This week on A Good Goodbye Radio, I’m honored to have Dr. Ahmad-Rufai Abdullah on to discuss Islamic funeral and burial traditions. Dr. Abdullah is a leader of the Islamic Burial Society of North America, formed in 2006, and has trained hundreds of volunteers to conduct the Islamic Janazah ritual to prepare the deceased for burial.
The funeral traditions of Muslims and Jews are remarkably similar. Dr. Abdullah encourages cooperation and collaboration between Muslims and Jews, as the Jewish Tahara ritual shares much in common with the Islamic Janazah ritual.
Click here for more information about this Wednesday’s show.
Top Tip from Last Week’s A Good Goodbye Show
Peggy Post, a director of The Emily Post Institute
On last week’s A Good Goodbye Radio interview with Peggy Post, great-granddaughter-in-law of etiquette expert Emily Post and a director of the Emily Post Institute, we discussed some of the finer points of funeral etiquette.
Did you know that the term “etiquette” comes from the French for “little sign posts”? When King Louis the 14th opened the gardens at Versailles for the public to visit, the common folk trampled the flowers and splashed in the fountains. The gardeners set up “keep off the grass” and “stay out of the fountain” signs to encourage good behavior.
She recommends when you hear about a death, to reach out to the grieving family in some way, either by calling on the phone, visiting in person if appropriate, or sending a card or flowers, if no memorial donations in lieu of flowers was indicated.
In person, give them a hug, if they are the hugging kind. Just let the person know you care for them. DO NOT say “He/she is in a better place” or “I know how you feel.” Everyone grieves differently, so just let a bereaved person know you are holding them in your thoughts.