Home Home / Letter to Dr. Offenbacher about the Che…

Correspondence

June 11, 1976

Letter to Dr. Offenbacher about the Chevra Kadisha Wearing a Kittel on High Holidays (1976)

Death & Mourning
View The Text

This content is currently available in its original PDF format. As we expand the library, we plan to add a text version as well.

RELATED CONTENT

Correspondence

Letter to Members of the Chevra Kadisha with Praise and Stressing Need for Confidentiality (1969)

To: All Members of the Hebra Kadisha, Men’s and Women’s Divisions, From: Rabbi Norman Lamm: I want to take this opportunity to offer some words of special commendation to all members of the Hebra Kadisha for having carried out with such dedication and efficiency the very demanding tasks that unfortunately were imposed upon them several times in the last few weeks. It is a tribute to the members of the Hebra, and a vindication of the esteem and affection in which they are held by our entire congregation, that despite especially trying circumstances, their voluntary work continued unabated and without reluctance.As an addendum to this thank-you note, in which I know all The Center joins me, I want to record some observations which may be of importance for future activity of the Hebra.It sometimes happens that post-mortems are performed on the bodies of those to whom the Hebra ministers. When this happens, please bear in mind that if the autopsy was performed against the decision of the Rabbis, or without obtaining their prior permission, then the Rabbis will usually (but not always) refrain from asking the Hebra to offer their services in that case. Whenever, therefore, you do find such a condition, you may assume that rabbinical consent was given, either because civil law demanded it, or because the Halakhah required it or permitted it.In all such cases, please bear in mind that special delicacy and tenderness should be extended not only to the deceased, but also to the sentiments of the survivors. The less that is said to outsiders about such individual cases the better. The Hebra ought to treat all such information as confidential and privileged, in the same way that a lawyer does not disclose the affairs of his client, or a Rabbi the problems of those who come to consult him. Otherwise, a great deal of the good that all of us try to do, and in fact do, is impaired.I hope you will forgive this lengthy note, but I do think that the members of the Hebra ought to kno…
Death & Mourning

Correspondence

Letter to Dr. Offenbacher about the Chevra Kadisha and Burial Procedures (1974)

Dear Elmer, Just a note or two about the Hebra Kadisha: (1) Rabbi Wermuth told me that Mr. Dorfzaun and you had raised some questions about the coffins that we permit for burials which take place under the aegis of The Jewish Center. I would like to inform you that we do not insist upon the very cheapest pine box. As long as there are no halakhic violations, we like to give the family some area of choice. The Riverside people therefore know that there are three boxes of which we approve.In the next few weeks, I will be making up the schedule for the three lectures that had been requested by the Hebra Kadisha. At the suggestion of some of the members, these will be kept restricted only to members of the Hebra. My present plans call for one lecture on , one on (these two to be given to the men's and women's Hebra Kadisha together), and one, to each group separately, on the practical techniques. The last lecture should be more in the form of a seminar by the older members to the newer ones. If there are any questions, they should be submitted to me in advance by the individuals who will be leading the discussion.I would like the Hebra Kadisha to consider the following idea, which I propose tentatively. At present, our tasks seem to be exclusively related to taharah. As you yourself had indicated, we ought to broaden the scope of our activities. My thought is that if that is the case, we ought to enlarge the Hebra and invite participation even by those who may be too squeamish to participate in a taharah. We might, for instance, set the number of 18 members for each group, knowing that there are at least half of each group that we can count on for taharot. The others could be assigned specific duties, such as telephoning. But much more important would be the following two areas: men members of the Hebra, especially those who do not volunteer for taharot, would be expected to attend minyanim of families sitting shiva, so that there never be any problem of a family of Th…
Death & Mourning

Correspondence

Letter to Dr. Offenbacher about Shomrim for Mourners (1976)

I do not believe we have to be excessively worried about a shomer who must take time out from his duties for personal needs. I assume, of course, that these absences from his duties do not last more than a very few minutes. Under such circumstances, there is no reason to be stringent. 2. With regard to the conduct of the shomer during his duties, it is traditional that the shomer recite Psalms. At present, I think it would be too radical a departure from custom to allow the shomer to engage in other pursuits, such as secular studies. I would prefer that the yeshiva students whom we are considering as shomrim be instructed to stay with Psalms – preferably those items which are studied during the “Nine Days,” such as מסכת מועד קטן or פרקי ירמיהו, special chapters of Jeremiah, איכה, etc. If the student feels that he must devote his time to other areas of Torah study, then I would not object to it. 3. I am studying the question of a Sefer Torah to be used exclusively for the mourners’ homes, and will inform you when I’ve arrived at a decision.
Death & Mourning