A Time for Weeping: The Politics of Grief and Mourning in Jewish Sources

We know that Judaism honors the necessity of grief and mourning, but in what contexts? With what resources? And, crucially, for whom? This class will be a deep dive into Jewish textual resources around grief and mourning. It will focus on political and collective grief in addition to death and bereavement. We will read widely, from the deaths of Sarah and Aaron in the Torah, to Maimonides’ guide for mourners; from rabbinical commentaries on Tisha B’Av and the fall of the temple, to perspectives on Jewish grief in contemporary tragedies and political crises. Ultimately, we will try to discern what ethical obligations and opportunities Judaism offers in grief and mourning. . . . Rachel Florman (she/her) is a chaplain, writer, and community organizer. She recently graduated with her MDiv from Harvard Divinity School. When she's not working as a class host here at Lehrhaus, you can find Rachel hunting down Camberville’s best gluten free desserts and volunteering with her local abortion fund.