The Memorial Gardens

Beverly Hall’s Memorial Rose Gardens is the resting place for the cremations of the dearly departed.

Since the time of Egypt, spiritually minded individuals have given attention to both the welfare of the living and the best interests of the departed. The idea of earth‑bound Souls was a cardinal belief among the Egyptians of old. They believed firmly that the Soul could not be entirely free from the body so long as the body had not actually returned to its earthly elements. This idea is reflected in our modern burial ritual, “dust to dust.” They also believed that the place of the burial of the body would have an attracting power to the Soul so long as the body still existed.

There are several advantages to cremation after death of the physical body. First, the Soul is not completely free until the body has actually returned to earth. The quickest way to accomplish complete freedom of the soul is by means of cremation. Second, providing it was the desire of the individual who passed on, the ashes will be an attracting force to return to a spiritual path of life. Last, cremation is a very sanitary method of interment.

The Memorial Gardens is a place where the ashes of those who accept these concepts may be buried. Instead of a gravestone, a rose bush is placed for each individual. Amidst the bed of roses is a lily pond and pyramids. The pyramid is symbolic of our “Body, Mind, Spirit and Soul.”

Interment in the Memorial Gardens is completely voluntary. Any individual, whether a member of the Church of Illumination or not, may make arrangements for his or her cremations to be placed under a designated rose.