Pittsburgh Cremation Service

Pittsburgh Cremation Services

What to do With Ashes

Once the personalized funeral services are complete, you may be  wondering what to do with the ashes of a loved one. If there was no direction listed in a pre-planning arrangement or last will and testament it can be difficult to know all of your options and decide on one. Listed below are some of the options with regard to cremated remains:

Burial - It is common to bury an urn in a grave space just as you would bury a casket. This allows families to remain together in a burial plot. The burial site then affords the surviving family a place for visitation and memorialization.

Niche Placement - A niche (an urn-sized space in a mausoleum) is another option for final disposition of the cremated body. It is similar to a crypt (which is used for a full sized casket) and is smaller, since it need only fit an urn inside. Some niches are glass front, and others marble or granite front and also provides a space to engrave special information about your loved one.


Home Placement - Some families choose to keep the cremated body at home. Depending on the style of the urn, it may be displayed or kept in a private area. There are also keepsake urn options, which are smaller versions of full sized urns. These keepsake urns allow for only a portion of the cremated body to be retained, therefore making the other portion of the cremated body available to be buried, placed in a niche, split amongst other family members, or scattered.

Scattering Cremated Remains - Scattering of cremated remains may be selected. Careful consideration of this option is recommended since it is irreversible and there also may be legal ramifications. If you choose to scatter the cremated body, it is necessary to fully consider the location of the scattering. Although this area may be easily accessible today, there are no guarantees as to what this place may become in future years.Woodruff Memorial Park has a scattering garden that takes into consideration future generations of a family with the opportunity for memorialization of the deceased.

Religions and Cremation

With the exception of Orthodox Jewish, Eastern Orthodox, Islamic and a few Fundamentalist Christian faiths, most faiths and religions allow cremation.

Catholicism and Cremation

Many Catholics still believe that the church forbids cremation. The reforms of the Second Vatican Council touched all areas in the life of the Church, including funeral and burial rites. “The Church earnestly recommends that the pious custom of burial be retained; but it does not forbid cremation, unless this is chosen for reasons which are contrary to Christian teaching.”
The church lists the following considerations to be kept in mind when selecting the option of cremation: Cremation 
  • The selection of cremation was the specific choice of the individual before death.
  • A family who wishes to transport the cremated remains to a distant place may request cremation.
  • When cremation is chosen, the various elements of the funeral rite should be conducted in the usual way and, normally, with the body present.
  • The ordinary practice of Christian burial includes the Vigil Service, the celebration of the Funeral Mass at the Church, and the Rite of Final Commendation at the cemetery.
  • Although all of the elements of the Funeral Rite have importance, priority should be given to the celebration of the Eucharistic liturgy with the body of the deceased present.

Locations of Pittsburgh Cremation Services Offered:

Peters Township Funeral Home

2820 Washington Road
McMurray, PA, 15317

Canonsburg Funeral Home

164 West Pike Street 
Canonsburg, PA, 15317

Bethel Park Funeral Home

5120 West Library Avenue
Bethel Park, PA, 15102

Bridgeville Funeral Home

430 Washington Avenue
Bridgeville, PA, 15018

Dormont Funeral Home

2630 West Liberty Avenue 
Pittsburgh, PA, 15216
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