NOVEMBER 1 AND NOVEMBER 2 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

WHAT CATHOLICS SHOULD KNOW ABOUT RESPECT FOR THE DEAD, THE SOULS IN PURGATORY, AND CREMATION

1. Why do Catholics pray for the dead?

We Catholics believe in the power of love. Love is present among us who live on earth. But love does not stop after a person dies. Love can reach even into the after life. After death, it is possible to experience a reciprocal giving and receiving. Our affection for each other continues even after death has occurred. 

Our dead brothers and sisters “seem, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction. But they are in peace…yet their hope full of immortality” (Wisdom 3:3-4). This means that the departed are alive in the eyes of God. “He is not God of the dead but of the living” (MK12:27). 

Prayers for the dead reflect this fundamental Christian belief that through the love of Christ, we are still connected to those who have gone before us.

2. What is purgatory?

Let us review the contents of our faith in the afterlife. Remember that the following elements are not man-made inventions but are truly derived from the Word of God and the faith of the Church.

First, what is heaven?

Heaven is “the state of supreme and definitive happiness.” People who die in the grace of God, with a pure heart, enter heaven and have no need of further purification after death. In heaven, these holy souls see God “face to face” (1 Cor. 13:12). We believe that people who go to heaven prepare for it by a life that is always open to God, utterly pure and fully open to their neighbors in a spirit of service. (see Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1023-1026, 1053)

Then, what is hell?

Hell “consists in the eternal damnation of those who die in mortal sin through their own free choice.” We think of those in hell as immersed in unspeakable suffering and torture from endless fire, darkness and hatred. But their real suffering is the pain and regret of having disregarded the most valuable thing of all – relationship with God – while they lived on earth. They suffer from being eternally separated from the source of love and joy and peace. It is not so much God punishing people “in the fires of hell”, but people realizing with regret that they have wasted their lives on things that were not as important as God’s love, which they continued to refuse until the end. This is how we should understand the Lord’s words : “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire” (Mt. 25:41). (see also Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1033-1035, 1056-1057)

Now, what is purgatory?

The people who lived their lives in rebellion against love of God and love of neighbor, who lived in lies, who disregarded faith and charity merit their eternal destiny in hell. The people who have been totally consumed by passion for God and love and service of their neighbor until the end are admitted into heaven.

But for most people, when they die, they have Jesus Christ as the foundation of their lives and tried to be faithful to him. But their following of Christ was far from perfect due to compromises with weaknesses and sin or actions that proved their selfishness and forays into impurity. They will not go to hell because they have not rejected God totally, but they are also not ready for heaven, since there are many impurities attached to their concrete decisions in life. In 1 Cor. 3:12-15, St. Paul refers to a fire (not the destructive fires of hell) that purifies us to prepare us for salvation in heaven. This is what we mean by purgatory.

We believe that souls undergo purification, thanks to the mercy of God, through purgatory. Purgatory “is the state of those who die in God’s friendship, assured of their eternal salvation, but who still have need of purification to enter into the happiness of heaven” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1030-1031, 1054).

3. Can we help the souls who are being purified in purgatory?

Yes, indeed. Through our prayers (2 Macc. 12:46: “Thus he made atonement for the dead that they might be freed from this sin.”), almsgiving, indulgences and works of penance, we help the souls in purgatory.

Above all, we help them through the Eucharist. That is why we offer Mass for the intentions of the souls of our loved ones in purgatory. We remember them in our Masses on the special dates of their lives, like their birth or death anniversaries. The Church around the world prays for the dead on November 2, All Souls’ Day.

It is good to visit the tombs, offer flowers and meet family and friends in our cemeteries. But we should remember first of all, to offer Mass, the saving sacrifice of Christ, for our departed loved ones. This is the best thing we can do for them. When we ourselves die, we hope that people will do the same for us.

4. Does the Church allow the practice of cremation?

In the Catholic Church, the dying are given proper attention and care so that they can live in dignity and peace until their final moment. We accompany the dying with our prayers and we seek the presence of the priest who administers the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick and delivers the Viaticum to prepare them for their encounter with the living God.

After death, Catholics are reminded to treat the body of the deceased with respect and charity. Giving proper burial to the dead is a corporal work of mercy. This is connected to our belief that that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and that every person is a child of God.

Lately, many people signify their preference for cremation. The Church now allows the practice of cremation whereas before it was forbidden. An important condition must however be met. It must never be done as a demonstration of the denial of the “resurrection of the body,” which is part of the articles of faith. Cremation may be performed for sanitary and health reasons, or due to lack of space in cemeteries or for the purpose of easy transportation of the remains, but never because we do not believe in the resurrection of the body, which is Christ’s promise to his disciples.

5. After cremation, may the ashes be scattered on bodies of water or on a mountain top or allowed to be blown by the wind?

These practices, so much glorified in movies, television or novels do not really show respect to the dead. The dead do not merely dissolve back into nature but rather return to the embrace of the Father, while awaiting the resurrection promised by the Lord. Christians must not allow these actions to be performed on the remains of their loved ones.

6. Can we keep the cremated remains/ ashes at home?

This is again another misconception. Just because the cremated remains are placed in portable urns, they are not to be permanently kept at home. There are dangers that at home, the ashes may not be given proper honor and that accidents may happen to the container itself, thus scattering and losing the ashes.

Our homes are places for the living, not for the dead. Cemeteries, columbariums or ossuaries are the proper final resting places for the dead. This is also the best way to initiate the process of healing and to complete the experience of grieving and detachment.