Re: wake for Jerry Williams

[Donna Halper <dlh@donnahalper.com>]

At 10:51 AM 4/30/2003 +0000, you wrote:
>Shiva is the appropriate term but my understanding is that Shiva doesn't 
>start
>until after the burial. It's a very humane custom. Friends visit the bereaved
>and try to cheer them up. It is customary to bring some sweets as a gift--the
>idea is to make sure that those in mourning don't forget to eat.

Actually Dan did a good job of explaining it.  Usually, when a Jewish 
person dies, the funeral is the next day, since they are supposed to be 
buried as soon as possible, and there is always a closed casket, since you 
are supposed to remember the person as they were and not decorate a dead 
body.  If Jerry were from an observant family, there would indeed then be a 
week of visiting, since it is a mitzvah (a divinely given commandment) to 
comfort the mourner.  I believe Jerry has at least one daughter, but I 
don't know if he has other relatives or even if the relatives are Jewish.