What would you like to know about St. Joan of Arc? Do you have a story about our parish or of general interest that you think others would like to hear? For story ideas, contact Jeff Rholl, jeff@stjoan.com.
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SINCE 1996 a merry band of long-term and loyal parishioners of St. Joan of Arc have put some of their vast talent to use and have taken up the controversial cause of Christian Burial. This is an emotional subject. Frequently it is avoided and many of us know of situations where, distraught and undirected families have spent obscene amounts of money on funeral arrangements. What has happened in recent years is the questioning of the costs around the burial of a Christian and the desire to have one’s body cremated and the ashes alone confined to the earth. Pushing the envelope even further, these parishioners who have given long and loyal service to St. Joan of Arc are now organizing themselves so they can have a simple, small memorial garden built on the north side of the St. Joan of Arc church where they can have their ashes laid to rest.
L-R Joan Riebel, Marlys Weber, Don Hall, Pat Greene, Mary Eve Thomas, Steve Boyle
PLACE IS IMPORTANT. There is a wonderful logic working here with these good women and men.
When you listen to them talk they say to you that they and many others have spent many of their most joyful and sometimes tearful moments in this place and with this spiritual community. “We want our ashes or our remains to be near this community, not in some distant cemetery or in a vault or casket. We want to have our ashes placed simply in a flower garden with a simple plaque that bears our name and memory.” They are not zealots who wish to convert others to being cremated, but they have chosen this for themselves because it fits with their life values, they want their life ending to be simple and in keeping with Christian poverty.
52 FEET BY 84 FEET is not a large amount of space. These women and men have been talking and working on this long enough to have developed some credible arguments. There is a logical plot of ground on the north side of the original church that is next to the Summer Garden. Bachman’s drew up a design for a shrub lined area with a tailored walking path, fountain, four plain benches and flowering beds of oriental grasses and shrub roses, where the ashes of the requesting parishioners can be buried. That does not seem like a lot of room but we are speaking of ashes and the design would allow for up to 7,000 parishioners, which is not likely to happen. The initial costs to landscape and create walkways with benches and small fountain would be about $30,000. The cost to have one’s ashes buried in the memorial garden could run well under $500. It now costs over $1,000 for the actual cremation so the group is working to come up with a plan that include burial of the ashes and name on the communal plaque of remembrance for around $500. Those who know the cost of today’s respectable funerals, also know that $1,500 or less is getting much closer to the concept of a simple Christian burial.
ZONING, THE LAWS, PERMITS. The group tells me the city’s environmental health department is supportive of this and has no objections. Other churches of the Christian persuasion have already done this. The Catholic Church in this archdiocese has not but other dioceses have allowed it, so there is precedent. Yes, this group knows they will need legal counsel in creating this space and in creating the reality. Permits or permission from the Archdiocese is in the infant stages. The Church is aware that most of Europe has already embraced cremation as the choice for burial.
THE ARCHDIOCESE is also aware of the ecological concerns of its members. In fairness to the Archdiocese, they have to manage the existing large cemeteries that were set up in the last century or early in this century, way before the concept of cremation was even considered. They are uncomfortable with human remains being placed in any location that might be subject to change. St. Joan of Arc could be rubble or history at some point in time. What would happen to the memorial garden? Technical questions that the group is working on and sensitive to the outcomes. This fact in itself is interesting because nobody can insure permanence of anything but a ‘ what if plan’ would have to be considered. The official Church is also not agreeing with the concept of scattering on the ground or into a garden. At this point in our history, the church wishes that the ashes be placed in a container. It even gets a bit more complicated. The official church prefers that at the funeral the actual body of the deceased be present. This means that because of our current laws, a body would have to embalmed and then placed in a rental casket, and later cremated. Folks, this is expensive. Rental prices on short-term use of caskets does raise one’s eyebrows.
THE STATUS QUO. At this point in time the St. Joan of Arc Memorial Garden Committee (not officially named) has clearly announced their value statements and goals. They wish to have a very simple burial and one that includes being cremated. Their second goal is to have their ashes placed in a marked setting at St. Joan of Arc Church, which has been their spiritual home. This group has motive, intent, and purpose and they are organized to pursue their course. At this point in time this group has presented their plans to the parish’s Pastoral Council and has spoken to most of the key players involved in this project. Not all parties are in agreement with this concept but paging threw some of the chapters in history, it is difficult to stand in the way of an idea whose time has come. Elder Catholics are very use to the word “NO,’ since over their years they have heard it a great deal from the church. Now with 25% of the American population asking to be cremated, they have come to a different understanding of their life-spirit, their bodies, and God’s use of the earth.
MARGARET MEAD once said; “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful and committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” These parishioners know that the issue of permanence has to be addressed. They know that the issues of record keeping and mapping also have to be worked through. There will be the need to draw up a set of standards and agreements so that plastic flowers and photos don’t become part of the garden. People would have to understand that they could not dig up Aunt Emma to take her ashes on a trip to Glacier National Park. And then there are the realities of upkeep and maintenance. But the group is convinced that the parishioners would care for the memorial garden and that it would be a wonderful extension of the community. Burial on church ground is a revered and ancient practice in the Christian faith and very much a part of the Catholic tradition. Just consider all those rural churches with their next to the church graveyards. People speak of a special sense of comfort and closeness to God when they talk about choosing as a resting place, burial so near to the walls of the church.
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If you would like further information on The Saint Joan of Arc Memorial Garden Committee, or to be part of this process and project, you can contact Marlys Weber at marlyweb@earthlink.net. Or you can all her at 612.825.1474. Other members of this group are Steve Boyle, Pat Greene, Don Hall, Joan Riebel, and Mary Eve Thomas.