MJL: At least two talmudic sources note that the righteous will be brought back from the dead wearing the clothing in which they were buried.
GAIL LABOVITZ: The concept of zechut avot, the merit of the ancestors, is well-entrenched in Jewish tradition. This concept claims that even when we are unworthy and rebellious, we have some merit with God because of our ancestors and their loyalty. Until very recent times, Jews prayed to “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob,” echoing the way in which God self-identifies to Moses in Ex. 3:6, with no mention of the Matriarchs. All Jews today may call on the merit of their mothers and foremothers, be they Sarah Imenu, or our own individual mothers, living and dead.
KAREN GALATZ: The custom of adorning a Jewish headstone with a photograph is controversial, considered by observant Jews to smack of worshipping graven images, but I can only say that I am grateful my family’s pictures are there. It helped lead me to their tombs and it drove home their eternal connection to me.
CAROLINE SHINGLETON: Here we come to the all-important Vietnamese notion of “quê” or “quê hương” (homeland). For Vietnamese, your homeland, you see, is where your ancestors’ graves lie:
1. Important: Ring the Bell to summon Angel(s) or wake up God.2. Step back, then step forward to enter Presence.3. Make Offerings (For example: Food, Drink, Money, Incense).4. Kneel, Nod, or Bow.5. Pray in your Mind, Heart, and Soul.6. End Transmission by stepping back and clapping (Isaiah 55:12).
On auspicious occasions, all who are thirsty pour Clean Water (preferably recent Thunderstorm Water) in a special container to honor our Ancestral Asherite Pantheon. Settings may vary.
Black Shelf Altar: Asherite Oil from Israel, Dad's Cologne Bottle, Envelope filled with Unused Stickers of Mom's Address, Mom's Credit Cards, Nehushtan Cup full of recent Thunderstorm Water from Hurricane Laura, Tiny Rocks found on the Driveway, Pepper and Salt, Photographs of Maternal Lolo, Maternal Lola, Dad, Mom, Sister, and I, Ten Commandments Booklet for Husbands and Wives, Glass Flower Container filled with White Rice and topped with Red String Bracelet, Necklace that says "Mommy"
BARBARA MEIKLEJOHN~FREE: Also place on your altar a picture frame that is empty to represent your unknown relatives.
"For centuries Christians had traveled to sacred shrines housing the body parts, or objects associated with the holy family. The faithful believed that these relics had the power to heal the body and the soul."
CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: The word relics comes from the Latin reliquiae (the counterpart of the Greek leipsana) which already before the propagation of Christianity was used in its modern sense, viz., of some object, notably part of the body or clothes, remaining as a memorial of a departed saint.
Bloch-Smith, Elizabeth. 1992. Judahite Burial Practices and Beliefs about the Dead. JSOT Supplement Series 123, Sheffield: An open vessel such as a bowl or crater for food, and a pilgrim flask, chalice or jar for liquids, were the most common forms, frequently accompanied in highland burials by a lamp for light.
MITCH DAYAN: When you talk about being part of the Davidic lineage, the hidden message is that you are a messianic family. When you talk about a messianic family rather than a Davidic family, you are talking about the possibility of the Messiah coming from your loins. In the view of the classic Orthodox Jew, there are obligations. You have to be an observant Jew.
SUSAN ROTH: there are some great rebbes that say the mashiach is going to be King David [come back from the dead].
NADINE EPSTEIN: Male descendants of King David ruled Israel until the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem in 597 BCE, and Jews scattered. Some managed to stay in Palestine, others fled to Egypt, but the victorious Babylonians took most of the nesi’im—the princes of the Davidic line—to Babylon. There, the King David line continued: Princes of the House of David were appointed by religious leaders to govern the Jewish community. This person was called Rosh ha’gola, which translates as “head of the exile” or exilarch. Fraught with behind-the-scenes political infighting, the position survived the Arab conquest of Baghdad but came to an end when the last exilarch, Hezekiah, was imprisoned and tortured to death in 1040 CE.
Descendants of the exilarchs and other nesi’im fanned out across Mesopotamia, the Levant, Egypt and the Mediterranean basin in search of new lands in which to practice their faith. Some stayed in Spain, Portugal and Italy, and from there migrated to Europe. But through the centuries, plagued by perennial migrations and persecution, the vast majority of King David’s descendants, a number estimated to be in the millions, lost knowledge of the line…
Tradition has it that a messianic claim requires male-to-male Davidic lineage. Jesus’ followers claimed such a connection for him in the Book of Matthew, which calls Jesus, “Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the son of Abraham.”
JOSEPH FRAGER: Mearat Hamachpelah is the Gateway to Gan Eden.
YERACHMIEL TILLES: One of the classic halachic commentators, the Bach (Rabbi Joel Sirkes 1561-1640, in Yorah Deah, end of 217) strongly approved the practice of praying at one's ancestors' graves in times of difficulty, since their merit can intervene to help avert an unpleasant decree. Indeed, it is an almost universal Jewish custom to visit the graves of close relatives on the anniversary of their passing and to pray there.
The holiness of these gravesites is derived from the lingering connection of the soul to its point of final departure from the body after burial. This presence is especially strong on the tzadik's yahrzeit (anniversary of the passing).
GEOFFREY DENNIS: It is clear that ancient Israel venerated its dead (Deut. 10:15). The burial places of Judges and Rachel may have served as shrine/oracles (Judges 8:30-32, 10:1-15; 12:7-15; Sam. 10:2; Jer. 31:15).
JOSEPH JACOBS: clans and tribes were originally unified by a worship of ancestors
Pesikta Rabbati 31; Yalkut Shimoni, Isaiah 469: And for those who were swallowed in Rivlathah, G‑d will create for them underground tunnels, and they will travel through them until they reach the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.
MJL: According to the Talmud, all bodies not already in Israel will be rolled through underground tunnels to the holy land.
WIKIPEDIA: In the Diaspora, it is traditional to bury the dead with the feet in the direction of Jerusalem.
ADMIN: From the beginning of Christianity until the 20th century, the vast amount of people who died were buried in graves that were essentially public ones.
"You are Adam in the Heart of the Desert,,,"
"You are Soiled in the Heart of the Desert,,,"
"You are Earthy in the Heart of the Desert,,,"
"You are Bloody in the Heart of the Desert,,,"
ETAN MELET: Unfortunately, in the last 20 years, the State of Israel has not maintained its heritage sites.
myKaddish.com: Kaddish is a deeply meaningful way to benefit a soul, but not the only way. The study of Judaism is a very meaningful way to bring elevation to a departed soul. For this reason, it is common for people to dedicate time to study about Judaism in memory of someone who has passed away. Another way to bring elevation to a soul is by giving charity (tzedaka) or doing acts of kindness in memory of the departed. When one brings goodness into this world in memory of someone who has died, then the departed person essentially becomes the catalyst for that good. As the catalyst and cause of that good, the departed soul is elevated by it.
