Exploring the Soul of Taharah (Jewish Death Practices Books)

Erlick, Avivah W.; Light, Richard A.

ISBN 10: 1508412367 / ISBN 13: 9781508412366

Verlag: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2015

The book is in good condition with all pages and cover intact, including the dust jacket if originally issued. The spine may show light wear. Pages may contain some notes or highlighting, and there might be a "From the library of" label. Boxed set packaging, shrink wrap, or included media like CDs may be missing. Bestandsnummer des Verkäufers BSM.PCP8

Inhaltsangabe:

For centuries, Jews have prepared their dead for burial using a ritual known as taharah, which means purification. Drawn from sacred texts and Jewish theology, this rite is traditionally conducted according to time-tested procedures, by a trained team called a chevrah kadisha.

Today, however, families are asking their rabbis and hospice chaplains to improvise new rituals based upon this ancient one. They may want to perform the ritual themselves, for example; to insert original elements; or to confront Jewish law and perform it for a loved one who will be cremated, or who is not Jewish.

Discussion of these issues has led to the question: How much modification can be allowed? At what point is the ritual no longer a Jewish purification, and by what standard? What bare-bones elements make taharah unique, and satisfy its requirements? What can be allowed, and what is forbidden?

This is the inquiry that the authors, a hospice chaplain and an experienced chevrah kadisha leader, set about to explore.

David Zinner, Executive Director, Kavod v'Nichum, writes: “Destined to become a defining work in the chevrah kadisha field, [this book] extends the concepts of hospice into a Jewish context, and has the potential to radically alter and improve the way that contemporary Jews handle traditional death practices. It may facilitate the return to a more authentic form of the chevrah kadisha that is not dependent upon 20th century funeral homes.”

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor: Rabbi Avivah W. Erlick, BCC, is an independent chaplain with a specialization in end of life. She owns a referral agency called LA Community Chaplaincy Services (www.LACommunityChaplaincy.com), and provides interfaith spiritual care and Jewish religious programming in hospice, hospital, senior living and skilled nursing settings. To better serve her hospice families, she developed Sacred Waters – possibly the world's first family-centered, mobile taharah service (www.Sacred-Waters.com). Rabbi Avivah is a founding member of the Jewish Burial Society of Southern California, which provides trainings and support to help synagogues develop their own chevras. She speaks on Jewish end of life spirituality and ritual at rabbinical schools, hospitals, hospices, and senior living facilities. She is a Board Certified Chaplain (Assn. of Professional Chaplains) with Masters degrees in Rabbinic Studies and Journalism; her first career was as a newspaper editor. The Academy for Jewish Religion, California, ordained her in 2009; she then completed a yearlong hospital residency in interfaith chaplaincy.

Rick Light has been teaching spiritual development in various ways for more than 30 years and has been studying and practicing meditation for more than 40 years. He also teaches backpacking, rock climbing, and other outdoor skills. He is a leader in the community of those who prepare Jewish bodies for burial, and has published three books in this regard. For 18 years Rick has been the leader of a local Chevrah Kadisha he started in 1996. He is a Vice President of the North American educational organization, Kavod v’Nichum (see Jewish-Funerals.org). Rick has been invited to teach at and help organize Kavod’s annual Chevrah Kadisha conferences annually since 2005. He continues to teach and raise awareness about Jewish death and burial practices at the local, state, and national levels.

Bibliografische Details

Titel: Exploring the Soul of Taharah (Jewish Death ...
Verlag: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Erscheinungsdatum: 2015
Einband: Softcover
Zustand: good