Musing – A refreshing way to look at the Gift of Life!

Hebraic Musing – A refreshing way to look at the Gift of Life!

Why is it that when a new soul comes into the world, the new baby cries and we rejoice; but when a soul leaves the world, we cry while the newly departed soul is rejoicing in heaven? 

Losing a loved one is one of the most difficult things in the world; and yet, death is an inevitable part of life. If we are granted a good and long life, inevitably we will experience the loss of loved ones along the way.  How to deal with this?  God gave us a hint in Deut. 14:1-2 when He spoke this admonition to us – “You are the people of Adonai your God. You are not to gash yourselves or shave the hair above your foreheads in mourning for the dead,  because you are a people set apart as holy for Adonai your God….”  CJB

The mention of mutilation may sound strange to us now, but in ancient times, mutilation of the body was a way of mourning which God did not approve of.  Why?  The second part of the verse emphasizes that we are children of the Lord your God and therefore God is in effect saying “Don’t mourn; the deceased person is rejoining Me in heaven. So, take heart and know that your loved one is in a good place. When the time is right all My children will all be together again.”

I am reminded of a famous story in the Talmud which recounts how a great rabbi endured the loss of his two sons. The story goes that the two boys passed away from an illness on the Sabbath. Rabbi Meir’s wife, Beruriah, wanted to break the news to him gently. She asked her husband a question, “Someone gave me a treasure to guard for them, but now he has asked for that treasure back. Must I give it to him?” Rabbi Meir answered, “Of course you must return the treasure to its owner.” With that, Beruriah led her husband to their deceased children and explained that their true owner had come for them.  Rabbi Eckstein

The funeral program for the recent service of a dear friend of ours said this under his picture –

“Borrowed from God February 3, 1927  –   Returned to God  March 11, 2015.”

Point to ponder

Do we cherish every moment we have with our loved ones
knowing we have to return them to God at some point?

Shalom y’all                                                                                            March 24, 2015

Yosef   a.k.a.  Joe Brusherd