V'Zot HaBrachah

This parasha, as you no doubt know, is the last segment of the 5 Books of Moses. We have read the entire Torah at this point, and it is really interesting to see how it all ends. Personally this parasha was a welcome relief to me, and not because it's finally over! Let's examine why:

Big Ideas:

• People remember beginnings and endings, often better than what is in the middle
• An author often uses an ending to express a summary of ideas contained within the entire body of writing
• Some people choose to write a document called an "ethical will" for those who survive them
• Endings are often beginnings of something entirely new.

Essential Questions:

1. What appears to be the emotional setting for this parasha?
2. How do the emotions expressed in this parasha compare to those in the rest of D'varim? in the other books of the Torah?
3. Whose voice(s) do you hear in this parasha?
4. This parasha is never read at a regular Shabbat morning service. What is the context for reading this parasha?

Learning Activities: Choose

• Compare and contrast Moshe's blessing with that of Yaacov at the end of B'Reisheet
• Compare and contrast this parasha with the rest of D'Varim.
• Read about Jewish ethical wills here and/or here.
• Read an example of a Jewish ethical will written by a not-yet-mother here
• Read Rabbi Oren Hayon's commentary on this parasha . Explain how you understand this passage in his essay:

"When, at last, Moses dies, his soul departs al pi Adonai, literally, “by God’s mouth” (34:5). Mouth to mouth, the breath of Moses is drawn in and subsumed into the breath of God. God tenderly inhales Moses’s final breath and then pauses. As we begin our cyclical reading of Torah once more, God exhales, filling Adam’s nostrils and giving life to all creation."

from Moses's Death,God's Breath, Oren J. Hayon.

Assessment Activities: Choose

• How did this parasha affect your understanding of Moshe? of B'nai Yisrael? of the Torah?
• Illustrate your understanding of this parasha, either in words or pictures.
• Explain what it means to you to begin immediately re-reading the Torah after you have just finished it.
• You read an ethical will written by a women whose child was not yet born. She explains that she will update it as time goes on. Even though you will probably live a very long time, try to write a first draft of your own ethical will. Who are you writing it to? What will you say? Explain when you think you will want to update it and why.

Jewish Values at the End of Life

Paul Root Wolpe is the first chief bioethicist for NASA. It is his job to think through some of the the ethical challenges that occur in space. He was interviewed about his role and offered some interesting examples of the kinds of issues he faces in this article that appeared in the NY Times on August 11.

Interestingly, he is also quite knowledgeable about Jewish ethics. He explains in the article how he was able to offer advice after the tragic crash of the Columbia space shuttle, and how the Jewish laws encouraging speedy burial had to be balanced by the impossibility of identifying all the remains of the astronauts (who included Ilan Ramon, the first Jewish Israeli person to fly in the space program)

If you are teaching a course about the Jewish Life Cycle

• Behrman House offers the following textbooks Life Cycle
• Torah Aura Publications includes these
• Ktav has a selection as well that you can see at this link
• There are many on-line resources about Jewish life cycle

No matter which textbooks you use, you may want to supplement your classroom learning with current news articles and on-line material which can engage your students in thinking about how what they learn in your classroom is reflected in the world around them.

Big Idea: What do you want your students to remember after they have forgotten everything else?

• There is Jewish wisdom that can guide our behavior in making decisions in our lives.
• We should consider Jewish wisdom relevant in our everyday lives.

Essential Questions: What will your students have to be able to answer in order to show understanding of the big idea?

1. What does Judaism teach about death and dying?
2. Why is it important to know what Judaism teaches about life cycle?
3. How can you find out what the Jewish perspective is in addressing the challenges inherent in living life?

Learning Activities: What can enable students to learn the information that can help them answer the essential questions

These activities are suggestions, not detailed lesson plans. Please use them as a guide for making your plans for your class. Keep in mind students' age, level of maturity, and the context in which you teach.

1. Read the section of the interview with Paul Wolpe about the situation after the Columbia crash. What questions do you have? How can you find the answers?
2. Read the chapter(s) in your life cycle text about death and dying. What appear to be the big ideas?
3. Invite the Rabbi of your congregation to talk to your students about Jewish values expressed in the customs and laws concerning death and dying. What did you learn that you didn't know before?
4. Most synagogues have memorials for members and relatives of members who have died. Go to visit these memorials as a class and examine them. Who is memorialized? How are they remembered? How does having a memorial fulfill Jewish values?
5. If there is a chevre kadisha (Jewish burial society) in your area invite a representative to come and explain the rituals involved in preparing a body for burial. What did you learn?
6. There are a number of videos available that explain the Jewish rituals associated with death and dying. They are available for rental or purchase at Alden Films www.aldenfilms.com/
7. Read the Mourner's Kaddish with your students. What does it say? What does it not say? What conclusion can you draw?
8. Listen to the memorial prayer, El Mole Rachamim on YouTube. (there are several different versions). How does it make you feel? Find a translation of the prayer in a siddur and read it. How does the music enhance the meaning of the words?