Funeral & Burial

Jewish practices of funeral and burial are constructed around a few key ideas: Death is to be confronted, not denied. The dead body is to be accorded the utmost respect. Mourners are to be comforted. We are equal in the face of death. The burial and decay of a body is a natural process which should not be impeded or interrupted.

Latest Rituals

The Weight of Mourning

“One day, maybe, the Kaddish won’t scrape my throat raw…”

grief, kaddish, mourning, shiva

Willow tree with drooping branches, lush green leaves, and sunlight filtering through, casting shadows on the ground.

Kaddish Yatom (Mourner’s Kaddish)

The Reconstructionist version of the Mourner’s Kaddish.

death, God, kaddish, mourning, prayer, transcendent

A hand holding a siddur opened to the Kaddish

A Life, A Year

A poem to mark moments in a year of mourning.

kaddish, shiva, shloshim, yahrzeit

hourglass and calendar

Prayer for One Entering Natural Organic Reduction

Prayer for transferring a deceased body for the process of “natural organic reduction,” also known as “human composting”

burial, eco-friendly, environment

small tree shown far away in bright green field with blue sky and clouds

Remembrance Brings Forth Life: A Kaddish for Peace

“We can envision this world and beyond as havens of peace”

landscape of pink-tinted mountains with person standing and sky above with one cloud on the right side

You Can’t Bring Back the Dead

“You can’t bring them back, but you can learn their Torah”

family, grief, mourning, yizkor

a black and white photo

Yahrzeit for My Father

“I found a pair of dress shoes I had long forgotten / caked with mud / hidden away in the back of my closet”

family, mourning, yahrzeit

Brown leather dress shoes on a wooden floor.

With the Earth: A Mourning Ritual

Earth-based mourning ritual with poem and chant

earth, grief, interfaith, mourning, tragedy

Hands holding a pile of soil, with a blurred background.

A Contemporary El Maley Rakhamim

“Hold our loved ones close to your heart”

el maley rahamim

Sunlight filtering through grass, creating a warm, golden glow with bokeh effects in the background.

For Those We Remember with Love: Seven Blessings of Memory and Hope

“May you know that you are always remembered for the good you have done”

grief, mourning, yizkor

Sunset over a misty landscape with trees and a grassy hill, under a partly cloudy sky.