Jewish Beliefs in End of Life

Rabbi Tina Grimberg

Congregation Darchei Noam

Transcription:

For rabbis, this would be a place where we can learn together, right? We sit around the table and have these extraordinary intellectual conversations because they valued learning. It reflected their time and their values, right? There is some sense in mystical, you know, Kabbalistic tradition that there is a Gilgul, which is evolution of the soul, and we reincarnate. We actually travel through life, which is not very often discussed, but there is.I think in these conversations are not great when the diagnosis is taking place. They’re really good to have a conversation and build up this vocabulary before. So they’re musings, but they’re extremely important to contemplate.For Judaism, the soul is eternal. There is a part of us that will never be destroyed, and it returns to God who gave it to us and planted in us. So, death is not an end.It is a beginning of something else. But Judaism is very careful not to leave us there, that we don’t contemplate a lot about it. We don’t fantasize about it.Life here. L’chaim. Life is here. Concentrate on living. Concentrate on taking care of those who you love. You return to God, and one day we’ll be all together. We’ll be all together one day.

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What to do when a death occurs
Traditions when someone dies
The importance of burial
The importance of burying in a Jewish cemetery
What happens at a funeral
Where to host a service
Selecting a funeral home
Jewish Beliefs in End of Life
Supporting a mourner
Kavod HaMet & Tahara
Shiva
Saying Kadish
Yizkor
Lessons from COVID
How to select a monument
Visiting a cemetery
Why to pre-plan a service

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