Adieu, the final farewell, an exploration of death!
Judaism: Forward to Next tier religions – Famous Cemeteries - Back to Sikhism
Back to Six largest religions – Religions – Death
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Quick Links:
| Definition | Funeral |
| Abrahamic | Graveside |
| Types | Mourning |
| YHWH | Flowers |
| Beliefs | Reception |
| Afterlife | Shiva |
| Final confession | Shloshin |
| Death | Yahrzeit |
| Preparation | Headstone |
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The Jewish Faith is practised by just a fifth-of-a-percentage point of the global population, 15m people. Within Judaism there are a number of movements based upon Rabbinic teachings.
Judaism is described as Abrahamic, it therefore shares its patriarchs with Islam and Christianity: Abraham is Avrahim in Hebrew and Ibrāhīm in Arabic; Isaac is Yitzhak and Isħāq; Jacob is Yaʿkov and Yaʿkūb; Joseph is Yosef and Yūsif.
There are four different types of Judaism: Orthodox, Conservative, Reconstructionist and Reform.
Judaism is monotheistic, believing in one god, Jahweh or Yahweh. It is an ethnic religion that is practised only by Jews (born and converts).
Judaism has no particular dogma for its articles of faith, though there have been a number of attempts to define one. Most often this has been expressed in the negative, by defining what is a heresy.
A religious Jew should believe in the one God; believe in the creation; believe in divine providence; in the divine origin of the Torah, handed to Moses by God; believe in Moses and the prophets; belief in the resurrection of the dead; and that there will be a Divine judgement.
Judaism does not prescribe an afterlife but it does believe the soul is immortal and there will be a resurrection of the dead. The scripture is called the Tanakh, after the first letter of the three parts of Jewish tradition: the Torah, the teachings of Moses; the Nev’im, the books of the prophets; Ketuvim, the writings including psalms and wisdom.
When dying the individual is encouraged to make a final confession or viddum. Suicide and euthanasia is proscribed. Relatives read psalms and prayers, it is believed that the dying person should not be left alone.
When death is announced it is usual to recite the Dayan Ha’met prayer, to express one’s grief.
At death Judaism believes that burial should happen quickly. A shomer is promptly assigned as a guardian until burial, there might be more than one shomer so that these can work shifts. This process is often overseen by a same-sex member of the Chevra Kadisha, a burial society, that ensures the body is protected and that traditional customs are respected. The men of this organisation wear a tallit, a prayer shawl. The body is washed, this is the tahara, it is not usually embalmed.
Orthodox and conservative Jews forbid cremation. Organ donation is permitted by all groups, it is considered a good deed, or mitzvah.
The body is washed and then dressed in a shroud, tachrichim, a prayer shawl, tallit, and a skull cap, kippah or yarmulke. It is placed in a simple wooden casket, an Aron, that has no metal so that it will biodegrade with the body. The casket is customarily closed. Funerals are not held on Saturdays, this is the Jewish shabbat, sabbath.
The funeral is frequently not held in a synagogue but instead at the cemetery. It is usually held on the day after death and lasts fifteen-twenty minutes. The funeral may assemble in the synagogue where prayers and a eulogy are taken, then there is a procession to the cemetery.
At the graveside a eulogy is given by the rabbi, then prayers are recited, hymns sung and religious readings made. The formal funeral ceremony is held once the casket has been interred. A memorial prayer, the Kaddish, is given to prompt reflection. Finally, mourners assist with replacing the earth into the grave, or contribute a notional handful of earth.
Mourners dress modestly for the funeral, usually in black or dark colours, and heads are usually covered. One unusual custom is called Keriah, where a mourner tore and ripped their clothing as a sign of their feelings of loss and grief; the ripped garments are then worn for a week. Today, mourners wear a black ribbon that is then cut up, as a symbolic emulation of that old custom, the kriah. Another is that Cohens may not attend, someone named Cohen is descended from priests. Cohens stay outside the funeral and cemetery as a result.
Sending flowers is not the norm, giving a donation, or tzedakah, to a named charity is encouraged. Food is sometimes given, kosher of course.
A reception is then held at the synagogue or the deceased’s home. A candle is lit on the first day of mourning and burns for the seven days of shiva.
Shiva, literally means seven, and refers to the first seven days of mourning. Individuals are expected to sit shiva for a parent, spouse, sibling or child. This is a time for spiritual and emotional healing. Traditionally this was at the deceased’s home, sitting on a low stool or on the floor. All mirrors are to be covered, to avoid vanity. People sitting shiva should not be involved in any business, should not wear new garments or leather shoes, they should not cut their hair or shave, and should not share any intimacy.
Shloshin, meaning thirty, is the second period of morning after the funeral, though it can be respected for more than thirty days and up to a year. In this period the family can return to normal life, but recite prayers and sing hymns for the deceased.
After one year a candle is lit for a day, this is Yahrzeit. Often a memorial is held at the anniversary. Remembrance is also practicised at Yom Kippur and at the Passover.
It is the custom to erect a headstone. There is another custom that visitors to the grave should place a small stone on the grave as an act of remembrance, this should be placed with the left hand.
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Judaism: Forward to Next tier religions – Famous Cemeteries - Back to Sikhism
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