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The History of the Chevra Kadisha in America (Rabbi Adam Mintz)

Added Feb 16, 2016 •

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I'm here to talk about cover kadesia but I'm real here to tell the story today and that's the story of how the Cobra kadeesha came to America and how what that store like what it was like when Jews came to America and what it meant that every Kenisha came to America let's start at the beginning what is the condition what is the covering you should everybody yeah  good so they prepare for the prep they prepare the pop proper Jewish burial what does that include quickly yeah that's what else  yeah okay good me run what else  watching good when does the job of the cupboard Kanisha end  is that this is a good questions you say when the bodies buried and you say when when the time where is over general you know the way it works usually today is I maybe the cupboard condition does the shmira once the funeral takes place basically the rabbi becomes in charge right to the burial is done by whom usually the rabbi writes mean the rabbi runs the burial sometimes it's December condition there and sometimes they're not what about the cover condition to ship a house go to a house and see the cover candy should being in charge no never right so that's the first interesting thing how did someone comes to the house to cover the mirrors at the member of the chevra okay I'm used to that there's a special cover the mirror committee you know so that's the first interesting thing tell you what originally means in a minute but originally The Kebra kadeesha did everything from the minute of death to the end of the Shiva The Kebra kadeesha was in charge they were charge of the tire on the shmira they were in charge of the funeral they were in charge of taking the body to the Cemetery they were in charge of the they were in charge of setting up the shiver house which means covering the mirrors which means preparing the students I brought they were in charge of them in they were in charge of today we say food at the ship that house they were in charge at the end of the ship that house of getting the people up from Shiva and taking the Sugar House apart so that's the first thing that we talked about the hammer condition traditionally we're talking about a much bigger job than what we have today will talk about that's happened all so what's the first cover condition that question when was the first official cover Kenisha  soap talks about a couple kadeesha write the Mitzvah to bury them it's for the do at our rough but the first organization and I'll talk about what that the second was in Spain in the 1300 there was a cover kadeesha there were there were communities where there was a group of people who job was to do these things but the famous first-ever kadeesha in Ashkenazi communities there was the first organized Keppra kadeesha what that mean to have a cover condition organized cover katisha actually men noses was always men had the right to join the fabric Edition now what adjoining the fabric Edition do what it mean to join the Cavaliers play Black Sheep a membership to join this effort kadeesha what did Jordan have her condition do what do give you the right to have  yeah that's nice but actually I gave you the right to have with a burial meaning that if you wanted to cover a kadeesha to bury you and your family you needed to pay membership dues to the Capra kadesia now that's interesting but odd so what about if you are remember the pepper they just let you will get all the put you out on the street corner and that was the end of you what happened let's say you were cheap that year but you couldn't afford it you know member that ever what happened to do they not bury with a mix with a berry people do they not there you what they do  pick up that the Jewish thing they yeah they did it but they made a little sign on the gravestone it said not a member of the Federalist was not done so well okay thank you got punished so weird I could have Barry you you have to go take the second you have to look up on the Internet have to Google it to see who's going to bury him okay yeah nice lock of course they bury people who are members of the paragraph but it seems like it was a social thing if you are not a member of the Cobra they buried you but somehow everyone in town knew this is a burial for someone who's not a member the kind of it was like humiliating for the family if you want time to talk about this second because that you say it's wrong what I'm going to show you is how the chevra was this much a social organization as a religious organization that word it's wrong that short considered it but would you point added really important and hold the thought for 3 minutes when you come back to school you're right but I'm not ready for you yet okay so they would bury everyone got buried but the people who were members of the Phedra either got a more dignified burial or maybe just socially people knew you know this funeral this is not a member of it about what in the world does that mean so that's so so you are member the cobra in gave you a dignified funeral and in game the rights to do the tire it gave you the right to do shmira it gave you the right to go to the cemetery and you know when to dig the grave and those days they had they actually dug the grave and they filled in the grapes that was a right that they had so the first thing is that being a member of the Fed whoever said before gave me a chance to do more mitts MOS that's good right gave you a chance to participate you weren't allowed to participate you were a member of the Capra now why is that  why shouldn't you be allowed to participate what were they looking for listening to be important in America to what do they look board members of the federal  how much is an observant Jew pups I would add the word upstanding someone who's in the urban juicer who's well-respected in the community because who do you want to do your