Funeral Guidelines
To assist with planning the Mass of Christian Burial, the Diocese of Peterborough has put together a document called Funeral Guidelines. To access information about the guideline, click below.
Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops – Resources for Funerals
A WORD ABOUT CREMATION
The Catholic Church allows cremation, provided the choice is not made for reasons that contradict Christian doctrine.
While traditional casket burial remains the highly preferred practice, the Church officially lifted its absolute ban in 1963 to accommodate modern economic, practical, and geographical realities.
The Church still prefers that the Funeral Mass take place with the body present, with cremation occurring afterward.
The Core Rules and Restrictions
The Vatican updated its rules through the Instruction Ad resurgendum cum Christo, which mandates strict guidelines regarding how cremated remains must be treated:
- No scattering: Ashes cannot be scattered in the air, on land, or at sea.
- No dividing: Remains must be kept entirely intact and cannot be split among family members.
- No keeping at home: Standard practice prohibits storing ashes in a private home.
- Sacred interment: Remains must be laid to rest in a sacred, church-approved space like a Catholic Cemetery or a columbarium niche.
- Recent exception: In late 2023, the Vatican Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith clarified that a bishop may allow a family to keep a minimal, symbolic portion of ashes in a place of personal significance, provided pantheistic or nihilistic ideas are completely rejected. (LINK: https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_ddf_doc_20231209_risposta-card-zuppi-ceneri_en.html)
CCCB Resource:
Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops: https://www.cccb.ca/document/catholics-and-cremation/
SUGGESTED OFFERINGS
These are the suggested offerings with the priest’s pastoral decision guiding this matter.
$10 for an unannounced Mass
$20 for an announced Mass
$350 for a funeral