I’m a Mormon. Is it OK if I choose Cremation?

As an Advanced Planning Consultant and Funeral Director at Heideman Hughes Mortuary I often get asked:  “I’m a Mormon.  Is it OK if I choose Cremation?”

I’ve researched this question and found the following:

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormon) Quotes Concerning Cremation

Joseph Fielding Smith in Answers to Gospel Questions 1957 Volume 2, pages 99-102:  "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has never taken a definite stand on this [cremation] question.  Presumably no edict in relation to it will ever be taken.  The matter of burial of the dead, as far as the Church is concerned, is an individual or a family matter.  If any member of the Church should state in his will, or make any general statement, that he wished to be cremated, the Church authorities would not step in and interfere but would consider it something with which they had no official concern."

LDS (Latter-Day Saint) Cremation view (as reported in a Utah County paper The Provo Daily Herald Aug 2, 1999):  "There is a strong LDS culture here", Sundquist (a local funeral home owner) said, noting that the perception is that the church seems to frown on cremation.  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may be more understanding of cremations than people realize.  Dale Bills, a spokesman for the LDS Church said, "For Latter-Day Saints, normally cremation is not encouraged.  However, in some countries the law requires it.  The family of the deceased must decide whether to cremate the body, taking into account any laws governing burial or cremation.  "In other words, it's not encouraged, but it's not viewed as a sin, either.  If an LDS person is cremated or has a member of their family cremated, the church maintains a nonjudgmental stance.  “There is not anything in cremation that would cause a member of the church to be looked upon in disfavor in any way,” Bills said.  And it won't hurt that person's chances in the afterlife, either.  Some people may die in fires.  Some may be lost at sea.  Some may be cremated or buried.  In all cases, LDS theology has the same view about the remains.  "Our faith is that through Christ the blessings of the resurrection will be universal," Bills said.  "Body and spirit will be reunited for all who have lived."

General LDS Church Handbook (as of 2000) Book Number 1, page 156:  Normally cremation is not encouraged.  However in some countries the law requires it.  The family of the deceased must decide whether to cremate the body, taking into account the laws governing such.  Where possible the body of a deceased member who has been endowed should be dressed in temple clothing before the cremation.  A funeral service may be held.

Elder Boyd K. Packer 1988 General Conference talk on Funerals:  “Except where burial is prohibited by law, we are counseled [means: not doctrinal] to bury our dead.  There are important symbolic references to burial in the ordinance of baptism and elsewhere in the doctrines of the Church.”

I Have A Question Ensign Article 1991:  Cremation is a custom in various parts of the world.  Do 
Latter-day Saints practice it?  By Roger R. Keller, associate professor of Church history and doctrine at Brigham Young University:  Ultimately, after consultation with the Lord and with priesthood leaders, the family must decide what to do.  If the person has been endowed, some special instructions are available for the family from local priesthood leaders.  Even if a body is cremated, a funeral service may be held…In the end, however, we should remember that the resurrection will take place by the power of God, who created the heavens and the earth.  Ultimately, whether a person’s body was buried at sea, destroyed in combat or an accident, intentionally cremated, or buried in a grave, the person will be resurrected.  No clearer picture of God’s restorative powers can be found than Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones (see Ezekiel Chapter 37), in which he sees the bones gathered together and clothed with sinews and flesh by the power of God.  Nothing that is done to the body will in the end prevent the purpose of our Lord from being fulfilled.  Our bodies and our spirits will finally be reunited in the resurrection of the dead.

I welcome your comments, additional information, and/or questions regarding the same.

-Mark Heiner
Advanced Planning Consultant/Funeral Director
Heideman Hughes Mortuary and Crematorium
1037 East 700 South
St. George, Utah 84790
435-674-5000