Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel

People often ask why don’t Jews practice cremation? Why did this burial practice not take place like it did in Aegean, Babylonian, Hindu, and Anatolian cultures?

In the spirit of speculation, cremation might have been frowned upon because of Molech-worship. It is usually assumed that children were thrown into a furnace or fire as part of a ceremony, though whether they were killed or made insensitive is unknown. Among the Canaanites, Baal Melkart was offered human sacrifice at Tyre, a tradition that was also evident in Judah during the 7th cent BCE (cf. Jer. 19:5).

Even the name Topheth  is believed to derive from the  root meaning “fireplace, incinerator.” According to Jeremiah 7:31, the Molech cult-worship involved the cremation of human victims rather than the presentation and subsequent withdrawal of live child offerings. The practice probably horrified Israelites so much, they never wanted to have anything to do with even the appearance of this dreadful pagan custom.

In the ancient city of Tanit in Carthrage, thousands of urns have been found that bear witness to the ubiquity of child sacrifice. Cremated bones of young children ranging between 2 and 12, show how common this pagan rite once was. Other Phoenician sanctuaries or sacrificial precincts discovered on Sicily and Sardinia also bear witness to this practice. [1]

The crematoria of the Nazis has left a similar feeling of disgust among most traditional Jews, and for this reason, cremation has still never found acceptance among Jews as a burial rite. In a sardonic sense, the Nazis were much like Molech worshipers of old in their contempt of human life–much like the Islamic suicide bombers epitomize the Molech archetype today.

One Famous Cremation in the Bible

Yet, there is one well-known biblical exception to this rule–King Saul. After the citizens of Jabesh-gilead retrieved the bodies Saul and Jonathan, we read that “they cremated their remains” (1 Sam. 31:12). Why was it practiced with respect to Saul? Among the Aegean and Anatolians, cremations were used especially to honor fallen warriors and royalty (Remember Mel Gibson’s “Braveheart”?). It seems that the townsfolk wanted to show respect to the first king in a comparable like manner. It is also possible the townspeople feared that the more powerful Philistine townspeople would return and look to further inflict further desecration.

Some scholars think that the burning of the bodies of Saul and his sons by the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead (1 Sam. 31:12-13) may have been to prevent further desecration by the Philistines. On the other hand, this practice occurred when the bodies were in a mutilated state.

Other Ancient Burial Traditions

Historically,  ancient mortuary practices consisted of three stages: preparation of the tomb, preparation of the corpse for burial, and performance of rites that accompanied burial. For the greater part of their history, Israelites were buried in simple shallow graves, which were often covered with heaps of stones. Such simple graves were sometimes lined with reed mats or stones, but coffins were not used in ancient Israel, except in the case of Joseph (Gen. 50:26). The custom of placing a rock on the tombstone derives from this custom.

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Notes:

[1] Donald Harden, “The Phoenicians,” (London: Thames & Hudson, 1962) 94–104; W. F. Albright, “Yahweh and the Gods of Canaan,” (Garden City: Doubleday, 1968), 237f.