Direct Cremations, what are the pros and cons?
Direct Cremations, what are the pros and cons?
Direct Cremations, what are the pros and cons? What are Direct Cremations? The ‘pros’ and ‘cons’, this makes a very complex issue sound very simple. The fact is that Direct cremations are not ‘good or bad’ and it is important to avoid attaching moral judgment to them, even though they might feel counter-intuitive. Read more to learn more
Direct Cremations? What are they and why are they on the rise?
What is a Direct Cremation?
So, what is a Direct Cremation and why do we need to know about them? Are there ‘pros’ and ‘cons’? how can we make the mosts of them and are there any advantages to ‘no-fuss funerals’? When a dead body is taken to be cremated with nobody present it is called a Direct Cremation.
So, what are the ‘pros’ and ‘cons’? Direct Cremations are increasingly popular. This is because a Direct Cremation is cheaper than a traditional Funeral and a lot of people decide in advance of their death that they want to protect their families from expense and effort that they consider unnecessary. So saving money and effort are two of the perceived ‘pros’ of Direct Cremations. You can find out about them at local Brighton -based Funeral Director The Modern Funeral by following this link. https://www.themodernfuneral.com/our-services-and-prices/
If someone has a Direct Cremation does it mean they can’t have a funeral ceremony?
Are Direct Cremations a Good thing? Tell us some of the ‘cons’
It depends upon who you ask as to whether Direct Cremations are considered a good or a bad idea. Because I create ceremonies as a Funeral Celebrant and I do this because I know the power of ceremony to heal people, I believe that funeral ceremonies matter. But Direct Cremations in themselves are neither good nor bad. They are just a fact, sometimes people choose them, other times you will have no choice and have to make the best of the situation. For example, if someone has chosen to leave their bodies to medical science or the coroner’s report and inquest is taking a long time you might have to do something without the body of the person who has died.
They are not good or bad, Direct Cremations are just a fact. However, there are a few ‘cons’
Direct Cremations are not good or bad and they are popular. What is important in my opinion is that some kind of ceremony still happens for people. Our creative response to Direct Cremations is what matters and not the fact of Direct Cremations in and of themselves. Many satisfied clients for whom Direct Cremation has been their choice and their preference have told me how helpful it was to avoid going to the crematorium. Those clients still had ceremonies with a Funeral Celebrant afterwards, sometimes with the ashes of the person present and sometimes not. What I continue to believe is that doing SOMETHING is really important for healing. One of the ‘cons’ of Direct Cremations is it can lead to people having no ritual or ceremony at all and being left with unfinished business.
Whilst it used to concern me that people had funerals without the bodies of their loved ones present but I have come to see it differently. What matters here isn’t that we make judgements about who has a Direct Cremation or why. When there is little money available for a funeral ceremony and a Direct Cremation is cheaper than a traditional full funeral, it makes sense that people will choose them. It isn’t my place to judge those decisions. Occasionally people have been traumatised in childhood by experiences at Crematoria they obviously don’t want to visit crematoria ever again. For those individuals having Direct Cremations also make sense.
For more information about the importance and role of ritual you can look at this blog about funeral ritual https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/media-spotlight/201403/can-rituals-help-us-deal-grief.
What are the cons of Direct Cremations?
Direct Cremations can feel impersonal, some times we can feel sad that our person has made their ‘final journey’ alone. We can feel that we have abandoned them and psychologically that feels really hard. Many people will say that it felt ‘unfinished’ that because the body wasn’t present and there was no coffin or burial or ‘curtain’ it didn’t feel real. Not having a ‘proper funeral’ is another concern and many people feel very uncomfortable about this. If a person has specified that you should ‘not make a fuss’, but perhaps you would like to ‘make a fuss’ you might feel that you can’t win because you don’t want to not do anything and would like to do ‘something’ but feel you are ‘not allowed’.
The good news is that there is something in between ‘something’ and ‘nothing. That is where I come in. Specialising in creating bespoke, personal ceremonies for people who want ‘something’ but they don’t want a fuss, I’m able to help you. Have you found yourself wondering what to do because someone in your life has had a Direct Cremation? Please call me for a Discovery Call here: https://calendly.com/jessmaysspecialdays/discovery-call-with-jess-may
I am always happy to share all that I know about No-fuss funerals.