Rest period
In Germany, as part of the care of the dead, a period of rest is defined by the local cemetery authority during which a grave site or urn grave site may not be re-occupied after a burial .
The rest period goes hand in hand with the Christian belief that the deceased should find a final rest in the cemetery until Judgment Day , which must not be disturbed.
Minimum rest time
The minimum rest periods result from the respective funeral and cemetery laws of the federal states, z. B. Baden-Württemberg, Brandenburg and Hesse 15 years; Berlin, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Lower Saxony and Saxony for 20 years. In Saarland, the minimum rest period is between 6 and 15 years, depending on the age of the deceased.
In the case of burial in the ground, the rest period is generally based on the duration of the decomposition, which depends on the local nature of the soil. The rest period for urn burials is usually shorter than for burials. The rest period stipulated in cemetery and funeral law is a minimum rest period that must be observed regardless of whether a corpse or an urn with the remains of a deceased person was buried in the grave site.
After the deadline, the right to use the grave expires . The leveling of the grave site is then permissible and necessary for pragmatic reasons in order to secure the future need for grave sites. Experience has also shown that many individual graves are no longer visited and cared for by relatives after more than two decades. The practice of so-called eternal graves with unlimited, hereditary right of use, which was common until the 1970s, is currently experiencing a certain renaissance.
Basically, a different duration of use of adjacent graves means increased effort for the maintenance of a cemetery, since gaps arise between still existing graves, which have to be looked after. The clearing of individual graves between those that are still in use is also more time-consuming, as heavy machinery cannot be used to protect the neighboring graves. If, on the other hand, the rest period of several adjacent graves expires at the same time, an entire grave field can sometimes be cleared and rebuilt at once.
It is common practice that a notice or sticker attached to the tombstone informs that the rest period has expired and that the grave will soon be cleared. Then there is the possibility to clear the surface of the grave by the announced date; if this does not happen, the cemetery administration will clear and dispose of it.
Special regulations
Special religious regulations lead to an indefinite rest period in Jewish cemeteries , since graves may never be leveled or re-occupied after the Halacha . In Islam, too, the dead enjoy an eternal right of rest, which is either not exercised at a Muslim burial in Germany or Muslims can be transferred to their home countries after their death. Individual municipalities grant their Muslim residents an eternal right of rest in municipal cemeteries.
Statutory exceptions regarding an indefinite rest in the grave are unusual. Corresponding needs can be met in individual cases by extending the rest period.
However, special provisions apply to the graves of victims of war and tyranny, such as the military and civilian victims of the First and Second World Wars . According to Section 2 of the Graves Act , their inland graves remain permanent.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Andreas Wollbold: The Resurrection of the Dead and Eternal Life Catholic information portal kath-info, accessed on July 22, 2016
- ↑ VG Gießen, decision of June 11, 2014 - 8 L 1249 / 14.GI
- ↑ cf. e.g. § 25 Funeral and Cemetery Statute (Bestattungs- und FriedhofsS - BFS) of the City of Nuremberg from April 6, 2009 (Official Gazette p. 134)
- ↑ Application for leveling a grave site pattern of the city of Hamm
- ↑ Clearing and leveling of graves after the rest period has expired . Retrieved February 10, 2020 . , Official announcement of the city of Schwalmstadt, July 1, 2019
- ↑ Hans Georg Frank: Graves for Eternity ( Memento from July 22, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Südwest Presse , June 25, 2010
- ↑ Peter Wilhelm: Burials in Different Religions and Cultures Weblog, accessed on July 20, 2016
- ↑ Burial of Deceased Muslims - General Regulations and Islamic Burial Regulations, Islamic Religious Community of Hesse, as of January 24, 2005
- ↑ Reiner Burger: Islamic Cemetery in Wuppertal: With Eternal Law FAZ , August 17, 2013
- ↑ Written request from MP Ulrike Gote BÜNDNIS 90 / DIE GRÜNEN from January 9, 2013. Bavarian State Parliament, printed matter 16/16137
- ↑ BGE 125, 300 Swiss Federal Court , judgment of May 7, 1999
- ↑ Law on the Preservation of Graves of Victims of War and Tyranny (Gräbergesetz - GräbG) of July 1, 1965 in the version published on January 16, 2012 ( Federal Law Gazette I, p. 98 )
