The body does not just die and get lost to the elements forever; the body will be resurrected in the future and return to life. Not only is our spiritual life everlasting; our physical life has eternity as well. Every iota of work you do with your body — the refinement of the body, the cultivation of the body, the respect for the holiness of the body — has an eternal impact and endures forever.
Preparing a Jew for burial is not the end; it is the beginning. When you plant a seed, you do not destroy it. To the contrary, it is the genesis of a new birth. When we bury a body after physical death, we are planting it in the earth so that one day it will sprout up, its elements reuniting to once again walk this earth. The Chevra Kadisha — a "holy society" — is so named because its members ensure dignified treatment of the deceased according to Jewish law, thus performing the ultimate act of kindness for the deceased.
Preparing a Jew for burial is not the end; it is the beginning. When you plant a seed, you do not destroy it. To the contrary, it is the genesis of a new birth. When we bury a body after physical death, we are planting it in the earth so that one day it will sprout up, its elements reuniting to once again walk this earth. The Chevra Kadisha — a "holy society" — is so named because its members ensure dignified treatment of the deceased according to Jewish law, thus performing the ultimate act of kindness for the deceased.