Web site of the Jewish Funeral Practices Committee of Greater Washington

This web site is co-sponsored by
Kavod v'Nichum
and the
Jewish Funeral Practices Committee of Greater Washington

	Jewish Funerals, Burial, and Mourning
	*Jewish Mourning Customs*

Website Name	Their Description	My Comments
A Time to Grieve, A Time to Teach	Eight value concepts: 1) the reality of death; 2) respect for the dead; 3) equality; 4) simplicity; 5) the venting of emotions openly and fully; 6) communal responsibility and support; 7) affirmation of life; and 8) remembrance. See the full thesis	A "must read" for every parent and educator
Funerals require we find honor, dignity in everyone	There is something special, even uplifting, about funerals, … a certain spiritual feeling pulsating underneath all the grief and pain and tears.
Jewish Customs of Mourning	General Overview	Includes a wide range of information
Taking Out the Torah at a Funeral	A new custom revived
The Jewish Life Cycle: DEATH	Honoring the Dead and Death as a Natural Process	Excellent summary
Yahrzeit	Traditions, Stories, Date Calculators and Art
Good Grief	"…if there is something miraculous about life coming into existence, certainly the same holds true for death."	Insightful explanation
Kee Tetze: On the dignity of the human body in death	In punishing criminals, in conducting funerals, in medical research	Good explanation and references
A year and a Day: Kaddish
Shiva:Seven Days of Mourning	Seven-day mourning period which begins immediately after the funeral is based on the Hebrew word for seven. by Anita Diamant	From Saying Kaddish: How to Comfort the Dying, Bury the Dead and Mourn as a Jew
Traditional mourning, burial rites focus on dignity	Overview of traditional rituals. From Blu Greenberg's 1983 book.	How to Run a Traditional Jewish Household is the starting point
Guide to Jewish Funeral Practice	Guide from United Synagogue	Conservative
Jewish Mourning – Ahavat-Israel	Detailed overview	Orthodox perspective
Temple Israel Ritual Committee	Description of Bereavement Support Group, "Bikur Cholim, and Funeral Arrangements	How one synagogue organizes their volunteers
Life, Death and Mourning	From Judaism 101 - created, written and maintained by Tracey Rich. Also at the Jewish Student On-line Resource Center - American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise which is similar to Judaism 101, but according to Mishneh Torah, not latter-day customs)	"...just a traditional, observant Jew who has put in a lot of research."
Origins of the Custom of Putting Stones on Graves When Visiting the Cemetery	10 articles explaining the custom
Giving People the Benefit of the Doubt – The Funeral	Story from Ohr Somayach
A LusaWeb Comunidade Project	Rituals and Practices of the secret Portugal Jews	See the section on funeral rituals
Jewish Funeral and Mourning Customs	Jewish Deaf Community Center in Southern California	Nice summary until the plug at the end
The Visit	Visiting the grave by Marlene Adler Marks
Tattoos, Suicide, and Jewish Burial	From Project Genesis	Discussion of issues
Kaddish - Who Chants / Who Stands?	Discussion based on Talmud sources
Holidays & Observances - On Death and Mourning	Overview of traditions with biblical citations
Reclaiming the Mourner's Path	By Anne Brener, the author of Mourning and Mitzvah	From the Reform web site
Unveiling of the Monument for Herman Ehudin	Drawn from numerous sources	Unveiling service mainly in English
Reclaiming Judaism as a Spiritual Practice	Funeral and Unveiling Prayers with a spiritual English translation
Unveiling Service from Death and Bereavement - A Halakhic Guide	by Rabbi Abner Weiss	Unveiling service mainly in Hebrew