Latest news with #Ephraim
The Guardian
05-07-2025
- General
- The Guardian
‘Ephraim will know': the man who buried 10,000 people has lessons on empathy, loss and the majesty of memory
It's a cool summer morning in the last days of 1959 and a teenager is riding his bike through Sydney's Rookwood cemetery. As he glides across the grounds, he notices the signs of dawn. The dew is melting off the grass. A fox leaps behind a bunya pine, and as if out of nowhere, a few of its cubs follow. The soil is firm beneath his tyres, and he can smell it warming, roused by the sun after a night of slumber. Riding his Malvern Star, he is carefree. But Geoffrey William Finch, this lanky not-quite-man on his way to his carpentry job, is also careful. As he traverses the grounds, he sees the sun come up behind the headstones. Then he rounds a corner and sees the very same sun shining on an east-facing row, blazing into the engraved names of the dead. This morning, as every weekday morning, he could circumvent the cemetery, ride along the waking bustle of Lidcombe. Instead, he lets himself in through the pedestrian gate and cuts across the field of headstones. He chooses this route because he likes the quiet. This is the interlude in which he works out his world, considers the day to come. 'And the whole time I am talking,' he tells me, some six decades later, sitting at his broad dining table in Melbourne. 'Who are you talking to, Ephraim?' I ask, because now this boy is an elderly man with a different name, a different religion, a life that he could have scarcely predicted riding through Rookwood on those dewy mornings. Ephraim and I are sitting in his front room and the sun is pouring into the space between us. He is telling me stories. I notice that he prefers discussing his work to discussing himself. He wants to revisit his 30 years as director of a burial society – the people he comforted and held; those he ritually washed, wrapped and prayed for. But today I press him on those early years. I want to learn the soil of this man before I can describe its trees, the fruits it has borne. 'Who are you talking to, riding through Rookwood?' I repeat, lightly, as Ephraim closes his eyes, slipping into a temporal estuary. 'I am talking to God,' he says eventually, his hands resting on the table in front of him, a boyish smile now playing on his bearded face. That Ephraim says such a lofty thing without an ounce of grandiosity, without pushing or preaching, foreshadows what I will learn about this man. This man, at once deeply religious and utterly irreverent, softly spoken but defiant, is as prone to crying as to smiling. This man, whose work deals with the body as much as the spirit, dwells easefully at their intersections. This ageing Orthodox Jew with a broad Aussie accent, this voracious archivist and beloved community figure, this working-class butcher's son who felt pulled to the Torah, is, himself, many beautiful intersections. The notion of writing Ephraim's life has been in the ether for many years. If you were a member of Melbourne's Jewish community from the mid-1980s to 2015 you would – for better or worse – have had something to do with Ephraim Finch. Having buried over 10,000 individuals, Ephraim is – physically, emotionally, culturally and spiritually – linked to a great many lives in this unique pocket of the world. Not long ago, someone interviewed Ephraim with a view to writing his biography. But for one reason or another, a book did not eventuate. And so the idea made its way to my desk. A week after the publisher approached me, I was shown Ephraim's journal. I was struck by the language he used to chronicle his work with the dead and the dying, as well as their loved ones: 'Your heart could feel the pain of lovers separated by war.' 'How do you live a normal life? I don't know, but I feel their losses and their love for each other.' 'Sometimes you do not understand the depth of friendship until the final days.' I noticed his empathy for all those enduring loss. The intensely personal involvement with the details of another's narrative. The reverence for forces we battle but must ultimately accept. 'He knew he was going to die and seemed to accept it. I held his hand and wished him a safe journey,' he writes in one entry. I wanted to know more about this heart language and how a human might acquire it, become fluent in its lexicon. Sign up to Five Great Reads Each week our editors select five of the most interesting, entertaining and thoughtful reads published by Guardian Australia and our international colleagues. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Saturday morning after newsletter promotion Underneath this sat something else. I had my own memory of Ephraim Finch, from a death in my family almost 20 years ago. When my then-husband's mother passed away in 2006, I remember Ephraim's name being uttered; on the cusp of her death, throughout her funeral, during the rituals that coloured the subsequent weeks. I do not recall the way Ephraim looked, or even meeting him. But I will never forget the way his name resonated in that house of mourning. It was as though the name itself had a beneficent forcefield; every time my grief-stricken father-in-law would say it, he seemed calmer. 