By the Grace of G-d 27th of Av, 5742 Brooklyn, N.Y.

Blessing and Greeting:

Your letter with enclosure reached me with considerable delay. May G-d grant the fulfillment of your heart’s desires for good in the matters about which you write.

To begin with the first item of your letter, may G-d grant that your moving to Florida should be a move for good and blessing in every respect, both materially and spiritually.

With reference to your loss of a brother in the War in Lebanon, may G-d grant that henceforth you and your family should not know of any sorrow, but only goodness and benevolence be with you all.

As for the reaction of your parents - though in general it is understandable, nevertheless I trust you will find the proper words to explain to them the Torah view, the view of Torat Chayim and Torat Emet - the Jew’s true guide in life: true in actual reality and not merely for the sake of offering a palliative, however important it may be in itself.

It is that the Torah prescribes a definite period for mourning in terms of time and conduct, and since this is what Torat Emet prescribes, it is quite adequate. This is why the Torah is opposed to any self-imposed extension of the period of mourning, in any form, including the dwelling on the matter, being preoccupied with it mentally and emotionally, etc.

Because the soul of the dear departed, which is in the World of Truth, sees and knows what is doing here on earth; and seeing that the near and dear ones are taking it too badly, causes the soul pain. Moreover, this is compounded by the fact that a Jew is obligated to serve G-d with joy in every aspect of the daily life, in accordance with the principle that “All your actions should be for the sake of Heaven.” Hence, extending the period of mourning obviously interferes with the observance of the mitzvos with joy; and this observance of the mitzvos is the channel for G-d’s blessings not only for the person observing the mitzvos, but also for the soul of the departed who can no longer observe the mitzvos in Heaven, but benefits from the observance of the relatives here on earth. And being in the World of Truth and the world of the spirit, the soul can truly appreciate the importance of the mitzvos, especially those that are performed especially for the benefit of the departed soul.

I trust there is no need to elaborate on this any further and that you will convey the above to your parents.

Receipt is enclosed for your tzedakah and may it additionally stand you and all yours in good stead.

With blessing,