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URJ PRESS Publishes That You May Live Long;
Baby boomers facing the responsibility for caring for an ailing parent will especially appreciate That You May Live Long, a new book from the URJ PRESS that is filled with both practical advice and spiritual essays. This anthology provides answers and comfort from a Jewish perspective for those who struggle with what it means to "honor your father and your mother." "The need for a book like this became clear to me as I helped my mother care for my grandmother in the three years leading up to her death," Person said. "It was an incredibly painful experience, and there were endless difficult choices we had to made along the way. One of the things that was helpful to me in that process was to reach into Jewish sources and find out what our tradition could teach me about the subject. This is the book I wish I could have given my mother then. My hope is that it will help other people now." The number of Jews now coping with the problems associated with caring for their aging parents is rapidly increasing, said Rabbi Address, director of the Union's Department of Jewish Family Concerns, who speaks and writes frequently on the topic of aging, and is the editor of the newly revised A Time to Prepare. As the 2001 National Jewish Population Survey found, the Jewish population in the US is substantially older than that of the total population, with 19 percent over the age of 65. In the Reform community, the median age has risen to 48, due in part to the trend for women to have their children at a later age, Rabbi Address said. As Address says in the introduction to the book, "The challenges presented to so many of us in caring for our aging parents test the basic relationships of parent and child and, if we allow it, can open up new pathways to meaning and understanding. These are often moments that test us. These are also moments in which the mystery of God's presence can be present to provide a reservoir of strength, faith, and spiritual growth." Helping those who are now caring for their aging parents find that strength, faith, and spiritual growth is a primary aim of the book. The essays cover a wide range of topics. Dr. Adina Kalet and Kathryn Kahn write about the myriad of emotions that confront caregivers as they try to make sense of their situation. Rabbis Ruth Langer and Michael Chernick give interpretations of Biblical and Talmudic texts to show their relevance in today's world. Rabbi Sheldon Marder offers a Jewish perspective on nursing homes; Rabbi W. Gunther Plaut writes about the difficulties in accepting death as a natural end; and Rabbi Jack Stern ruminates on the spiritual aspects of aging. That You May Live Long is available in a trade paperback edition that retails for $12.95. It can be ordered by contacting the URJ PRESS toll-free at (888) 489-UAHC (8242), or through the Press Web site at www.URJPress.com. A Time to Prepare, a workbook to help prepare for critical illness or death, covering topics such as power of attorney, ethical wills, and how to consolidate the information that will be needed, is also available from the URJ PRESS. The URJ PRESS is the publishing arm of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, the central body of Reform Judaism in North America. which represents1.5 million Reform Jews in 906 congregations in the United States and Canada. Other UAHC services include camps, outreach to unaffiliated and intermarried Jews, adult education programs, and the Religious Action Center in Washington, DC. ### 2/03
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