Purchasing Your Own Casket or Urn, Becoming an Educated Consumer



I do not accept advertising on this blog, because I am not interested in financially benefiting from this work. I am providing this as information only not as a recommendation.                                                                                                                                                    
Speaking about death may be one of the last taboos. You may not even feel uncomfortable reading this blog post. Well try not to be uncomfortable. Death is a natural part of life. We are born, we live and we die.

I am sharing this information to let you know there are other options besides what your funeral director is selling.There are several Catholic religious orders of monks that make caskets and urns for sale to the public generally less than you would pay at funeral homes.

One of the monasteries is the monks at St. Meinrad Archabbey, in south central Indiana. http://www.abbeycaskets.com/. I purchased one of their caskets for a family member. One of the funeral home workers asked me where it came from and was interested in the costs. I told him the price and he responded that a casket of that quality would have costs over $5,000 on our showroom floor (mark up)."

Another Catholic monastic order in this line of business is the Trappist monks at New Melleray in       NE Iowa.  http://www.trappistcaskets.com/

Over the years, I have had the opportunity to visits both monasteries. Over the past 10 years I have visited St. Meinrads many times and am currently finishing a Masters in Pastoral Theology there.
When I was in high school I spent 2 weeks at New Melleray exploring if I possibly had a vocation to their way of life. I soon realized that would have been a difficult choice because I am not a morning person. Since then, I have been back several times to visit. 

No, you need not be Catholic to purchase a casket or urn from the monks. Shipping is usually 1-2 days. You have a right guaranteed by the Federal Trade Commission:                                                 https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0300-ftc-funeral-rule 
to supply a casket purchased elsewhere besides the funeral home. Another good resource to review before purchasing funeral products is https://www.funerals-ripoffs.org/‎.




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