Transcription:
Again, going back to our ancient traditions, this is how we as Jews have always buried our dead. Going back to, you know, the stories in the Torah about Maarat HaMachpelah, where our matriarchs and patriarchs were buried so many thousands of years ago. I also talk about the fact that, unfortunately, so many of our loved ones were cremated during the Holocaust, that their bodies were just incinerated because they had no option to bury them. Why would we do what the Nazis did to our loved ones, and why would we want to do that for them? I say that life is so precious, and tradition is so precious, that we want to be able to maintain that tradition in the way that has impacted our people for so many years, which allows us to connect, not just during that year, but for years afterwards. There’s a beautiful tradition that people have during High Holidays, is to visit the graves of their loved ones. I know that it’s something that’s so precious for people to be able to do in Toronto, to be able to go and visit the graves of generations of family members, something that really is so unique for us here in Toronto to be able to do. That’s something that really connects us so importantly to our past and our future as well.