Klicker- Chapter 8- Cremation Flashcards
Cremation began at this time, around 3,000 BC.
Early Stone Age (CANA)
In this era, 1,000BC, the practice of cremation was widespread from Ireland to Hungary where the process of cremation symbolized refinement of the precious essence of spirit, just as precious metals were smelted and refined by fire.
Early Iron Age
Cremation was the predominant mode of disposition in this country. (Simultaneous to the stone and early iron ages)
- Great atheletic games described by Homer that preceded cremation
- Lavish bonfire built for the hero Patroclus, who was clothed in linen, cremated, and his remains placed in a golden vase.
- Also practiced earth burial, believed the cremation fire symbolized purification and the relase of the spirit from the body.
- Allowed easy transport of slain warriors home from the battlefield.
Greece
Cremation here begain in the Early Bronze Age and continued as the favored method of disposition until the 10th century A.D. Popularity of cremation was based on two new ideas about the afterlife:
- Cremation kept the spirits of the dead from harming the living
- Believed it freed the spirits (like the Greeks)
Scandinavia (Northern Europe)
Placed in his ship, which was laden with rugs and chusions of a brocaded Byzantine slik. Dressed in silk with gold buttons and sable fur, he was accompanied by a surfeit of food and animals, all his weapons, and finally, a slave girl who volunteered to accompany her master to paradise. The ship was either set ablaze and launched to sea or burned on land.
- The higher the smoke raised, the higher this person was raised.
Viking Cheiftain Cremations
- Members of the cult of Osiris, in Egypt, believed those who had shunned evil would have a prosperous afterlife, for which it was necessary to preserve the body in its most perfect form. (Mummification to preserve, used elaborate tombs) Effect of this belief filtered into the Hebrew and early Christian religions.
- Cremation was prevalent in Rome until the first century after Christ, when in opposition to Rome’s paganism, Christians emulated Christ’s entombment by gradually replacing the ancient traidition with earth burial, which became the preferred disposition for the next 1,900 years.
Two Factors that Intervened with Cremation to remain the Disposition of Choice
(Despite being widely practiced in Europe, Greece, Scandinavia, India, and China)
- Partially a response to the successful efforts of Protestant clergy to induce the legislative bodies in the American colonies to reduce funeral expenses.
- Contributing factor was a concern for health
introduction of cremation in North America in the 18th century and its slight rise in popularity in the 19th century
Cremation was not a noble act. It was a tawdy affair, demeaning the deceased and the survivors, and threatening undertaker’s livelihoods.
- Funeral directors and consumers alike shared this self-perpetuating attitude.
- Combined with a deeply rooted belief that only pagans practiced cremation, it ensured cremation did not gain a stronghold.
Seed Planted in Undertaker’s Minds
First cremation in the United States.
- Cremation societies and crematories were formed in the 1880s
- It was not until 80 years later that crematino became popular
December 6, 1876
Can be attributed to the concern about the increasing cost of earth burial and the rapid sociological/spiritual changes in the 1960s.
- Neither circumstance encouraged proper memorilization for consumers choosing cremation.
- ceremonies abandoned
- if remains are not scattered, they remained unclaimed
- no honorable precedents or traditions were established
Interest in Cremation
- Funeral practice was somewhat typical throughout the United States.
- Almost every deceased body was embalmed, dressed, casketed, and a funeral was held and burial or cremation followed.
- If cremation was chosen, the cremated remains were inurned in a niche o buried in a cemetery.
Early 1960’s
The funeral profession ignored her criticisms, the public did not.
- Funeral directors continued to offer primarily traidtional services, which were often impersonal and lacked a choice of alternatives for families.
- Memorial societies were gaining in popularity mainly because of this woman and other advocates of simple, non-embalmed, non-casketed cremation services.
Jessica Mitford’s Book (1963) The American Way of Death
- The funeral director’s mind-set in the 60s was that traiditional funerals were the only appropriate kind of funeral.
- Many funeral directors imposed their own beliefs on families who desired simplistic ways of coping with death, thus creating a roadblock to their caregiving
- There was a negative economic effect of not selling an embalmed casket service.
- Most funeral homes did not have adequate facilities to hold unembalmed bodies.
