Some food for thought on Death in Judaism and how we cope and think about it:
Everyone has a name
Given them by God
And given them by their father and mother.
Each person has a name
Given them by their height and their way of smiling
And given them by their garment.
Each person has a name
Given them by the hills
And given them by their walls.
Each person has a name
Given them by the stars
And given them by their neighbours.
Each person has a name
Given them by their sins
And given by their longing.
Each person has a name
Given them by those who hate them
And given them by their love.
Each person has a name
Given them by their festivals
And given them by their work.
Each man has a name
Given them by the seasons of the year
And given them by their blindness.
Each person has a name
Given them by the sea
And given them by their death
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-Based on a poem by Zelda
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Jacop P. Rudin:
When we are dead, and people weep for us and grieve, let it be because we touched their lives with beauty and simplicity. Let it not be said that life was good to us, but, rather, that we were good to life.
Quotation adapted from Rashi:
Naked a man comes into the world, and naked he leaves it; after all his toil, he carries away nothing – except the deeds he leaves behind.
Story based on Talmud: Taanit 23a:
One Day, Choni was walking on the road and he saw a certain man planting a carob tree. Choni said to him, “How many years will it take for this tree to bear fruit?” He replied “70 Years”. Choni said to him, “Is it clear to you that you will live 70 years?” He replied, “Just as my ancestors planted for me, so too, I plant for my children”.
Memorial service prayer for a man (from the Movement for Reform Judaism):
We thank You for all that was gentle and noble in his life. Through his name inspire us with strength and light. Help us to use our grief itself for acts of service and of love. Everlasting God, help us to realise more and more that time and space are not the measure of all things. Though our eyes do not see, teach us to understand that the soul of our dear one is not cut off. Love does not die, and truth is stronger than the grave. Just as our affection and the memory of the good he did unite us with him at this time, so may our trust in You lift us to the vision of the life that knows no death. God of our strength, in our weakness help us, in our sorrow comfort us; in our confusion guide us. Without You our lives are nothing; with You there is fullness of life for evermore.
Woody Allen:
I don't want to attain immortality through my work. I want to attain immortality by not dying.
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