B'nai Jeshurun – "Celebrate Community" Auction 2016
Auction Ends: May 18, 2016 09:30 PM EDT

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HOW TO WRITE YOUR 'ETHICAL WILL'

Item Number
181
Estimated Value
Priceless
Sold
300 USD to dna60d3f6
Number of Bids
1  -  Bid History

Item Description

2-hour Coaching Session with Storyteller Peninnah Schram

In our Jewish tradition, we have the practice of writing an Ethical Will, often in the form of a letter, that transmits to our family our spiritual legacy. In this case, our treasure would not be the material objects you are leaving but rather the wisdom and lessons we have learned in life and hope to bequeath to the next generation. These values and beliefs are sometimes embedded in family stories and folk sayings repeated from generation to generation.

This tradition began with the biblical Jacob orally giving his children his wisdom about how they should live after his death and blessing them. An Ethical Will is filled with personal reflections and experiences of the parent. It's a spiritual portrait of who you are and that you lived with honor, respect, joyously, as a Jew.

An Ethical Will would continue to help guide our children how to be a mensch (a resourceful compassionate empathic reaching-out to others human being) from your perspective of your life's wisdom! We have many literary Ethical Wills written throughout the centuries that are very personal and moving experiences to read.

Two examples are The Diary of Gluckel of Hameln (from the late 16th to early 17th century) and the Ethical Will of Yiddish writer Sholom Aleichem (in early 20th century).

Peninnah will explore with you the background and reasons for such Ethical Wills and prompt you with questions about what your personal Ethical Will might include. This would become a treasured document from generation to generation to remember who you are (with or without photos) and the kind of person you were. This "letter"; would serve as a role model for your children and your children's children.

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Donated By:

Peninnah Schram