tire you want someone who's upstanding member of the community there eat the Frog had a group they called them the group of Elders the job of the group of Elders was to interview rebody who wanted to become a member of the heifer and how to pass not only that you can be thrown out as a member of the Fed if they caught you doing something bad I don't know what that is they caught you need to get a restaurant that wasn't under the vaad of whatever they call the bottom of of South are the rights they caught but it's not only that they caught you acting improperly in business they caught you you know doing bad at home you were thrown out of the febra and here you start with this that is the chevra actually sir as the most important social institution in prod and then in cities after that meaning the way so let's take it back everyone wants remember the favorite because if you are the member of Cobra you were humiliated so I remember you needed to upstanding and religious but you had to remain upstairs and religious right you had to continue to be like that so actually with these Elders with the favorite d was it controlled what the community look like or at least what the you know what the what the more accepted group within the community look like think about that today yeah next event such a harsh punishment for not being able to you know when shul in the morning they take around a pushka right they take around the push everybody puts whatever they put in a quarter or a nickel a dollar whatever they put and you know some people put it in some people don't it seems it in Prague they had a similar kind of thing and someone was taken before the chevra bored right these Elders the cover board because he didn't put money in the pushka in the morning that think not that you wouldn't say someone else to put money in the pushed in the morning is you know it's not observe it's right say that word you could use what you would say give me my shop is that shopping but that's a community Norm that everybody needs to contribute to stuck us every single day that person was brought before said report to you know what to say that you and you did not properly so it's more than just observe it it's making sure that you participate in the community in the weather though that was ripe for the question here in front you had the right to perform to Harris right you can ask ruffle in the back right it's not always so easy to get people you know to perform terrorist they were lining up to perform Tower they want its before only allowed to if you love if you remember the feather  good we going to talk someone who wants a very oldest poor give whatever they going to get let's say we're willing to pay the heifer but Warren upstanding citizens did they know where they are allowed to be right any citizen you were not allowed even to join the pfeffer they're not going to dignify you know but what would that lead you to do if you knew that would you make sure to do should I get stuck every morning right people wanting that I know so that's what I'm saying it's a very interesting I'll get you one second it's a very interesting social comment you said it right and that is how's it going read how they have a community with an able to do that  no you see that's the control they had and that's why I said was so interesting they turn it off because being buried in a dignified dignified way or having your relative be buried a dignified way with worth everything and so therefore people would actually you know follow the rules more that's a question you ask in the back they follow the rules more because I want to be part of the cover did you go ever no matter which one you had or what type of person you are like you should be buried the same that makes everything I know. Fair oh my goodness okay well that's you have to cut that have to come down and get it still that Breakaway shoes right I don't even frog they didn't allow for Breakaway she was baby that's an American phenomenon right okay that's that's the difference that is a good discussion but it's not a discussion about Kendra okay to questions you're both want to know about the money right where did Money play a role so you have to be observed example there were membership dues to the country so it's right you could only be a member of the favor of you could afford the membership dues said that was also a control so you see everybody can get can have a tie rod unto Denver to their relatives but to be part of this social organization you needed to be someone who could afford the membership dues to the members of the cover both upstanding religious and could afford to be members of the pepper now it was a membership to the it's kind of like today shul membership right meaning that most people can join the show the membership of a shoe was not so much money that people that meant that people are left out but it does require a certain amount of money now the question is I have two inside lights at first answer the question but is it fair so what was going on with this so here's a 14 piece which is going to pull the whole thing together well traditionally has to do with Daryl and all the things you just said a couple of min in Prague the reason the cover kadeesha is important is because the fabric adisha became a cherry organization what happened was that all of the membership fees by the way if you remember the cover they buried you for nothing a selfie that was that was that was membership rights right like give it a club and therefore you're allowed to use a swimming pool to golf golf course Longville for nothing so if you remember the same for up your new rules in your tire up we're done for nothing but to put the membership fees what they used to do is they used to support poor people so there for the Oprah became the most important charitable organ Institute Shin within the Prague community and people look to the cover and they were video another job with the board of directors of the elders was to decide who needed stuck up and who