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Dear Grandma,
Every Catholic hospital used to have
a plot of sacred ground on the grounds,
and there they buried miscarried
babies and even amputated body parts,
which are considered holy as part
of the human body.
Unfortunately, this is no longer
the case, but most dioceses have
a policy of granting group burial
to remains lost after so many weeks
(often 12). This doesn't make sense,
but the fact is that hospitals dispose
of remains immediately, and often
parents don't think to ask ahead
of time that they be kept for them. Mortuaries won't take unborn children
for embalming until a certain period
also.
Once the child's remains are
disposed of by the hospital, the
only thing, and best thing, that
can be done is to have a funeral
Mass for the child. It helps the
parents grieve very much, and helps
the whole family. It also honors
the child, who is, of course, a child,
not a miscarriage.
Mary Ann
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