Wikipedia's article on cremation, read directly for this pass, states the Holy See formally banned cremation in 1886 in response to Masonic advocacy of the practice as a rejection of Christian resurrection belief, a prohibition carried into Canon 1203 of the 1917 Code of Canon Law. The ban was lifted in 1963, with priests permitted to officiate at cremation ceremonies from 1966. The Catholic Culture library's text of the instruction itself, cross-checked for this pass, names the instrument as Piam et Constantem, issued by the Holy Office and approved by Pope Paul VI on 5 July 1963, permitting cremation except where chosen as a denial of Christian teaching. The general custom of forbidding cremation among Catholics predates the 1886 formal ban by centuries; no source consulted for this pass gives a citable year for when that general custom itself began.
Facts
Assessment
Reliability Tier3
A community-edited tertiary reference cross-checked against the Catholic Culture library's own text of the Piam et Constantem instruction, not peer-reviewed, but the 5 July 1963 date and the 1886/1917 prior ban are settled, well-documented Catholic canonical history with no live dispute over the dates. NotesCited for the 1963 permission and the 1886/1917 prior formal ban; the entity's existing origin-period fact reads only "Permitted in the Catholic Church only from 1963" with no history row.
Citation
PublisherWikipedia; Catholic Culture
URLhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cremation
Source Typereference
Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names Holy See directly: "directly for this pass, states the Holy See formally banned cremation in 1886 in response to Masonic advocacy of the practice as a rejection of Christian resurrection belief, a prohibition carried..."
This source names Paul VI directly: "the Holy Office and approved by Pope Paul VI on 5 July 1963, permitting cremation except where chosen as a denial of Christian teaching."
Claims Backed By This Source (9 claims)
This source backs 9 claims across the atlas. As facts: 7 well-attested. As cited relationships: 2 holds.
Disposition By Topic
- Sources, 8 claims: 6 well-attested, 2 holds.
- Rituals, 1 claims: 1 well-attested.
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