By Calvin Lane
Over the past generation American Christians, including and perhaps especially Episcopalians, have increasingly favored cremation over casket burial. This shift has happened...
A closed casket, the use of the pall, and matching hangings and vestments in the color of Easter visually shift the focus away from death and dead bodies to the resurrection.
After St. Joseph's example, my parish pledged to give up our tomb. We pay for the cremation of children for families who cannot. For babies who are unclaimed, we have made a perpetual claim. For all who need a grave, we have opened our grounds.