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I found a picture of my grandfather online. It's about 60 years old, but it's actually remarkable how much like that he looked until a very few years ago (well, except I don't remember when his hair was black). He's the first guy on the left.

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Posts: 3771 | Registered: Sep 2002  |  IP: Logged | 

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Originally posted by The Rabbit:
I'm sorry for your loss Rivka.

I hope it is not insensitive to ask this, but I have heard that Jewish law requires that the body be buried within 24 hours of death. Clearly, this is not possible if your grandfather died in Israel and is to be buried in LA. What accommodations does the law make in these circumstances?

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It's fine, Rabbit. Jewish law does not require the body to be buried within a certain number of hours. What it requires is for the body to be buried as soon as possible, preferably before nightfall of that day. This is because of kavod hameis (the honor of the deceased) and also because we believe that it frees the soul of the departed to ascend to the World to Come. (In Israel, there is an additional concern about kavod ha'aretz, the honor of the land. Therefore funerals are almost never delayed among Orthodox Jews in Israel.)

However, sometimes there are other concerns that also hinge upon kavod hameis -- such as honoring the wishes of the deceased, or waiting until relatives are able to arrive. There was actually some (slight) debate among family members, but in the end it was decided that his wish to be buried next to his wife and the fact that my mother would not be able to get here before Tuesday night superseded other concerns.

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So from the picture, I gather that your Grandfather worked with Seaborg and Thompson. Cool. What a wonderful legacy.

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