On Dec. 9th, the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith addressed questions raised by the Archbishop of Bologna concerning the preservation of cremated remains. The response largely repeats the 2016 instruction from the then Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
The following were the questions raised by the Archbishop:
1. Taking into account the canonical prohibition against scattering the ashes of the deceased, is it possible to prepare a defined and permanent sacred place for the commingled accumulation and preservation of the ashes of the baptized, indicating the basic details of each person so as not to lose the memory of their names, similar to what occurs in ossuaries, where the mineralized remains of the deceased are cumulatively deposited and preserved?
2. Can a family be allowed to keep a portion of their family member’s ashes in a place that is significant for the history of the deceased?
To the first question, the dicastery stated that “a defined and permanent sacred place can be set aside for the commingled accumulation and preservation of the ashes of deceased baptized persons, indicating the identity of each person so as not to lose the memory of their names.”
To the second question, the dicastery stated that in consultation with local ecclesial and civil authorities, a family may “preserve in an appropriate way a minimal part of the ashes of their relative in a place of significance for the history of the deceased person, provided that every type of pantheistic, naturalistic, or nihilistic misunderstanding is ruled out and also provided that the ashes of the deceased are kept in a sacred place.” This precludes the scattering of ashes and other practices addressed in the original instruction.
The latest ruling represents a small change in Catholic practice, but more importantly, an openness to further engage with the pastoral realities that face churches and families in their handling of cremated remains.
Image: “Père-Lachaise – Division 87 – Columbarium 3975-4088” by Pierre-Yves Beaudouin is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.