didn't need stuck okay that was the cover so you have an amazing thing what you have is you have this institution which you think is a facet institution where you're doing Tara's in your do burials in you setting up s*** the houses and all the sudden what do you have you have this very complicated institution which did two things it control the I would say differently it set the standard you want to know what the standard is right in certain Community you have to be a certain way and I'll just give you a very good in today's world yes that Breakaway shoes so in today's world let's say something like this let's say that in some communities please it would be accepted that a married woman covers her hair well how would you establish that rule in the community who were the fabric kadeesha Improv meaning fracassi say that observe it for what is observing me well if you live in a City where whoever it was thought that with the married women should cover their hair will then and the only people who can be members of the Phedra or men whose wives cover their hair and all the sudden what have you done number one you said it you said social still religious standard and one of you what you're probably going to encourage married women to cover their hair because if they want not to be humiliated not have a funeral all those kinds of things all the sudden happen you created a new religious standard or you made your standard you know kind of the bar by which all religion is based yet what about those times on their relatively very even again the Tower of women could only done by women but not only a tire of women can only be done by women Veep they believed that women have to be in charge of the role of women who carry the coffin to the grave and it was women who lowered the women into the grave because they thought they thought that you that was still stick to do with that so yeah the answer is relatives and it's different communities had different rules about what it meant to you know who have started how far your relatives went is it fair I'm not sure if it's fair they would answer when they would say is of course it's fair there's no body in the history of the Jewish community of Prague who was not not given a burial who was not given Atara was not giving shmira who wasn't given a few who wasn't given burial so technically speaking my cat is very nice that the entire Community was religious and everyone lives up to the standard but at the same time I don't know if they're kind of being forced Swiss and so that so good what is an Excel the way I presented it you might think this is your question you might think the 99.7% of the community where members of the pfeffer right because there was such pressure to be members of the so therefore you do whatever you could to be a member of the cobra that's not true okay means even though it was you know you wanted me member the FED of rupt most coverage at that time had a few hundred members in it so we have a community and pride which has 10,000 used as part of community so you have three or four hundred men who are members of the pfeffer that's not many even if you assume that another family bigger than that you know that's not many people so it really was a very exclusive group now that that's all was part of the problem the fact it was an exclusive group makes it you know why because the fact that your relative doesn't get such a fancy funeral that's okay cuz most relatives are not getting fancy funerals many I set it up as if it was a true this humiliation not to be at not to get a nice funeral cuz you're not not a member of the Cobra but the true that matter is that was most funerals  action was it remember the Capra you really got a spectacular for funeral and people treated you in a special way now spectacular funerals we also have to talk about right also not so simple do we have a tradition of spectacular funerals and of course what does it mean to have a spectacular funeral what does it mean to have a spectacular funeral  VSU I said you can you can prepare a funeral a spectacular funeral what would it be the best the best gravesite how do you decide what that's going to be  the most that's that. Supply in the it's me how do you define what that's going to be right the best Rabbi so you bring in Lord Rabbi Jonathan sacks to give the eulogy okay that's good good so the best eulogy what for who that's going to be because you're right the best rabbis he doesn't know you may not give the best eulogy what else is the best funeral  it's not our tradition the addition is the what you guys weren't everybody's buried the same so so the rabbi the Lord Stacks doesn't know you you can't have a good coffin because the coffins are all the same so what is it oh that's good A lot of people will come to your funeral suicide Rihanna no no no you can have a lot of people going to think that's true today too someone important very good location location location right it's good I want to be buried next to X I want tell you some good stories with a in America they sold locations needed to be buried next to a rap I was worth money okay that's good so location number of people what else what else feels like the type of that it was okay that's good anything else who was it for for the family that's the man who pays the membership dues he's not so worried about his own funeral but he wants you know all the members of his family died he wants to make sure that's going to be at the funeral right okay the gravestone could be okay you see it's not so easy to Define what it means a nice funeral right it's a funeral after all is said and done it's at IRA it's a shmira it's a funeral and it's a Shiva how you going to make that better one than the other make your funeral give me the people come or not okay who with the Skype okay let me let's let's continue our story I think we really set up what you know what the favor was in Prague kind of social religious institution is became Jews came to America in 1880 there were 40000 Jews in