I had a congregant pull me aside at church a few weeks ago to ask me a very urgent question. The senior pastor was out sick, the associate pastor was busy, and I had just preached. This urgent question was about her concerns for those who are cremated. "In the bible," she said, "it talks about Jesus coming back for us and raising us from the dead to ascend with him to heaven." "Okay," I replied, bemused and nervous about where this was going. "But what about those who are cremated? How can Jesus raise them from their graves if they've been cremated." I wanted to laugh so hard, but I guess I'm a minister...or something. I replied to this concerned congregant with a carefully curated question. "I don't believe that the author meant for that to be literal. Jesus' return and the raising of the dead from their graves is a metaphorical synopsis." What I wanted to say is, "We will all be ashes ...