R. Simlai expounded: Torah—there is a deed of loving-kindness at its beginning and a deed of loving-kindness at its end. Loving-kindness at its beginning: "the Lord God made for Adam and his wife garments of skins and clothed them" (Gen. 3:21). Loving-kindness at its end: "and He buried [Moses] in the valley" (Deut. 34:6).

From this midrashic passage, we learn that caring for the dead is not just a good thing...it's a Godly thing, an expression of imitatio dei. In Rabbi Simlai's imaginative lesson, God's love is expressed through concrete acts of caring, which we call g'milut chasadim. And high on the list of these acts is the one called the chesed shel emet, the truest expression of kindness: tending to the burial of one's fellow.

A "Jewish" burial includes many elements, but one stands out in the minds of many Jews: Chevrah Kadishah. The "sacred society" which washes the body and then lovingly pours water from head to toe before dressing in shrouds has been a mainstay of Jewish life for hundreds of years. The Chevrah also performs sh'mirah ("guarding"), sitting vigil with the body until the funeral.

Temple's Chevrah Kadishah blends a deep respect for tradition with an understanding that each person, each family, is unique. We never, ever, compromise when it comes to the essential, namely k'vod hamet, the honor due the bodily vessel which just hours earlier held a loved one.