America in 1924 they were two and a half million Jews in America that means that two and a quarter William Jews came to America between 1881 and 1924 most of those Jews who came during that. at least started off Orthodox and most of the Jews who came during that period probably win through the lower okay they didn't stay in Lower East Side but they probably wouldn't through the Lower East Side let's talk about the Jews who came during that. and for Simplicity sake my Simplicity I'm going to tell you about my great-grandfather my great-grandfather was born in a little shtetl Poland called Maleficent it happens to be on the map by chance they were about 200 Jews in the lava probably most of them related to the mince and as an young single twenty-year-old decided to come to America I can't tell you why exactly we decided to come to America in 1890 he got on the boat and he came to America he probably landed in New York and went through the process at Ellis Island what did they check it out Island Health Paisley disease makes you weren't sick when he when he passed through Ellis Island you can imagine think his name was shraga 5 women's shraga feibelman gets accepted to America he doesn't speak a word of English where does he go when he passes through Ellis Island when they accept them when they stamp his documents to say you can become an American where does he go where does it go Amish community on the Eastside how does he know how to get to the East Side  where everybody went to a maybe someone in Molalla I gave him a little piece of paper write a pec deck that wrote something in English like Lower East Side like Canal Street whatever it was he got to the Lower East Side you said he would to the Polish Community on the Lower East Side on the Lower East Side  I don't know what's a half a million name of Polish the lithuanians came a little later so that's a there were half a million polish Jews in lower resources  good what do you call those group did you learn about this in class started calling today what they calling them this a very important word to know they were called linesman shots you know what a linesman shopped is to be a Lawman Jerry year your parents use to turn to be a lower grandparents use the term lensman he's Allen Smith what does it mean to be a lot and spin raffle tell her what it means to be a lot next one is to come from the same time the same place and that's the way they congregated I remember my father had a lot of snow shots of tell my brother and whatever they were and he had a closer Association we're like brothers they were very very close and their entire lives I mean I grew up in a small town and Winnipeg in Canada and loomed large in my growing up thank you very much trike linesman shaft was a group of linesman of people who came from the same area now let's imagine the trackify Bowman's comes in 1890 and he gets the Lower East Side they're half a million polish Jews you know you're right I pulled this isn't going to be good enough he probably has on another piece of paper written English the word malafa or the area in which lava a let's say that he shows it to enough people and he is told the melava Jews this is here they are the linesman shaft the group of Jews from malava who came to New York their is over there up the street on the 3rd floor now what does that mean their headquarters I mean see their headquarters just means this dining of somebody who happens to come from a lava social men's comes to Lower East Side you can just imagine totally overwhelmed doesn't speak any English no idea what to do stop the street goes up to the third floor and knocks on the door and they open the door say who was it he says mins from malafa and they're about five or six people sitting around the dining room table in this little apartment they see mins from malafa we know men's from Moapa you can imagine a little town of 200 shoes men's you are next door neighbor and someone else around Apple says my mother went out with your father when they were kids I know your sister you can imagine right it's like nothing it's like one half a block here in Boca and everyone knew him and he said I just got off the boat what am I going to do I don't speak English I don't have any money I have nothing well all of a sudden the story changes all of a sudden he's not some guy 20 year old guy from Poland to them speak a word of English who has a beard who you know looks completely out of place now all of a sudden you said it he's with family not technically family I'm telling you it was ghost play spoken you spoke so what they do so says I have nowhere to go first of all they said come sit with us he sits at the dining room table and he has a bowl of soup and a piece of bread it's probably the first good food he's had how long since he left melava however many months ago right he was on the ship that he was in that will silence so they give him something to eat he said I have nowhere to sleep tonight right in the middle of it when do I know where to sleep they say you can sleep right here pick a spot on the floor write them a family write the extended family you know they have six people did they have departments the other one room  turntable their space so just take we have a blanket for you and just cover yourself up I will give you you know when you can sleep there well first of all they saved his life right because what you going to do we would be stuck in me on the street maybe sleeping in Seward Park which was the park and lower Skippy stock navigate my place wakes up the next morning I guess he dive-ins and what happens then what is he need everybody a job how is shraga five elements going to get a job  how shark Apollo Meats going to get a job  I don't have any idea if I was going to get a job what you going to do right you said you just go to this gets put an ad in the newspaper men's from a lava I want a job but he has no he has no skill SuperAmerica I don't know what he did in the lava but he has no skills in America actually with a show