Letter to the Editor: Letter writers offer more insight regarding question of cremation

Re: Cremation or Burial?

Regarding Pastor Robert Johnson's letter of Sept. 28, we believe Paul was trying to show the difference between a dead body and a resurrected body, or the difference between mortality and immortality in I Corinthians 15:35-44. Pastor Johnson referenced verses 36 and 37, regarding seeds, but did not reference the additional passages. Continuing with verses 42-44, "This is how it will be when the dead are raised to life. When the body is buried, it is mortal; when raised, it will be immortal. When buried, it is ugly and weak; when raised, it will be beautiful and strong. When buried, it is a physical body; when raised, it will be a spiritual body." *

Paul continues in verse 50, "What I mean, brothers, is that what is made of flesh and blood cannot share in God's Kingdom, and what is mortal cannot possess immortality." *

Cremation is only an accelerated way to reduce human remains to dust more quickly than burial. While some believe cremation is a desecration of the body, many also believe that embalming, steel caskets, vaults, and sealers - or other means of preserving remains - is a desecration and totally unnatural. According to the website www.funerals.org embalming is a very invasive process, is common only in the US and Canada, and has no roots in the Christian religion. Embalming slows the decay of the body but does not prevent it.

When we know Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, the Bible promises us that we become new beings - Christ takes away the burdens of our sins when we confess them and ask for forgiveness, and for Jesus to become Lord of our lives. For that relationship to grow, we must spend time with Him every day. Christ promised that many mansions are being prepared in heaven for those who love him, and that we will be new beings when we leave our earthly bodies.

Ecclesiastes 12:7 sums it up very well, "Our bodies will return to the dust of the earth, and the breath of life will go back to God, who gave it to us." *

* The Good News Bible, Today's English Version © American Bible Society 1976

MIKE AND BECKY COMPTON

Sumter