Category: Death and Dying

Reflections on Death (1973)

Reflections on Death (1973)

Heschel writes in 1973 in "Reflections on Death": Life here and now is the task. Every moment can be an achievement.
September 22, 2024 CJ Journal - 1945-1959 Confronting Death
Introduction to the Kaddish: For Those who Died in the Israeli War (1957)

Introduction to the Kaddish: For Those who Died in the Israeli War (1957)

Written by S.Y. Agnon in the Conservative Judaism Journal for those who died in the War of 1948, these words are especially fitting today.
September 20, 2024 CJ Journal - 1945-1959 Conservative Judaism Journal
A Yizkor for the Victims of October 7th

A Yizkor for the Victims of October 7th

May God remember all the women, men, and children of Israel who were brutally murdered on the 7th of October.
September 20, 2024 Death and Dying High Holidays
Yizkor for the Victims of October 7th

Yizkor for the Victims of October 7th

This Yizkor, for the victims of the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, attempts to capture the personal details of the people killed on this ...
September 20, 2024 Death and Dying High Holidays

Why We Study Mishnah To Grieve Someone Who Has Died

There is a custom of learning and reciting chapters of Mishnah as part of the mourning process. Where does this come from? How does this ...
, September 3, 2024 Death and Dying Learning
List of Mishnah Chapters by Hebrew letter

List of Mishnah Chapters by First Letter

One mourning practice is to use the first letters of chapters of Mishnah to spell out the name of the deceased. Here is a list ...
September 3, 2024 Death and Dying Lifecycles
Mourning a Miscarriage

Mourning a Miscarriage

While there are no specific rituals for mourning a miscarriage, there are practices and rituals to use in that time that can help healing.
June 19, 2024 Children Death and Dying
How Mourning Changes You

How Mourning Changes You

Pulling on a conversation between Stephen Colbert and Anderson Cooper about mourning, learn about how mourning can change you.
February 19, 2024 Death and Dying Lifecycles
Remembering Our Loved Ones Before Us

Remembering Our Loved Ones Before Us

When our loved ones die, who remembers those they remembered? Here's a way to remember all of those that came before us.
September 21, 2023 Death and Dying Family
Mourning: A Rabbi's Own Perspective

Mourning: A Rabbi’s Own Perspective

A rabbi, familiar with leading others through the process of mourning, goes through the same. Rabbi David Baum remembers his mother.
August 25, 2023 Death and Dying Holidays
What do I do if I can't go to minyan when saying kaddish?

What do I do if I can’t go to minyan when saying kaddish?

Saying Kaddish for a loved one is a cherished and prized custom, but it is not the only way to remember and honor the lives ...
May 19, 2023 Death and Dying Every Day

Mourning Practices for the Loss of a Parent

The period of mourning for one’s parents is a full twelve months, and serves a deeply therapeutic function for the mourner.
, May 8, 2023 Death and Dying Lifecycles
death

When Death is Imminent

Judaism does not recognize any gray area between life and death. Whenever possible, a dying person should not be left alone.
, May 8, 2023 Confronting Death Death and Dying

Yahrzeit: The Jewish Anniversary of Someone’s Death

Yahrzeit should be a day given over to remembering and honoring an individual for whom one once sat shivah and is learning to live without.
, May 8, 2023 Death and Dying Lifecycles

What is Yizkor?

Yizkor consists of a collection of readings and recitations revolving around two central prayers: Yizkor prayers, and the El Malei Rachamim.
, May 4, 2023 Death and Dying Lifecycles

Tombstone Customs in Judaism

Tombstone customs in Judaism stem from the religious obligation to mark a grave. This is traditionally done with tombstones or stone markers.
, February 28, 2023 Death and Dying Lifecycles

What Does Jewish Law Say About Autopsies and Organ Donation?

The halakhah does not generally permit autopsies, due to honoring the dead. However, there are two important exceptions to that rule.
, February 28, 2023 Confronting Death Death and Dying

Kohanim and Funerals

Kohanim were forbidden to come into contact or share indoor space with the bodies of the dead, apart from their closest of relatives.
, February 28, 2023 Death and Dying Funerals
Mourners torn clothing

Aninut: What Should Mourners Do Until Burial

The period from the time of death until burial is known as aninut - the customs of the mourners during the initial stages of bereavement. ...
, February 26, 2023 Death and Dying Lifecycles

How to Comfort Mourners During Shivah

What do I do when I go to a shivah? Remember that conversation should be about the deceased, not the mourners or the visitors.
, February 26, 2023 Death and Dying Lifecycles

Jewish Laws and Rituals for Funerals

What are the Jewish laws and rituals regarding funerals? Generally, a ritual washing, burial, and a funeral, each with their own customs.
, February 26, 2023 Death and Dying Funerals

What is Sheloshim?

Shloshim are the thirty days that follows the week of shivah and is considered a period of reduced mourning.
, February 26, 2023 Death and Dying Lifecycles
Floating candle

What is Shivah?

The word shivah refers to the seven days of mourning that follow the burial of a parent, child, sibling, or spouse.
, February 26, 2023 Death and Dying Lifecycles
What is the jewish afterlife

What is the Jewish Afterlife?

What does Judaism say about the afterlife? Exploring the inherent conflicts between the different ideas and why that's a good thing.
December 25, 2022 Death and Dying Every Day

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