- Funeral directors had very little preparation or training in dealing with nontraditional families and services.
Instead of responding to consumer change in a positive, creative fashion, most funeral directors resisted siple cremation and other nontraditional services for many reasons, such as (1960s):
- US population was becoming more diverse and mobile
- Family structure was changing and rituals that were appropriate for nuclear and extended families were not as functional for fragmented families
- Society in general was becoming non-churched
- Vietnam War caused many people to question American traidtion
- Baby boomers expressed themselves verbally by questioning authority, many of their parents and grandparents expressed themselves non-verbally by not having funerals for deceased loved ones.
- Funeral directors turned their backs on consumers not subscribing to traidtional funerals. (refused simple cremation families or charged unjustified prices, not caring for the families properly or their deceased loved ones).
- Many people were looking for someone other than their local funeral director to better serve them.
The Late ’60s. (Time of Radical Social Change)
- Telephase, a cremation society in Southern California, and Neptune, a cremation society in Northern California, were here to stay.
- Funeral directors tried to outlaw societies like these
- Funeral industry received tremendous support from caregiving medical experts and organizations like Kubler-Ross and the hospice movement.- validated the reality of grief at death and confirmed the need to express it.
- Reaffired the value of the funeral ritual, but requested that more options are available and more reasonable prices
- Funeral directors resisted this request
- Reaffired the value of the funeral ritual, but requested that more options are available and more reasonable prices
The 70s- A Decade of Resistance
- Funeral directors noticed that California cremation societies were successful (economically) in serving the public with simple cremation- taking a large share of the market, continuing to thrive.
- Funeral homes added slogans- “we provide simple cremation services”
- although effective, reinforced the idea that cremation was an alternative to funerals
- FTC promulgated the Funeral Rule- the 80’s were a time of catching up
- Profession was quickly realizing that “order taking” was effective with traidtional families, but not with contemporary non-traiditional cremation-minded people.
- Funeral directors learning to change mindset about direct cremation families- people grieve, but not all grieve alike or express grief in the same manner.
- Cremation is a means to an ends, not an ends to itself
- With cremation comes opportunities for services and new merchandise
- Cremation societies began providing memorial services and merchandise
- The funeral director learned to be well-educated and knowledgable not only about grief but also about different cutures, religions, and family dynamics.
The ’80s- A Decade of Transition
- Cremation increasing at a rapid and steady pace
- Catholic church (1997) allowed cremated remains to be present at a funeral mass which resulted in the general public to become more accepting of cremation.
- Funeral directors saw that cremation was going to become more prominent in te future of funeral service
- Funeral supply industry stepped up its education to funeral directors on this topic.
The 90’s- A decade of Fine-Tuning
- Rate of cremation shows continued growth and it is anticipated that this growth will continue into the future.
- Funeral suppliers are marketing cremation products with the same intensity as burial merchandise
- Consultants to the profession continue to educate funeral directors on how to make cremation arrangements and merchandise cremation products.
21st Century- The Age of Acceptance
- 2000- 26%
- 2003- 29%
- 2004- 30%
- 2005- 32%
- 2010- 38%
- 2025- 51%
Percentage of Cremations by Year
- More educated
- Higher income
- Less religious
- More likely to have moved away from family roots
Profile of the Cremation Consumer (Reserch- 2007)
Page 87 in Klicker
Likelihood of Using Cremation
Page 88 in Klicker Book
Likelihood of Cremation based on Income and Education
- Saves money (30%)
- Saves land (13%)
- Simpler (8%)
- Body not in the earth (6%)
- Preference of the deceased (6%)
Why People Choose Cremation (Werthlin Group’s 2005 Survey)
- Cremation (39% in 1995)- 46%
- Cremation with some type of ceremony (85% in 1995)- 89%
- A traditional funeral- 32%
- A private service- 26%
- A memorial service- 25%
- To purchase an urn- 56%
- Scattering of cremains- 39%
- To keep urn at home- 10%
Other Statistics- Americans planning to choose:
- Hawaii- 67.5%
- Nevada- 67.3%
- Arizona- 59.1%
Highest Percentage Cremation States
- Mississippi- 8.8%
- Alabama- 9.1%
- Tennessee- 9.4%
Lowest Percentage Cremation States