created malapa so I don't know what to do all everybody to do everyone wants to work in a factory because spaghetti English so the only thing you can do is to work for the Jews who speak English just to get it so what's he going to do  Obama the person who father went out with them his mother says you know what I have a little more cat on the corner I've been here for a little while I have a market I will let say it was right before pesach I'll let you be my delivery boy I can't afford to pay you anything but you know what delivery boys are not bad job so you know why everybody one word tips right tips I can pay you but you deliveries if you're a good delivery boy and you know how to schmooze up the people they'll give you tips  well that work not badly because he was pretty good delivery boy so we delivered he made enough money so that he was able to eat that Aventuras able to get his own place in a room or something like that and you know basically start you know what happened once you get a start that's up to you but he got to start now after he got food and I got a place to sleep and maybe he a chance to collect some tips Jews what are they worried about really all people but especially Jews marriage good but Eva for marriage what are they worried about actually Jews we think backwards before marriage what are we worried about death what's the scariest that's crazy what's the scariest thing to go somewhere we can't possibly in the day it in the day say of the internet came in a matching with this means go somewhere with no communication your family is back in the lava Poland takes months for them even to get a letter  what are you afraid of no one know you'll be forgotten nobody wants to be forgotten why we understand that you talk about you know what kind of person you are a people your friend real people come to your Shiva but can you imagine being forgotten meaning you die and you buried your not very but no one will know and your family will come someday to Americano say shraga Fievel minced and nobody will know where Shaka five them it's who he was or where he was and there for what did people if they had something to eat in a place to sleep what did they want to make sure that they had a place to be buried and if they had a place to be buried that they could be identified with you know the people could find them and therefore the lensman shop provided burial plots for people with the lines when shop did was and you know part of this should be to go visit one of the old cemeteries up north see that every group of of a grave plots it's all on chavous and on Shea. And Shea just the Hebrew term for the linesman shaft there was an and Shay malafa they were wealthy enough to have their own area so they Joy give me the few others but my grant my great-grandparents are buried in on Shea malafa and what these and Shay's did is the day served as the early have record dishes in America they are the ones who took care of the Ariel preparations plots and everything for these people now these covers are completely different than the Fed in Prague this wasn't for the upstanding people the people who could afford it  budding citizens it also with social you're buried with your group from Europe you were identified with your group from Europe so it wasn't an economic thing but it's very much a social thing make a break how long to break for 5 minutes used of secured burial plot before they build Cinema clock with much of my point synagogue take A5 minute break and then we'll see how these lines been shocked became the became the funeral for this of today tell you what made what makes American you know heifers and funeral practices different so last night I was coming in from from New York and the flight was delayed we got in only around 1:30 in the morning and some have 1:30 in the morning makes people who have did it with one another friends so we will waiting for our luggage everybody ghetto just like you have to luggage and go home and go to sleep I never some man standing next to me and he ask me who I was and he said what are you here for so I said I'm here to talk to the school today to the students about funeral Jewish funeral practices in America and he made some ghetto funeral kind of got a semi funeral joke that he said something amazing today he said you know about 20 years ago and this was a kind of look like a you know a successful Jewish man who lives here in just a little bit north of Boca he said to me you know about 20 years ago I had a chance to buy a cemetery is it just didn't hit me right I didn't want to buy a cemetery said don't boy did I make him he says good you can really make a lot of money owning cemeteries and I thought to myself that is a great story because you would never have what's durian frogs or in vilalba Poland or it anywhere Jews don't old cemeteries writes the cemetery was a what was a communal place which was purchased by the community or set aside by the community from ground that they owed and everybody was buried in the communal Cemetery the idea of making money owning a cemetery in making money is the furthest thing from a Jewish mind but in America everything changed and really the story of the FED Run America is the story of how Orthodox Jews Beyonce melava figured out how to deal with American cemeteries you see America had things for the Jews the Jews never had before first of all people die in hospitals for the first time in Europe people didn't die in hospitals dyed where hospital because when you were very sick they didn't take you to a hospital you just wanted to die at home so what do you need if you die in the hospital what did you need did you guys talk about this about it just practically how these things were dies in the hospital you get a phone call in the middle of the night someone died in the hospital what are you do  Columbia Zoo lower you do you sit with the family you know that's kind of it the right you don't do the rabbis thing benaldo materials but what about what about what the body what