“Lord, let me know my end, and what is the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am!” (Psalms 39:5)
Over recent decades, many young Jews have chosen to emigrate from the countries of the formerSoviet Union, leaving behind older relatives who have decided to remain in the lands of their birth. The result is a disproportionate number of elderly Jews with no one to organize their burial when they die.
The Federation helps these communities to buy land from municipalities in order to create new Jewish cemeteries. We also sponsor and restore many existing cemeteries that were heavily damaged by seven decades of neglect and recent acts of anti-semitic vandalism. In cases of need, we also cover burial expenses and funerals.
But most important – both those who leave and those who remain may rest assured that the FJC will care for the upkeep of cemeteries, and that the process of burial and Tehara (purification of the body) will be done by qualified community rabbis.