Death, Burial, and Bereavement
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Unveiling the Gravestone After a Year
Why is there an unveiling of the gravestone on the year anniversary of a death? Why wait a year? There are varying customs regarding the time of unveiling. Some erect the stone (at least in unfinished form) immediately after the…
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Cremation and Burial
I would like to know why a Jewish person cannot be cremated. I always thought that the memorial service and the prayer for the dead states: “From ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” If this is true, than why can’t…
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Autopsy
Is it ever permissible for an autopsy to be performed on someone of the Jewish faith who has died? For example, if the findings of an autopsy could help save another life, is an autopsy permitted on a deceased person?…
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Jewish View of Suicide
What does the Torah tell us about committing suicide? When a person is suffering from deep pain, a disease, and is guilt ridden by the effects of it on their loved ones, and would rather stop the suffering for everyone,…
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Fish and the Angel of Death
Does the angel of death come when domestic fish in an office fish tank die? Only if it’s a Gefilte fish… Actually, animals do not have the same kind of “soul” as the one which G-d breathed into humans. There…
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Kaddish for an Uncle
My uncle passed away this week and I am almost certain that there will not be anyone saying Kaddish for him. Can a nephew say Kaddish for him? My parents are already in the next world. It would be a…
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Searching for the Hebrew Name
My mother passed away in 1991. I have been trying to find out her Hebrew name but I’m not having any luck. I called the funeral home but they don’t have it on record. How would I find out what…
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Blood and Organ Donation
Can Jews donate blood? Or would this be a no as it might be viewed along the similar line of an Orthodox Jew donating an organ? According to my teacher, organ donations are not permitted because the way G-d made…
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Afterlife and the Pine Coffin
I never understood what the jewish belief is about the afterlife. I’ve heard that Jews were to be buried in a plain pine box so that a return to life would be that much easier (as opposed to an impenetrable…