happens to the body put on the cover the cover the body in the open the window you whatever it is but what the body in the hospital room for take me to the funeral home date a birthday date date did a wrap up the body and they carry the body through the hallway of them of the hospital doppels Goldie of the hospital here take it into the car and they take it to the Funeral Chapel you know what would happen if I buy Goldberg did that you know where what my Goldberg would be in jail he wouldn't be in Chakra next morning he'd be in jail you cannot do that in America what does that mean in the old days you're right someone died and how they prepare them him or heard they had a Tyra and they took y'all that was in then they went to the cemetery and I had a few you can't do that anymore so what do you do with the waters are my Goldberg do now when he goes to the cemetery when he goes to the Future to the hospital room what to do clothes that the Jewish piece at some point you have to get the body out of the hospital family Goldberg because because you have to make sure the person is dead you said looks dead the nurse said he's dead deep the monitor says that the person is dead but you know you can't operate that way what happened to you don't need more than one bad experience you cannot bury someone who you don't have to be certified as being dead so you need a doctor that we can get a doctor from at 3 in the morning I Goldberg goes with the doctor so the doctor tell you something that doctors you should know from this the doctors in the middle of in the hospital there aren't many doctors who do the doctors deal with in middle of night in hospitals  they want to deal with people who are alive who don't have emergencies in the right you say you going to sign a death certificate I'm sorry for the family but what are they going to say call me in the morning to be low on my list what you do but if I have an emergency you know upstairs on the 5th floor you know what ends going to take me all night long don't tell me to go to take off for my emergency to go see what's a good man interested in doing that right I mean you don't disagree with that that's that's the right way to go right so who's going to sign the death certificate  you said call me in the morning call me in the morning I'll be a doctor or your doctor will come in in the morning I don't sign a death certificate if she'll sign the death certificate what's the problem I mean it's torture for the family right you to the families there in the hospital room persons passed away you on shmira so even if the family go so that you need someone to sit with the body it's not in the call Chapel and you know and and we want to start preparing the funeral right we want to get to Tower ago you maybe the funeral would be that day so what do we do if you asked her if I go over just let me see her we're gas cap I can promise you what he says is what  is it he has doctors in each of the hospitals here who are more or less on call am I Goldberg so if there's God forbid a death in the middle of the night and there's no doctor in the hospital what would he do he calls you don't call a doctor that you know from the and the doctor would come down and do a tremendous cuss it and they would have to be a specific doctor just me a doctor who you know who signs a death certificate you know so today or like over with a of course that's the way it operates but that would require some organization and not internal or the key is here. In turtle sensation between over here that's organization with government rules with doctors and these kinds of things what else cemeteries so the cemetery is not owned by by this man who I got got luggage with last night but the cemetery Mumbai home somebody right somebody owns the cemetery so you want to be buried in the cemetery let's say that you want to plow them talk about this also most about Sandra someone dies  where they going to be buried Jenny you know this waiting to be buried so somebody dies so how do you know where the first is going to be buried so you probably have no idea have no idea what you do you're probably buy a plot from the from the funeral which we'll talk about the second but many people have an arrangement so somebody in the family knows that they're going to be buried in you know again I'm shame Alaba when she Boca I need Odessa desert disip lot and I'm Shay Boca where the person would be buried so who do you call what do you do if someone dies and you supposed to be burying I'm she broke who do you call who do you call everybody this important stuff will you learn about Cobra who do you call  funeral director director there was a funeral director going to call you say the person can be better in Boca you know Rowell you know plot at 8:12 I don't know what it is right there's all their every action has some representative who is in charge of the plot his area what is he do to you call the guy got to call the guy Brooklyn I guess right then shave a lava guy in Brooklyn and he would call the put sorry and he would say you don't please open up this grave you know the person has bought a plot in this but this grave I'm going to tell you that that's not so simple right you have to organize this and it's a very hard why everybody the rabbi can do that and then what else happens you have to arrange a Terra you have to arrange a funeral and then you have to arrange asportation from the Funeral Chapel to where  to the cemetery 9 Elite transportation for the coffin but also transportation worthy family right  does the ever do all that stuff I mean maybe they can be a community where unbelievable camera that does that but that this we're talking a full-time job you what I just described to you from the mini rubber I Goldberg gets the call at 3 o'clock in the morning too what's a 10 day and a half later when you have the set when you have the funeral that's a big job to make sure all those things are done you did you think the family wants to do that what's the purpose what's