“One of the traditions is that everybody is equal in death, so you would think that all Jewish people would go in a pine box. However, we make a lot of very nice high-end caskets,” explains Lou Tobia ...

Last September, I was at my annual writing retreat in Albuquerque, N.M., but it was the first year the gathering overlapped with Rosh Hashanah, so I went looking for a synagogue to attend services.

George Solomon almost died last year. The congestive heart failure that nearly felled him a few weeks before his 60th birthday was the closest he’s come to his own demise. But it was hardly his first ...

A traditional Jewish funeral is simple and not ostentatious — good news for people concerned about the high cost of dying. But while Jewish law doesn’t require embalming, elaborate floral displays or ...

What is the holy burial society? Jewish burial is a world unto itself. Consider these questions: Why are Jewish caskets made of wood and use no nails? Why are Jews buried in shrouds? Why can’t a ...

The COVID-19 crisis has caused long-held traditions to change, even those held deeply and faithfully across multiple generations. While other religious organizations have been able to transition ...