesuit" that enabled it to fulfill its unique mission here on "planet Earth".
(5) ruth housman, February 19, 2012 3:22 PM
dust to dust
I think there are reasons we have been told to bury our dead and some of the reasons are given here. Equally it oculd be said, that once the soul leaves the body, it is a soul flight, a solo flight, and that whatever is done, if in respecting the dignity of that person, their life, and the continuing reverence for that life, then the deed is done, however completed. I cannot fault those who love from scattering the ashes of those they loved, into the ocean, or in keeping them in the unrs of the world, people of diverse religions and diverse practices. Neither could I condemn the Tibetans for allowing Nature above ground to take from these remains I see a world in which so many practices do prevail, and I believe this diversity is all of it of G_d, namely directed by the same Hand, that one can say, directs us. Whatever direction on goes in, with regard to the holiness of what was, of a Life, of those who deeply feel that tearing away, as in how we rip our clothing, to indicate a rent in the universe, a tear is also for weeping, well I am saying, it's all part of the deepr wellspring that runs through the deepest of mystic thinking, and that spring, does nourish us all.
Anonymous, February 19, 2012 5:15 PM
We are speaking of Jews, not Tebetan or ther gentiles.
This article was to inform Jews of G-d's plan how to treat a Jewish body after death. It is not among the 7 Noahide Laws that a body of a gentile must be buried and no one is faulting the customs of other religions. For Jews, however, there is only one way of treating human remains that is in accordance with G-d's will and that is burial in the earth. The body was the receptacle of the spark of G-d that is called the human soul and therefore, even after death, it must be treated with utmost reverence. Even if the now-deceased person did not know of the significance of halachic burial while alive and therefore wished otherwise, after death, once the soul is solo, its sole desire regarding what to do with its faithful companion - his/her body - is to "die as a Jew" and merit a proper Jewish burial in the earth. A knowlegeable Jew understands this and therefore knows that the most loving thing he/she can do for his/her dear departed loved one is to enable this burial, even if it was not the departed's wishes due to lack of information of this aspect of spiritual reality while on earth. It is a loving, caring and totally respecful act to bury one's departed loved ones in accordance with Jewish Law. Read more about the taharah ritual and how the Chevra Kaddisha (Burial Society) operates with utter devotion and reverence throughout. One cannot help but be moved by the process. The Bridge of Life - Gesher HaChaim by Rabbi Yechiel M. Tucazinsky - is a beautiful slim volume which adds meaning to life by deepening our understanding of death. The author's son, Rabbi Nissan A. Tucazinsky, who translated this important work from Hebrew to English, passed away just a few weeks ago on Jan. 12th at age 90. The wisdom is timeless!
Alan S., February 21, 2012 1:25 AM
Perfectly said! Other religions and nations can do as they so please. On Aish.com, we expect to learn the way Jews should act. Sure, no Jewish person acts perfectly during life, but at the time of death, HaShem has directed us on proper burials. To those commentators that have said they will do cremation regardless of knowing better, you can continue to justify cremation however you want, but know that it is against what HaShem has asked of you.
Anonymous, October 16, 2018 7:36 PM
To commenter Alan S.
I first learned about cremation in my secular elementary school. To say I was repulsed would be an understatement. Being cremated is most CERTAINLY against what HaShem has asked of you!
(4) Anonymous, February 19, 2012 1:02 PM
fabulous article
You took a highly charged topic and presented it clearly and simply. This is a very important article -thank you.
(3) Michal, February 19, 2012 12:21 PM
What for me was a "feeling", here I have it explained.
I am very glad to read all this. Until now my soul knew it somehow, now I am able to argue with others, especially the Environmentalists. Thank you so much for giving me this clear information.
(2) Sharon, February 19, 2012 11:21 AM
What of those burned in the ovens of Europe?
What would you say regarding the millions of Jews who sanctified G-d's name in their death and were burned by the Nazis? Did their souls suffer in the transit to the world to come because they were not afforded a proper Jewish burial? Surely not!
Anonymous, February 19, 2012 1:58 PM
They probably did.
I do imagine that their souls suffered greatly from the transit but that afterwards these holy souls were comforted by the extra closeness they achieved by being "Kedoshim" - sanctifying G-d's name by their very death, a special status attained by one who has died solely for being Jewish. Even during the hell of WWII with Jews dropping like flies, their fellow Jews often took great risks to bring whoever they possibly could to burial.
Anonymous, February 19, 2012 2:53 PM
loss in Europe
My father lost his whole family during those tragic times. When he passed away in 2009, it was extremely important that he leave this world the same way the world took his family. No chance in changing his mind. Had nothing to do with toxic air, nothing to do with disregard to the soul. It was all about emotions
(1) Anonymous, February 19, 2012 10:06 AM
great piece and great book
just read it - short and full of information and dare I say, even inspiration...
linda, February 19, 2012 5:30 PM
donations and rent
I do believe in donating parts of myself to assist others in their struggle for life. If this causes pain to my soul..... so be it.Tibetians used to carry their dead up a mountain to be laid to rest where scavenger birds would eat their earthly remains. I think this is the greener way and you always know where everyone is. China has outlawed this practice and now it is back to burial My daughter insists she will not shlep me up a mountain. In France one must pay rent on the land being used for a buried coffin. The dead may soon out number the living and we still need land for crops and trees.