Cemetraries - Reverent or superstition

[cstreit]

Thought spawned in another thread.

Most religions and beliefs don't place much discussion on what matters to the remains of the deceased. ...when I pass by massive cemetaries in urban areas it makes me wonder if this is really needed.

I know the living want to remember their loved.. ...but is a place in the ground that holds the remains how you want to be remembered? ...or is it something else?

[rockfan4]

I can see both sides of this. A few years ago I was in Chicago, and the route my gps picked out for me happened to take me down a street, I don't remember which, but it was blocks and blocks and blocks of cemeteries, one after the other. They seemed to go on for miles. It seems there could be a better use for that real estate.

On the other hand, if I drive a few miles from my house, I can go to a cemetery that holds the remains of my great-grandfather, his father, and his father's father, who was born in 1806. A few miles from that is another cemetery that holds a couple uncles, their spouses, and a few more generations of my mother's family. I've been working on my family's genealogy, and I think in some way I'm related to almost half the people interred there. .

There's cemetery in La Crosse that according to their records holds my 2nd great grandparents. But in the spot they say they are buried, there is no headstone. In fact, in that section there are very few headstones. I don't know if they never had one, or if vandals destroyed them. That cemetery is near a main street and used to have lots of vandalism issues. Would / could that section get reused? These people died before 1900.

But it seems that the funeral and burial tradition is ending. Seems a lot of people here are getting cremated, and the ashes are scattered or placed in an urn, not interred. If we stop burying bodies, how long until it becomes acceptable to remove the ones that are already there? 20 years? 50? Don't they already do something similar in Europe? You only get the space for a few years, then someone else takes your space?

[Bill Douglas]

The last thing on my bucket list is my to find and visit my great grandmother's grave. My grandad spoke very lovingly of his mother and I was very fond of my granddad, so I thought it wold be the right thing to do, to visit her grave. It's not in one of those places where a motorway is going to ever be built over it, but rather no real records of who is buried where. I've randomly looked around the cemetery a couple of times but next time I'll do more research.

Me, no one would ever visit my grave so I'll get cremated, ground up, and sprinkled on the beach I love. I spend a lot of my time there so I may as well end up there for good at a later stage.

Eww, in Austria (Vienna) they dig ém up after 10 years and who knows what happens to the bits and pieces. Creepy.

[Dixie]

Ever visit your great, great. grandparent's graves? We like to think we'll be remembered forever, but we're not. I understand that's why most countries lease grave sites for 100 years or so, then recycle the plot.

[recycled sixtie]

My wife and I agree that we both want to be cremated. The pics that I have of my ancestors that stand on the mantlepiece are important to me. I look at them daily.

[A930Rocket]

We’ll be cremated. My ashes spread around VIR, my favorite track (maybe).

I’ve been to my fathers, grandfather, great grandfather, great great grandfather, and great great great grandfather’s grave. We know more about my fathers side of the family, then my mothers.

My great great great grandfather‘s grave has a tall tombstone and had broken horizontally at some point. My dad and I fixed it by using stainless steel channel on the sides, with braided stainless steel wire, to keep it together. I have a picture of little rocket man standing next to it.

[masraum]

Some people are still very into having their body intact and interred.

I'm not.

[72doug2,2S]

Revenerant -the stone it has been moved

Window in the Sky -U2
The shackles are undone
The bullets quit the gun
The heat that's in the sun
Will keep us when there's none
… The rule has been disproved
The stone it has been moved
The grave is now a groove
All debts are removed
… Oh can't you see what love has done?
Oh can't you see what love has done?
Oh can't you see what love has done?
What it's doing to me?

[gorthar]

[Seahawk]

My Dad's ashes are at West Point, soon to be joined by my Mother's.

It is what they wanted, where they wanted to be.

The thought makes me smile even though I won't be back after my Mom's ashes are joined.

Me? My ashes will wade in the water, two specific and important places in my life...water makes me happy so that is where I will be.

I know the history of the song, btw.

[flatbutt]

I've always felt that cemeteries are a misuse of good land. Some spiritual beliefs requires that the deceased be buried so that their spirit has a place to visit but I don't hold with that. Both of my parents were cremated, my kids' Mom was cremated as I will be.

Reverence is a place of honor in the home and in the memory.

[HobieMarty]

Originally Posted by Capt. Carrera

Ever visit your great, great. grandparent's graves? We like to think we'll be remembered forever, but we're not. I understand that's why most countries lease grave sites for 100 years or so, then recycle the plot.

I was actually thinking about this the other day, wondering to myself how many generations it takes to be forgotten.

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

[Bill Douglas]

Originally Posted by Capt. Carrera

Ever visit your great, great. grandparent's graves?

Yeah, I did actually. there is a section of a cemetery where our family of Douglas's are buried. I'm a 7th gereration kiwi and the ones before me are buried in this corner. I've always hated mud and I think of the Douglas's as crazy bastards so I sure wouldn't want to be buried with them.

[cstreit]

Originally Posted by 72doug2,2S

Revenerant -the stone it has been moved

Haha. I didn't see the typo until this morning. Not sure how I (or what) turned "reverent" into "revenerant." I'd blame auto-correct but thats not even a word.


I get that we want to be remembered. ...but wouldn't a plaque serve the same purpose vs. putting our remains into a box, burying the box, and putting a plaque on a stone over the top of it?

[GG Allin]

Roland Burris is at least modest out it. And he's not even dead yet.

[KFC911]

Ashes to ashes imo .... for some folks it matters .... not me.

[msk1986911]

This mattered to my parent's generation for sure. I haven't been to the cemetery to see my parents' graves since my last uncle passed away (my Mom's family bought gravesites clustered near each other). This is not out of a lack of respect or love since I was fortunately very close to my parents.

Quoting Flatbutt: Reverence is a place of honor in the home and in the memory.

Mike

[shadowjack1]

My wife & I have donated our bodies to science. No cost to us.
Weddings and funerals have gotten out hand as far as cost goes. Always seemed like a waste.

[dw1]

I like the idea of having a memorial to my diseased predecessors that I can visit. To me, going there is better for introspection and reflection than going to church. This is especially true for my dad because his remains are in a veterans cemetery.

That being said, as a (mostly retired) biomedical R&D guy, I'm planning on donating my remains to science. I've done "anatomy lab" work myself and I know how valuable that can be, and just maybe when I pass on some of my organs might also be in good enough shape to do somebody else some good.

[3rd_gear_Ted]

All my relatives are in a Veterans cemetery in Boulder City NV.
I found out, some of them have become the chosen final home of specialized forces. The one in Boulder City is known as the final home for Submariners and has some related memorabilia and lots of unit memorials.