Cat - I am sorry you’ve recently lost your mom - sending hugs your way 💚 I appreciated your information about Funeral Consumer’s Alliance. They are a wealth of good, solid information! Thank you.
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along the lines of cremation, funerals, memorials, etc, does anyone know the procedures and policies of donation of one' body to science. It might sound morbid in some ways, but medical students and those specializing in particular venues have to learn somehow. Any help along these lines?.
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I'd also like to add that I just lost my mother and could use hugs or encouragement.
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Caregivers need all the facts about planning for cremation especially their rights. Low cost funerals will become the accepted norm as families choose to spend the money on their loved on while they are alive. A great resource is the Funeral Consumer's Alliance (funerals.org) for information and a book or digital download for $10. The Before I Go Funeral Planner (includes state chapter from Final Rights) has good information, forms to fill out, state specific information and helps with advance planning especially if elders or family are unsure of how to plan. Irrespective of cost, most of the funeral or memorial is about family remembrance and coming together for closure. Despite the funeral industry's monopoly - more people look to green burial, alternate services and faith based memorials as a way to go.
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I have no idea about the "Christian" policy of cremation, I do know that there is a group of good Samaritans that will pay the cost of a pauper's grave burial. I do not know the exact name of this group.
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The Catholic church is OK with cremation. But they insist on a Catholic funeral and interrment of cremains. For my mother (who converted to Catholicism), I chose direct cremation with cremains returned to me in a basic plastic container -- roughly $1800. In my non-Catholic opinion, that was enough.

But to fulfill the tenets of my mother's and my stepfamilies' faith, we added: funeral mass, burial plot, vault, liner, use of cemetery chapel for final prayers over the cremains, grave open/close fee, post-funeral luncheon and honorarium for religious attendants. To the tune of another $2300. Without headstone -- which will be purchased in the future. Or not.

A long way of saying that, for observant Catholics, cremation does not save a ton of money. It simply introduces the option to skip enbalming/viewing. In my case, that felt right. (Couldn't stomach the hypocrisy of hosting a 1 or 2-day social marathon, on behalf of the most anti-social person on the planet. Or so my mother became in her senior years.)

So.....to each their own. Or not.
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Christian Resources
doctrinal & practical writings
Cremation: What Does God Think?
by David W. Cloud
In a book on the subject of Christian funerals, a writer gives the following advice regarding cremation:

"Personally, the minister may or may not approve of such proceedings. Privately, he is free to hold any opinion that he will. But officially he should keep an open mind. In the Christian religion there is nothing that frowns upon cremation or requires burial."

Is this sound advice? Is cremation a matter of Christian liberty?
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If you wish to witness the cremation it will cost more and if you wish to take the ashes with you that will cost even more as it affects "production." This at least applies to California where I work hospice.
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I would have to disagree that you should advise people to "steer clear of advertisements for "low-cost" cremation services." This is what the funeral industry is trying to do because their profits are dropping like a lead balloon. Profits are actually down by 27% and industry commentators are speculating that by 2020 many funeral businesses could be operating at 0% if current trends for low cost cremation continue.

There are MANY reputable funeral homes that are now offering a low cost cremation option. A number of them are setting up separate entities to offer their budget cremation packages, but these are still very reliable, trustworthy and professional funeral companies.

Yes, a cut-price cremation can mean that all the family receive are “bare minimum” services, but in some cases this is more than adequate, and often all some families can afford.

Why should a family pay out $3,000 when they can have the same service for $1,000?
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