What do you say to a friend who invites you to help scatter the ashes of her sister? What Church document would be useful to instruct my friend that scattering ashes does not show respect for the dead?
How do you decline anything you either cannot or do not want to do? “I’m sorry, I can’t do that.” In this case, you might gentle it by saying, “I’m so sorry. As much as I want to help you with the disposition of your sister’s cremains, I can’t help you scatter them.” For more information, see the resources linked below.
DISCLAIMER: Catholic Answers has turned over the archive to Catholic-Questions.org and no longer owns, manages, or moderates the forums. For additional apologetics resources please visit www.catholic.com.