By Bob Smietana • THE TENNESSEAN • January 10, 2010
When the Rev. Enoch Fuzz dies, he has one request for his family.
Please don't bury him.
Instead, like a growing number of Americans, the pastor of Corinthian Baptist Church in Nashville wants to be cremated.
"I don't want to be out in that snow, in that ground, in that rain," he said. "Cremate me and put me in one of those bottles. And then throw me up into the attic."
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Please don't bury him.
Instead, like a growing number of Americans, the pastor of Corinthian Baptist Church in Nashville wants to be cremated.
"I don't want to be out in that snow, in that ground, in that rain," he said. "Cremate me and put me in one of those bottles. And then throw me up into the attic."
Related
MAP: Cremations increase, but South still prefers burial
Fuzz's family and congregation aren't too keen about the idea. His daughter objects to cremation. And so far, he said, none of his church members have been cremated. And, he doesn't expect that to change anytime soon. That's not surprising.
About a third of Americans are cremated when they die, according to the National Funeral Directors Association. But Baptists and other evangelicals have been slow to embrace the practice. A recent survey among leaders of the National Association of Evangelicals found that only 8 percent said they would choose cremation. Cremation rates in the Bible Belt remain among the lowest in the country.
Americans first began practicing cremation in the late 1800s. But it remained relatively rare. In 1967, for example, less than 4 percent of Americans were cremated. By 1990 about 17 percent of Americans were being cremated. That figured doubled to about 34 percent by 2007.
Gary Laderman, a religion professor who studied the history of cremation, says that Christian taboos about cremation have declined.
Traditionally, Hindus and Buddhists have cremated their dead, while Christians, Jews and Muslims have buried their dead. But today, Laderman said, Americans are more likely to mix and match spiritual practices. For example, a recent study by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life showed that 24 percent of Americans, and 22 percent of people who call themselves Christians, also believe in reincarnation.
"It shows the decline of traditional religious sources of authority," Laderman said.
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