one of the major purposes of ephedra psycho logically what's one of the major purposes of course the family let the family deal with it prepare the eulogies call their relatives whatever it is I don't have to deal with this know what this gave right to gave your gave rise to can you neural Europe because again it was a little shtetl the lava was a little shtetl in the burial plot was right outside and didn't need to do any of these things a person died they took the person out they gave me eulogy and they bury him like I said he was complicated someone's got to be in charge all of a sudden there were Funeral Directors there were funeral parlors becomes a profession we would say today it becomes a business and knows Funeral Chapels those Funeral Directors what they do is they really create their own Cypress you see I said you call Rabbi Goldberg right I'm probably within the shoe most people would call right back over but actually you don't have to call Rabbi Goldberg anymore cuz what is that my Goldberg provide for you think about it from anyone I Goldberg provides only halakos guidance right still tell you about do you want to prepare the funeral to know how to give eulogies and those kinds of things right my Goldberg knows the family but actually let's say you're not you're not interested in that you don't will I go over someone dies in the hospital in the middle of the night what were you do  you call the funeral director I think the funeral director doesn't have his doctors on all you think about it over it has his doctors and field director oh so here you go so yet right so you know so the funeral director he can do exactly the same thing he calls the the doctor maybe it's easier for this is what he does full time right so he has a doctor on call and he picks up the body and he said he could arrange for shmira he could arrange for Tyra he does arrange for schmear up M4 Tyra he's the one who's going to be in charge of deciding where the you know what time the funeral is going to be and he is the one you tell him that you know I'm shame 11 glitter whatever it is don't worry about it I'll take care of on Shea malapa and I'll set up your house and I'll give you a candle and I'll give you so what what happens why is that why is that interesting was important cuz all of a sudden the febra correct now all the sudden what's the role of the favor this is the favor that you guys know basically the February goes into the tire when does that screw goes into the tire off maybe members of the Cobra do shmira I know how it works down here in New York. isn't even true anymore in New York January there a group of people every Funeral Chapel has show ribwich think we have they paid for they pay both to come into shmira I'll tell you the truth if someone were to call me and say to someone passed away they need shmira you know what I would do what would I do everybody add call the funeral director I don't know who does she asked me to do to prepare a tire tractor parathyroid sidesteps the rabbi range the spear or whatever the case would be right if someone's being buried in Israel right this is happens all the time so they want to arrange for their burial plot Israel in the tree rotation and all that stuff they come to me what I said call the funeral directive so all of a sudden what happened in what happened in America was that the whole sets of the Cobra thing you know the control of the San Fran dasit of the Cobra is limited only to religious that we're all Americans so is that good or is that bad for the funeral director runs everything yeah that's what I was hoping you were going to say it sounds good it's run efficiently it's all right in America is all about what I wanted to wanted to run efficiently so you go to the right the rabbi's good but he's not going to do it as well as a funeral director funeral director has a full-time job to make sure these were things work out properly right to it runs efficiently but what what do you lose Christmas social aspect of the social aspect right of course you have to catch all going to ask oh because they can arrange all those things right I mean first of all minute that someone wants me buried as well they die in vote they want to be buried in Israel that's a huge undertaking most people were many many people who want to be there in neutral don't have a plot in Israel the family that buried is real they just want to be buried in Israel so they go to the rabbi they go to Goldberg right so who you going to call in Israel to buy a plot how when you range and what a hardest things when you have a burial in Israel is figure out when the burial is going to be the fly from Miami to Israel right when's the plane going to land how high you get from the plane to the cemetery it happens one person Carol director here has done this before and knows her to call and a good funeral director will basically say to the family what don't worry about it the best cuz I want to tell you this is my business right the best funeral director is the funeral director who says to the family you don't have to worry about it I will take care of everything cuz that's what the family wants to he questions you being very last thing the family wants to do is argue with you know I send a Terry going to rain is real bad exactly what the plots going to be in having to get there what the transportation is that people don't want to do that when someone got four Vedas passed away in their family so what you have in a what is the Americanization of the chevra is really the transferring of the head of the FED raise responsibility to a funeral director now what happens is that the funeral directors are not necessarily religious people who are sensitive to a lot of these considerations that I don't know how Works down here in Florida but in New York this is a huge issue that you have Funeral Directors who basically want to do it going to wait it's going to create that you know that the best feeling you know whenever the best funeral thing you know the most