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<DIV><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>From: Zev Sero <zev@sero.name><BR>On 20/12/2010, Moshe Y. Gluck
wrote:<BR><BR>> Isn't it considered Bizayon HaMeis for a [nachri] to be
involved in any<BR>> aspect of the Kevurah?<BR><BR>Lechatchila, yes.
But is it me'akev? Isn't it far better to be buried<BR>by such a chevra,
in which such a person may well be a member, than to<BR>just be buried by a
random funeral home doing who-knows-what?<BR><BR><BR>-- <BR>Zev
Sero
<BR>zev@sero.name <BR> </FONT></FONT></DIV>
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<DIV>>>>></DIV>
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<DIV>Practically speaking, something like 90% of the taharos we do in our chevra
kadisha (I live in Miami) are for non-O Jews. If their families had a C or
R chevra kadisha to turn to, they might opt for that instead of an Orthodox
tahara. It would be a yerida, not an aliyah, for Miami to have a
non-Orthodox CK. </DIV>
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<DIV>In a town so small that it doesn't have a chevra kadisha, perhaps a non-O
CK which includes people who are not halachically Jews might be preferable to
nothing at all -- certainly preferable to embalming or
cremation. </DIV>
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<DIV>But let us not kid ourselves that a C or R tahara is a
tahara, esp when the members are not Jewish, any more than you could
be yotzei kiddush by hearing it from a C-R convert or fulfill the mitzva of
bris by having it done by a C-R convert mohel (you would need hatafas dam and
new brachos), or drink arba kosos using wine made by C-R converts.
Is a tahara that is not a tahara any better than no tahara? Marginally
better at best. If you argue that a tahara doesn't halachically
have to be done at all but is just a minhag and shows kovod hameis, then I guess
it doesn't matter as much who does it. I'm not sure that would
be a mainstream O argument.</DIV>
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<DIV><FONT lang=0 color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="10"><BR><B>--Toby Katz<BR>==========<BR><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0 color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="10"></B>--------------------</FONT></DIV></DIV>
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