Dear Parishioners of Mary Immaculate and Saint Rose,
      Since November is the month that we remember and pray for our beloved dead, perhaps it would be appropriate to reflect on Catholic burial customs.  We believe that the body is a temple of the Holy Spirit and thus even in death deserves to be treated with respect.  So a body was to be buried in consecrated ground.  This is one of the reasons that for so long Catholics were not to be cremated.  That teaching has changed, but the remains of cremation are also to be reverently buried in consecrated ground or a mausoleum or columbarium.
       But let’s begin at the beginning. From the time one steps into the funeral home one notices that Catholic burial practices are slightly different from others.  Near the body a candle is burning to remind us of the presence of Jesus even in death and to remind of the holy and prayerful atmosphere.  There is a crucifix near or in the casket.  It reminds us that eternal life was gained for us through the death of Jesus on the Cross.  The body of the person in the casket has a rosary entwined in their fingers.  We say that prayer so often asking the Blessed Virgin Mary to pray for us at the “hour of our death.”  There is a kneeler beside the casket to invite the mourners to kneel and say a prayer for the repose of the soul of the person who has died.   At the wake service, we pray for the person who has died, using a prayer service or the rosary.  We believe that our prayers assist the soul of the dead person on the journey to Heaven.                                                                                                                  Catholics are to have a funeral Mass in the Church.  This is the fulfillment of the journey of faith that began with baptism.  The Mass is offered for the repose of the soul of the deceased.  I have often heard it said that the funeral is for the living, but in the Catholic Faith it is for the dead.  When a funeral service is held in a funeral home, we are depriving the deceased of the grace of the Mass.                                                        
          In recent times, the Church has allowed for cremation.  This is a much more economical option.  However, there are still to be prayers and a funeral Mass for the deceased.  There are options for the remains to be present or not.  If cremation is  chosen, the remains are still to be reverently buried in consecrated ground.  This means the remains should not be divided among family members, scattered on public or private property, or put in an urn to sit on a mantle or anywhere else in the house.                                                                                                                                                     What the Church strives to do is remind us of the sacredness of the human body, to help us pray for the souls in purgatory, and to have hope in the resurrection of the dead and life everlasting.                                                                  

May the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace!
Msgr. Cox
What is Water Cremation?
This practice is not yet available in Northeast Missouri, but it is becoming more popular as an economical and “green” option, so we want you to be informed, and to be aware that alkaline hydrolysis (“water cremation”) is not an acceptable way to treat human remains according to Catholic teaching. What is “water cremation?”  Water cremation, also known as bio-cremation, resomation, or aquamation, is properly called alkaline hydrolysis.  It is the process of submerging a body in a 5% solution of lye, at high temperature and pressure, to dissolve away all the flesh.  What remains at the end of the process is softened bone and a thick, sterile brown liquid containing the dissolved remains, which is disposed of in the sewer system. It was first developed to handle the disposal of animals used in research, since it reliably destroys even the most virulent pathogens and toxins.  In 2005 a system was initiallly designed for medical schools to dissolve human cadavers used for research, and in 2011 a funeral home in Ohio first began offering water cremations of loved ones to their families. 

Why the interest in alkaline hydrolysis over regular cremation?  Alkaline hydrolysis is marketed as a more “green,” environmentally-friendly option.  It has about one-fourth of the carbon footprint of cremation and uses ⅛ the energy.

Is water cremation an acceptable alternative for Catholics?  NO.  Burying the dead is a corporal work of mercy.  Catholic teaching affirms the sacredness of every human life from conception to natural death, and calls for human remains to be treated with respect.
When a Catholic is cremated, the ashes must be buried or interred, and may not be displayed in an urn, divided between family members as keepsakes, or scattered (CCC 2300-01). While water cremation does result in a quantity of bone ash which can be returned to the family for burial or interment, the process also produces around 100 gallons of liquid containing the rest of the dissolved remains of the body.  This liquid is poured down the drain into the sewer system. On August 10, 2018, the bishops of Missouri released a statement against the use of alkaline hydrolysis because “we believe it fails to show due reverence and respect for the human remains of the deceased by subjecting the dissolved human remains to being flushed into the sewer system.” 

 Funeral in Zebegény, István Szőnyi (1928)