Rise in number of elderly Catholics choosing cremation

THE manager of the only crematorium outside Dublin said he’s surprised by the number of elderly Catholics using its facilities.

Frank Murphy, manager of the Island Crematorium in Cork harbour, said that last year 60% of services carried out there were for Catholics.

Mr Murphy said he worked for a major funeral company in England for 17 years and when he took over management at the Rocky Island crematorium three years ago he expected the majority of services would be for non-nationals and young people.

“This was something we were not expecting. It was a big surprise to us... It’s all about a change in attitude,” he said.

While the Vatican approved cremations in the 1960s, many Irish Catholics have shied away from such a send off, preferring the traditional graveyard burial.

However, that seems to be changing rapidly, in part because some grave spaces in the cities are costing well in excess of €1,000 and headstones can cost another €2,000 to €3,000.

Mr Murphy said that in some cases family grave spaces were full and additional coffins couldn’t be put into family plots. However, small urns containing the ashes of a person could easily be buried in the plot. Cost is also a factor. The Island Crematorium, which opened in Rocky Island on December 4, 2006, offers a cremation for €745.

Mr Murphy pointed out that the services of a funeral director would be an additional cost.

To date no family has decided to dispense with the services of a funeral director, but it is technically possible for families to take care of transportation and sourcing the relevant documentation themselves.

Families would need to acquire a vehicle capable of carrying a coffin and furnish the crematorium with two medical certificates from two separate doctors (or coroner), which the doctors will charge for. If the person who has died had a pacemaker, this will have to be removed.

Mr Murphy said there had been a 20% increase in the number of cremations at Rocky Island last year, compared with 2008.

“We can comfortably carry out five services a day. We also open on Saturdays and Sundays, but there’s an extra surcharge for that,” he said.

“We get people coming from as far away as New Ross, Limerick, Shannon, throughout Cork and Kerry,” he said.

Orthodox Jews, the Greek Orthodox Church and Muslims do not allow cremation.

But it is accepted by all Christian denominations, Sikhs, Hindus, Parsees and Buddhists.