Ḥebra ḳaddisha

The term ''chevra kadisha'' () gained its modern sense of "burial society" in the nineteenth century. It is an organization of Jewish men and women who see to it that the bodies of deceased Jews are prepared for burial according to Jewish tradition and are protected from desecration, willful or not, until burial. Two of the main requirements are the showing of proper respect for a corpse, and the ritual cleansing of the body and subsequent dressing for burial. It is usually referred to as a burial society in English.

Etymology

In Rabbinic and Modern Hebrew, "sacred society" would be written (''ḥavurā qəḏošā''), while in Aramaic, it would be (''ḥavurtā qaddištā''). ''Chevra qadisha'' has an unclear etymology. The Aramaic phrase is first attested in the '' Yekum Purkan'' in a 13th-century copy of the '' Machzor Vitry'', but it was rarely used again in print until it gained its modern sense of "burial society" in the nineteenth century. The Hebrew phrase predated its modern popularity for decades. The current phrase is probably a phonetic transliteration of the Ashkenazic pronunciation of the Hebrew version, which has been misinterpreted as an Aramaic phrase and, therefore, spelled with a yodh and aleph.

History

Eliezer Ashkenazi formed the first modern Jewish burial society in 1564, in imitation of Christian guilds, and its regulations were codified by Judah Loew. The society ensures dignified treatment of the deceased following Jewish law, custom, and tradition. Men prepare the bodies of men; women prepare those of women.

At the heart of the society's function is the ritual of '' tahara'' "purification". The body is first thoroughly cleansed of dirt, bodily fluids and solids, and anything else that may be on the skin, and then is ritually purified by immersion in, or a continuous flow of, water from the head over the entire body. ''Tahara'' may refer to the whole process or the ritual purification. Once the body is purified, the body is dressed in ''tachrichim'', or shrouds, of white pure muslin or linen garments made up of ten pieces for a man and twelve for a woman, which are identical for each Jew and which symbolically recall the garments worn by the High Priest of Israel. Once the body is shrouded, the casket is closed. For burial in the Holy Land (including modern Israel), a casket is not used in most cemeteries.

The society may also provide ''shomrim'' to guard against body snatching, vermin, or desecration until burial. In some communities, this is done by people close to the departed or by paid ''shomrim'' hired by the funeral home. At one time, the danger of the body being stolen was very real; in modern times, the watch has become a way of honoring the deceased.

A specific task of the burial society is tending to the dead with no next of kin. These are termed a ''met mitzvah'' ( "mitzvah corpse"), as tending to a ''met mitzvah'' overrides virtually any other positive commandment (), an indication of the high premium the Torah places on the honor of the dead.

Many burial societies hold one or two annual fast days and organise regular study sessions to remain up-to-date with the relevant articles of Jewish law. In addition, most burial societies also support families during the ''shiva'' (traditional week of mourning) by arranging prayer services, meals and other facilities.

While burial societies were, in Europe, generally a community function, in the United States, it has become far more common for societies to be organized by neighbourhood synagogues. In the late 19th and early 20th century, burial societies were formed as landsmanshaftn (mutual aid societies) in the United States. Some landsmanshaftn were burial societies, while others were independent of the traditional burial society. There were 20,000 such landsmanshaftn in the U.S. at one time.

Recordkeeping

The burial societies of communities in pre-World War II Europe maintained ''Pinkas Klali D’Chevra Kadisha'' (translation: general notebook of the Chevra Kadisha); some were handwritten in Yiddish, others in Hebrew.

See also

* Asra Kadisha
* Chesed Shel Emes
* Chevra Kaddisha Cemetery, Sacramento
* Hebrew Free Burial Association
* Landsmanshaft
* Misaskim
* ZAKA

References

Further reading

* ''Chesed Shel Emet: The Truest Act of Kindness'', Rabbi Stuart Kelman, October, 2000
EKS Publishing Co.
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* ''A Plain Pine Box: A Return to Simple Jewish Funerals and Eternal Traditions'', Rabbi Arnold M. Goodman, 1981, 2003
KTAV Publishing House
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* ''Tahara Manual of Practices including Halacha Decisions of Hagaon Harav Moshe Feinstein, zt'l'', Rabbi Mosha Epstein, 1995, 2000, 2005.

External links

Chesed Shel Emes Website

Chevra Kadisha Mortuary

Kavod v'Nichum: Jewish Funerals, Burial, and Mourning

KavodHameis.org – Chevra Kadisha Training Videos

Chevra Kadisha of Florida: A Division of Chabad of North Dade

My Jewish Learning: Chevra Kadisha, or Jewish Burial Society

National Association of Chevra Kadisha Official Website

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Aramaic words and phrases
Aramaic words and phrases in Jewish law
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Bereavement in Judaism
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