The Cash of Symbols

     As I wrote in my blog "Bury Me Not in a Mason Jar", I prefer to be buried, rather than cremated, when I die.  This is a preference, not an ultimatum (as if I could enforce it) and is dependent on the money available for my final expenses, but I prefer it for the same reason I prefer to take communion with unleavened bread--the symbolism.  I believe burial best expresses our hope of the resurrection of the body, just as unleavened bread best symbolizes the sinlessness of Christ. Obviously, there is a much larger price difference between burial vs. cremation than unleavened vs. leavened bread, and I am open to, and have, taken communion with leavened bread when visiting other churches. It is never a good idea to be pickier than God about issues that do not affect our salvation.
     I do not believe God needs the remnants of our earthly bodies to build our resurrected ones, that would be as ridiculous as thinking God needs us to use unleavened communion bread in order to keep Christ sinless.  That is backwards reasoning.  The type is not dependent on the symbol.  I am not even very good at perceiving symbolism, but seeing how seriously God took treatment of the symbols of the tabernacle, ark of the covenant, sacrificial system, etc. in the old testament, and the penalty for irreverent use of the Lord's Supper in the new testament, I am highly motivated to use symbols correctly.
     Besides, burial gives me one last chance to give my testimony, and I could never resist having the last word.  If the testimony of my burial can outweigh my lifetime tendency to buy the next-to-cheapest product available, those who know me as the ultimate bargain hunter will understand the significance of the splurge. To hammer in that testimony, I have written the story of my salvation to be read at my funeral and have selected hymns and scripture passages I would like included. If finances necessitate cremation, I hope enough money will be available to buy a gravestone, because that is where I can have the final word.  I had previously selected Is. 58 because it is my favorite passage and the phrase from verse 12, "Restorer of Broken Walls", but perhaps that is too obscure. I am now considering a verse on the resurrection and the phrase "to be continued. . ."