efficient feet what what the efficient funeral and then want to raise money in this is what I want to talk about in a second and they want to make some money so the family comes in to the Funeral Chapel a family is not really and they meet the funeral director and they're all upset right obviously you know they look at so first all they look at two rooms for the funeral lights one room sits 500 people amazing Majestic right built in 1910 the you know the other room is 200 people some simple room and a field director says you know you are at your your your grandfather was such an amazing person and so important for the community and this and that you know I think this room would be right is very very old I'm not going to very many people know this room would be the best for you practice like that what's the difference between the rooms difference between the room but you know the funeral director made direct you in One Direction and then he says your grandfather was unbelievable he deserves a casket like nobody else when people come into His into his funeral they are going to look at that casket in front of the room and they going to say wow this person was important right as well we talked about a minute ago which is how do you make an important funeral home to come back to that in a second for one of the things that a great casket do I get out I don't remember but I kind of remember what I went through with the last funeral I went to remember the coffin was very simple yeah you know that person must have just been an average person or grandfather he deserves better and you don't know what to do so what do you think if your grandfather deserves better who are you to say what no he doesn't deserve deserve 2 Chainz that's a lot of money expensive $10,000 $20,000 boxes you can imagine how expensive these so what's actually happened is we we've come around in a lot of these funeral chaps like only tell you New York and I'm sure it's here to where the funeral directors actually work with the rabbis that's an understanding means we send people to certain funeral homes because the funeral directors are more willing to work with the rabbis therefore if there's my funeral means from my shoe when they go into the chapel the funeral director knows automatic Wendell B A tahara shmira and there is no discussion about what the coffin is going to look like means they're not take into the room to look at all the carpets because everybody is very vulnerable at that time you take him to a room like that and you know when the funeral grab those things it should be simple peace a simple look at these coffins they are unbelievable how can I not get my grandpa they're not taking into that room it's not presented as a choice I'm not a very I'm thinking that's about the Americanization of the you know of the favor the Americanization of the funeral parlors and how the you know the rabbis and the tradition I've kind of gotten back into this you know gotten back into the process I want to talk for a minute about fancy funerals it was a description in the newspaper in 1912 about the funeral of Jack zelek Jack zelig was a famous or inFAMOUS Jewish gang leader who was murdered in 19 the newspaper said only the funeral of Rabbi Jacob Joseph the chief Rabbi of New York surpassed do a 36 carriages and 25 cars that took families and friends to Washington Cemetery in Brooklyn cancer Goldberg Chinese choir recited the kill Mullen and Rabbi Adolf Spiegel Sheaf Rabbi Lord Rabbi Jonathan sacks the equivalent in those days delivered the eulogy he was buried between Jacob Gordon the famous Yiddish playwright and an eminent rabbit the four votes the forward newspaper in New York that in 1912 wrote that in Europe he would have received a Duncan's funeral Spiro means at the same any Woodberry a donkey that's where they would have buried him he wouldn't have even made it into the cemetery this gang leader they would have put him outside the senator what's that about you see this guy was famous right this guy was famous he was well known he was a gang leader everybody wanted to know to Cozy up to his family into his friends and he had a remarkable funeral how do they decide a remarkable funeral can you imagine a cemetery where there's a hasson and a choir singing The Kill melira he's important because he's very next to important people I want to read your shell him I like him too famous shell emulation he came here and he talks about different kinds of funerals  he says a first-class funeral is Jenny generally arranged for the very wealthy what a funeral outside the sun shines in the weather is Magnificent the coffin is placed on a black beard trim with silver the horses wear pom poms with white feathers and the clergy rabbis cancers Reverend's are all dressed in black with white buttons carriages go follow the coffin and children from the town Matera walk ahead singing out loud the singing is heard throughout the city second-class funeral cost only $500 the day is not as bright the coffin is also placed on a black platform but without the silver trimming the horses and member of the clergy wear black but without feathers and without white buttons third ass is a poor man's funeral and cost only $100 the weather is cool and over There Is No Beer only two horses and only two members of the clergy he captures it right neuter rules became a wolf  a social status now that's not all that much different right we kind of come around to where we started that's how much different than what it's not institutionalize it's really they make this point it's really back to your question that's why I liked requested the beginning it's not fair that's what sholem aleichem is saying it's not fair got more to say but we're not going to say it now this is a fantastic you know Siri some classes and I'm really young I'm jealous of you guys that I can't sit into the rest of them put on eye it's really been a treat and good luck and it was really fun thanks a lot

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