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8 | MAY 14 • 2020
1942 - 2020
Covering and Connecting
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Views
opinion
Chasidic Jews Need an Outlet
for Their Mourning
After Chasidic funerals caused an uproar in New York, we need to pause and
look at the importance of mourning in observant communities.
O
n Thursday, April 30,
two days after New
York City Mayor Bill de
Blasio tweeted words that many
denounced as anti-Semitic,
the NYPD gave tickets out to
men attending another funeral
processional, and one Chasidic
citizen was arrest-
ed for disorderly
conduct.
De Blasio’
s
threatening
tweets came after
a large funeral
for a Chasidic
rabbi occurred
in Williamsburg, Brooklyn on
Tuesday, April 28. The commu-
nity had obtained permission
and support from the local
police precinct to host the funer-
al. It was a warning and an optic
nightmare – no wonder commu-
nity members were upset at De
Blasio’
s tweet.
It would be easy and intellec-
tually lazy to write off the more
insular Chasidic community
as anti-science, honing in on a
minority of anti-vaxxers or see-
ing images of the congregants
standing less than 6 feet apart in
Brooklyn streets. They are treat-
ed like outsiders and primitive
people. One needs to watch only
One of Us and Unorthodox to see
the popular opinion of “those
people.
” I have been sent pic-
tures of the funeral via Facebook
message asking me to explain
the behavior of attendees. The
implicit phrase was about “you
people.
” But it’
s not the truth.
Not far from Thursday’
s
funeral in Borough Park,
Brooklyn, sits my old pediatri-
cian’
s office. My parents have lost
more than two dozen friends
and relatives to the novel corona-
virus in the last month. Because
of travel restrictions and social
distancing, community members
can’
t partake in ritual. The loss of
each individual compounds, and
there is a communal mourning.
The largest Jewish community
outside Israel is in New York,
one of the epicenters of the epi-
demic. How does one find com-
fort in these times of mass loss?
Everyday rituals provide
comfort and solace. For some,
it’
s their morning coffee routine
with precise grinds to water
ration. For others, it’
s the art of
rolling a cigarette. Important
ritualized aspects of traditional
observant Jewish life provide
guidance and comfort in
so-called life cycle events – birth,
marriage and eventually the end.
For Chasidim, as well as many
Orthodox Jews, a focus on rit-
ual is a focus on breath. It’
s an
embodied practice. The most
embodied practice is using one’
s
body for something holy. Levaya,
the Hebrew word for funeral,
comes from the word for escort-
ing or accompanying. The most
cathartic experience is physically
following the departed. After the
funeral service, before heading
to the cemetery, people pass the
dead and ask for forgiveness.
Then the mourning pass the
visitors and hear words of con-
solation.
It is commonplace to attend
a funeral that is not one’
s own
loved one, to honor the dead.
This act of charity comes out
of an obligation and a sense of
community. The departed merit
a respectful sendoff. It’
s often
an act of kindness to a stranger,
chesed shel emes, a good deed that
will not be repaid. Other times,
it’
s an act of communal support,
as someone might attend the
gravesite service of a member of
their synagogue that they have
never interacted with before.
There is a communal sad-
ness associated with death, and
ritual provides comfort for the
community. Funerals are heav-
Eli Reiter
continued on page 12