Chevra Kadisha

Mortuaries we work with

All of these know what a Jewish burial is and will work with the Chevra Kadisha. They differ enormously in price for what is, in a traditional burial, very nearly the same service — because most of what a funeral home sells is not part of a Jewish funeral.

What you are actually paying for

A funeral home’s bill is mostly its own services: collection and care of the body, the facilities, the paperwork, the hearse, the staff on the day. In a traditional Jewish burial you are not buying embalming, a viewing, cosmetic preparation, an expensive casket, or a memorial product. A funeral home that keeps offering those has not understood what you asked for, and it is entirely reasonable to say so.

You are entitled by federal law — the FTC’s Funeral Rule — to an itemised price list before you agree to anything, and to buy only the items you want. Ask for it. If the conversation gets difficult, hand them the phone.