Words can be funny things. We often use them interchangeably when they have distinct meanings. This is true when we look at terms associated with death and dying. In Asheville NC, morticians and funeral directors do distinguish clearly between three distinct terms – funerals, burials, and cremation, even though others not in this profession do not.
Burial
Burial is a centuries-old means of treating the physical remains of a living being. It may or may not involve placing the physical remains of the entity into a casket or other container. It does require the placement of the body into the ground. It is then buried – hence the term burial.
Cremation
Cremation differs from burial in several ways. While the physical remains still receive the respect they deserve, the body is consumed by fire, rather than be buried. The process reduces the body to ashes. This ritual is also an ancient one. It may also be accompanied by ceremonial practices known as funeral rites.
Funeral
Whether it is held in conjunction with a burial or cremation or whether it takes place in a cemetery in Asheville NC or a park in San Fransisco CA, funerals are ceremonies. They are used to mark, celebrate, or honor the life of the deceased.
While cremation and burial are ways of treating the physical a funeral is a ceremony common to these and related methods. Funerals In Asheville NC, continue to be a means of acknowledging the dead and sometimes memorializing their contributions in life.
