By Tracy Cabrera
There are some of us who have brought home the urn containing their loved one’s ashes—but as a rule, this is being discouraged by the Catholic Church.
Generally, the church prohibits keeping or bringing home cremated remains permanently or temporarily, reminding the faithful that ashes must be laid to rest in a consecrated or sacred place.
Based on core teachings and Vatican guidelines, home storage is prohibited and ccording to the Vatican instruction Ad resurgendum cum Christo (2016), cremated remains must be kept in a sacred place such as a cemetery, church, or designated columbarium niche.
Church officials (including representatives from the Archdiocese of Manila) have reiterated that even temporary retrieval of urns from columbaries—such as during local government-permitted home visits for All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day—is discouraged so the dead can remain in peace.
The Church also strictly forbids scattering ashes in nature, dividing them among family members, or mixing them into art or keepsakes.
On theological basis, the above rules honor the dignity of the human body as a temple of the Holy Spirit and express the faith in the physical resurrection of the dead.
