I have a friend who runs a business where they reupholster furniture. Recently, he got sick, but thank God now, he is fully recovered. Okay, that one was bad, I know. How about the one about the chicken who crossed the road? It was poultry in motion. At the advice of my attorney, I will stop now, and get right to the questions …

Dear Father Joe:
Is organ donation OK for Catholics? If yes, why? Doesn't the Bible say that our bodies rise from the dead? How will all that work? What about cremation?

Great bunch of questions! In order to answer them, I am going to give us all some preliminary information that should, hopefully, clarify the Church's teachings. In Scripture, we learn that we will experience two resurrections. First, our souls rise after we die. Second, our bodies join our souls at the second coming of Christ.

So, until the second coming, our souls are at their final judgment. Then, after Christ returns, our bodies rise to join our souls. This is just one of the reasons the Church has so many teachings that revolve around respecting our bodies. Our bodies are destined for great things in the kingdom of God!

Anyway, with that background, let's see what the Catechism has to say. This first quote concerns organ donation: "Organ donation after death is a noble and meritorious act and is to be encouraged as an expression of generous solidarity. It is not morally acceptable if the donor or his proxy has not given explicit consent. Moreover, it is not morally admissible directly to bring about the disabling mutilation or death of a human being, even in order to delay the death of other persons." (2296)

Now, in terms of cremation, the Catechism states, "The Church permits cremation, provided that it does not demonstrate a denial of faith in the resurrection of the body." (2301)
So, the Church encourages organ donation and accepts cremation. Since this is the case, we can assume that neither idea runs contrary to our belief in the resurrection of our bodies. How can this be?

To put it bluntly, when we die, our bodies become subject to the laws of nature. The results of the process of cremation and organ donation is the same result that time will basically have on us. With organ donation, the only concern is that it is done with consent and without harming anyone. With cremation, the primary concern is that our faith in the resurrection of the body is maintained.

How do we know that faith in the resurrection is maintained? This one is hard to judge in others. We can usually only tell about our own belief. A key is that we avoid saying or doing things that indicate that the deceased body is "just a shell." We treat that body as sacred. Let's look at some things to avoid, then, if we are going to choose cremation for our burial or the burial of a loved one:

"Its just a shell."
I hear this a lot, and as Catholics, we have to remember that it is not true. Our bodies are destined for great things in the kingdom of heaven, and we need to remember that God made them sacred.

Scattering of ashes.
We need to avoid this. We must treat the deceased body as we would a non- cremated body. The ashes must be placed in a single container and buried in a columbarium or graveyard.

Wearing of the ashes.
I know that some have taken the ashes of their beloved dead and placed them in amulets that they wear. Again, this is not the way we would treat the body of one who was not cremated, so we don't do it to one that is.

So, what if we have done one or more of these things already? Keep in mind a really simple premise: God does not judge us for what we do not know, through no fault of our own. All of us have made mistakes in unintentional ignorance. I truly can't imagine anyone treating the dead in a way the Church tells us not to out of malice. So, as God asks us to do every day of our lives, we learn from our errors and accept God's wonderful, loving and freely given mercy.

Enjoy another day in God's presence!

Originally Published: June 2004