Bereavement Resources Provided by Mishkan Miami of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation
Dear Friend,
The journey of grief is unique to each person, yet it is also universal. Please know that you are not alone at this difficult time. Below is a variety of resources to help you. For further assistance, please contact Rabbi Frederick Klein, Director of Mishkan Miami, at rabbiklein@gmjf.org or 786.866.8620.
Support Groups, Pastoral Care and Grief Counseling
For a list of Miami-area resources where you can receive support in individual and group settings, click here.
To read the latest Tikvateinu newsletter, with additional support groups, click here.
Reflections on the Journey of Grief
We hope this collection of reflections will be of comfort and assistance as you move through the healing process. These short guides are sequential, each reflecting a different “season” of grieving: winter, spring, summer and fall. Please share these materials with family members and friends if you believe they will be of help.
Jewish tradition has divided the mourning period into four parts in the first year:
- SHIVA/WINTER: We sit through seven days of Shiva and refrain from our daily routine, which allows us to feel the loss and to recognize that our lives have been irrevocably changed. We begin to say Kaddish (Mourner’s Prayer) daily.
Winter Guide - SHLOSHIM/SPRING: We enter into a period of bereavement called Shloshim (The Thirty Days), a month of mourning where we are still consumed by loss and readjustments. We continue to say Kaddish and begin to plant seeds of healing.
Spring Guide - UNVEILING/SUMMER: After the formal mourning period of 11 months, we are invited to reenter the world and to reestablish our routines. Recognizing that our grief may still come to the surface in waves of emotion that can upset our equilibrium, we end our recitation of Kaddish.
Summer Guide
- INTEGRATION/FALL: We enter into the fourth stage of mourning, an integration of our loss into our lives through Yahrzeits (mourning commemorative mourning) and Yizkor (memorial prayer).
Autumn Guide
A Reflection for Brokenness
To read a powerful poem about grief composed by Rabbi Frederick Klein, click here.
Spiritual Support
To search an online directory of local synagogues to support you at this time – and always – click here.
To connect with a rabbi who is affiliated with a synagogue in Miami-Dade County, click here.
To participate in daily online services where you can say Kaddish, click here.
