Answer From: Fr. Danylo  

The Ukrainian Catholic Church does not have its own, separate policy regarding cremation. There is no mention of it in Christ – Our Pascha, the Catechism of the Ukrainian Catholic Church. Our policy is more or less the same as that of Roman Catholics. To put it briefly, cremation is permitted, but only by concession. This means there should be a valid reason for resorting to such a destruction of the body. However, there is no generally agreed upon list of “valid” reasons and so it’s rare for cremation to be forbidden. Technically, the only reason why a cremated person would be denied a church burial would be if his or her instruction to be cremated was intended as a direct repudiation of the very basic Christian belief in the resurrection of the body.

In any case, the decision to cremate should never be taken lightly and always in consultation with one’s parish priest. Also, if the body is going to be cremated, it is preferable for this to happen after the funeral service as the presence of the body over which the church community is praying is an essential and deeply meaningful feature of the Church’s funeral rites.