Expert: Pastor Kimberly Lemler - 2/22/2009

Question
yes i am a christiam.I read some of your previous answer about creamation. You stated it is a pagan religion but christiam use it because it is cheap. Can you tell me where I can verify it is a pagan religion. I do not believe it in but currently trying to explain to other love one. thanks-peggy

Answer
Peggy,

Cremation is not a pagan religion in itself. It was practiced by pagan religions and you can research any pagan religion and find this.

Cremation was practiced in Biblical times, but it was not commonly practiced by the Israelites or by New Testament believers. In the cultures the Bible focuses on, burial in a tomb, in a cave, or in the ground was the common way to dispose of a human body (Genesis 23:19; 35:4; 2 Chronicles 16:14; Matthew 27:60-66).

The Christian Scriptures (New Testament) contain few references to burning of bodies or objects:
-Acts 19:19: Sorcerers who were converted to Christianity brought their scrolls out to be burned.
-Revelation 20:15: The fate of those whose names were not written in the Book of Life is to be thrown into the lake of fire.

Some factors which favor burial:
-God selected burial at Moses' death (Deuteronomy 34:6).
-Most of the reference to burning of a body in the Bible are instances of:
-punishment for criminal acts,
-punishment for improper behavior,
-killings by Pagans, or
-destruction of idols and evil material.
-St. Paul appears to favor burial. In 1 Corinthians 15:35-44, he discusses how God will raise the decomposed body of a believer. The symbolism used is that of planting a seed and having new life rise from the decaying seed.
-The Christian church has advocated burial since its inception. They reserved burning for Witches and other heretics. They exterminated hundreds of thousands of them, mainly during the 15th to 18th centuries.
-Cremation can be an aid to murderers. Once a body has been cremated, it cannot be exhumed and analyzed for poisons.

Pastor Kim
GodsHealingPower.org