To any one that knows Christian, Jewish whom ever.?

I honestly don't know if Christianity banned the burning of the dead, I do know they didn't like it because until recently Christians all believed that you waited with your body in the ground to be resurrected at the rapture and if your body was destroyed by burning so too was your soul (hence burning witches etc etc).

It's also worthy of note that not all pagan cultures burned their dead, quite a few had very elaborate burials. In the Germanic cultures it's believed that cremation began to increase when more frequent sailing expeditions began, it was too hard to carry a whole corpse home to be buried with it's family and they didn't want to bury them in foreign lands away from their families so they began burning them to take the ashes home instead. At least that's what I've read anyway.

As for "that" particular childrens song it was actually written in the early 1800's by an unknown author, it doesn't appear anywhere before then and has nothing to do with the black death. It's a common misconception..sorry Cher.

Modern Christianity believes that the soul leaves the body upon death. The earthly body that remains is no longer needed. "Of dust you are made and unto dust you shall return."

It doesn't matter what is done with the earthly remains, burial or cremation.

Personally, I don't agree with burial. As towns and cities expand, we are seeing more and more that the land is needed. Cemeteries are digging up coffins and moving them, so the land can be used. So much for the idea of Resting In Peace!

Cremation allows one to become part of a beloved place. Ashes can be scattered in any place with special meaning to the deceased.

Orthodox Judaism doesn't allow cremation. (I don't know if Reform has relaxed that.) There is a whole complex set of rules around body handling & burial.

It was very helpful in the black plague. Much fewer Jews died. One of the ways non-Jews died was as they burned the bodies, it spread... That kids song "Ashes, ashes,we all fall down" is from those days as the adults circled the fires & sang. Jews also buried within a day, used clean different wells (non-Jews through bodies down their wells), & washed their hands before eating.

I know nothing about the change of Paganism to montheism effecting death rites.

One of the sad side effects of orthodox burial standards (or is this too grostque), is that after suicide bombings, all the bits of body are scraped up off eveything quickly so they can be properly buried. It's part of why life can go on so quickly after each one.

I know Jews who have been cremated also Christians because many do feel that there is not enough land anymore I as a Christian want to be cremated on a personal note I cannot seem to grip being put in the ground maybe Closterphobia!

I want to be spread over the ocean my soul has left my body anyways...

I may be wrong, but my understanding is that no movement in Judaism allows cremation.

I'll star this post for my other Jewish and also my Pagan friends, as I don't know enough to answer :)