Question: .

Is it wrong to be cremated? If the Bible says to be absent from the body is to be present with Christ, then who are the dead in Christ that shall rise?

-Dennis

Answer:

Dear Dennis,

Cremation, like burial in a grave, within a casket, is simply a physical custom.

Some cultures, and some churches place a great deal of emphasis on the manner of burial, the disposal of the body. However, nothing in the Bible prescribes a precise form of burial.

Our Lord was buried - and that fact leads many Christians to prefer burial, as opposed to cremation. But there is nothing unbiblical or ungodly about cremation.

The passage you note about the dead in Christ rising speaks only of the resurrection of the body - not of the soul or the spirit. Paul, in speaking about being absent from the body is specifically noting that the body and soul/spirit separate at death - while in the other passages (also written by Paul under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit he speaks of the uniting of soul/spirit and body at the resurrection of the dead in Christ - coinciding with the second coming of Christ.

Hope this helps!

In Christ,

Greg Albrecht