Burial Privileges: Choosing Catholic Cemeteries

Progressing through the stages of life, Catholics come to be perfect examples of how important continuity is to faith.

Unbroken and perpetual, Catholic faithfulness is marked and solemnized at various stages of life on earth. Baptism, Confirmation, receiving sacraments, and practicing devotion within their communities demonstrates a continuous exercise of Catholics’ devotion to God.

Naturally, the life of a faithful Catholic culminates with the tradition of Christian rite of burial. Catholic Cemeteries are central to this final rite; their purposeful presence provides an ideal resting place, an idyllic harbor marking the end of a faithful life on earth.

Christian Burial Guidelines published by the national Catholic Cemetery Conference state that a Catholic cemetery “expresses the link of community between all the faithful living and dead—the Communion of Saints.” Iconography and symbolism abound in Catholic cemeteries, they are holy and serene by nature and by consecration. Choosing a Catholic cemetery is a way to secure a final resting place among other faithful Catholics, ensuring serenity in perpetuity.

God calls us to be present at the end of life’s journey; those who are kept together in life are kept together in death. Catholics in Shreveport have the privilege of being able to purchase burial sites in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery, a beautiful and historical landmark that has served as the peaceful home of beloved and devoted Catholics for over a century. Kate Rhea Cemeterian, St. Joseph Cemetery; Librarian/Archivist, Slattery Library & Resource Center

For information on purchasing burial sites, please contact Kate Rhea at (318) 219-7264 or krhea@dioshpt.org.