Is Cremation Biblical?

[227 words] One of my sad duties as a minister is preaching funerals. One trend I have observed in recent years is the increasing number of cremations. Cremation is a subject I have often been asked about in 21 years of ministry. Many people are concerned if it is Scriptural to practice cremation. I believe cremation has gotten a bad rap for many reasons. First, historically cremation of the dead was a pagan practice. For this reason, Jews and early Christians avoided it and buried their dead. Second, some believe that it does violate Scriptural principles, but I am not aware of any passage that cremation violates. Third, the Nazi Holocaust of World War II left many people with a bad taste in their mouth where cremation is concerned. To understand whether cremation is biblical or not, we need to understand what happens at death. The wise King Solomon described…