'Ephraim will know' seemed to be the answer to the questions, many of them unanswerable. Time after time, in the sheer act of saying it, something in the atmosphere would ease, even as the tears continued. When the name 'Ephraim Finch' was spoken to me again, some 17 years later, I felt myself hurtling, with grateful awe, back into its orbit. At our first meeting, before I have even begun to prepare myself for the flood of names and narratives, Ephraim launches into a recollection of everyone he continues to visit at Springvale Jewish cemetery, almost 10 years after retirement from his role as director of the Jewish burial society. 'It's my village,' he says, closing his eyes and taking me along on his imaginary tour of the place. 'I see all of them as I go around … it's like walking down the street. There is the lovely gentleman who descended from the Radomsker Rebbe, and there is Bill … Hello Bill, my dear friend! And here is Mr Cykiert, who gave me his poem just before he passed.' I continue to watch him meet them, one by one. 'And, oh.' He drops to a whisper, his fluttering hands stilling. 'Hello, dear boy.' Something subtle shifts in his facial musculature, his eyes flicker. 'You see, I buried this boy …' In this moment, Ephraim's wife Cas, who has been sitting with us the entire time, softly interjects. 'May I tell this story, darling?' she asks, in a manner I will witness many times over the coming months. There is a concert of silent knowings between Cas and Ephraim, an instinct for each other's pauses. Intuitively, they allocate the best raconteur for the moment, illuminating and verifying one another. 'I'd like to explain why we are so connected to this boy, if I may?' Cas asks, her voice deep and low, her blue eyes cloudy. Ephraim nods. 'We were out one day with our daughter Sharona, who is now 42, but was then 20. It was a hot day, but she was suddenly freezing and had a terrible headache. This went on for days and on the third night she developed a rash. On top of this, she felt like every bone in her body was breaking. Next morning, I got up at dawn to get her some Panadeine. As soon as my finger made contact with her arm, dark purple spots started to appear, spreading. And Ephraim knew exactly what it was, because he had buried this magnificent young man a few years earlier. He knew the symptoms.' A doctor arrived not long after and administered a penicillin shot, which bought Sharona time to get to the hospital, where she would stay for three weeks. One day an infectious diseases doctor approached the Finches on the ward. 'How did you recognise the meningococcal septicaemia?' he asked Ephraim. 'Doctor, I buried a boy in 1991 …' And before Ephraim could say more the doctor named that boy, remembering the family. They stood mutely for some time, struck by the reach of tragedy. But beneath the moment was an undertow, a twist in the Finches' hearts. It was nothing as crass or numerical as a sacrifice schema – Cas and Ephraim never believed that this boy died so Sharona could live. In fact, it was an inversion of this 'lucky us' smugness – they had never forgotten that this child died while theirs had lived. Three months after Cas tells this story, Ephraim and I will go to Springvale together, and when we reach this young man's grave, Ephraim will bend down and kiss the engraved marble. He will greet the boy and read his name out loud, along with his date of passing. He will intone the names of his mother and father. He will weep for them, while knowing the limits of his weeping. He will continue bending, head bowed, holding all the connections in all his body. And I sense, simply by being next to this softly moving human, the shuddering proximity between us all, the near misses, the churn of loss and the majesty of memory, the ceaseless current of our arrivals and departures. This is an edited extract from Ferryman: The Life and Deathwork of Ephraim Finch by Katia Ariel (Wild Dingo Press, A$34.99).
Fox News
17-05-2025
- General
- Fox News
The secrets of a meaningful and lifelong grandparent-grandchild bond
Each Friday night, Jewish families do what we have done for thousands of years. We sit down for the moment we have anticipated all week: Shabbat dinner. Before the meal, we engage in a few ritual practices. The woman of the house lights the Shabbat candles, ushering in the sacred day. We welcome the Sabbath day in song, we bless God over the wine and the bread, and we serenade (from Psalms 31) the Jewish woman. The best part – the moment that earns our highest anticipation throughout the week – is when we bless our children. It is a moment so sublime that the Jewish parent can, by laying his or her hands on the child, feel the presence of God at the Shabbat table. (See the video at the top of this article.) The blessing that we make over our daughters is: "May God make you like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah." This is easily understandable. These are our matriarchs – the most prominent women in the Book of Genesis. The blessing that we give our sons is very different. We say: "May God make you like Ephraim and Menasseh." An observer would not be blamed for saying: "Who?" After all, Ephraim and Menasseh are obscure figures, so much so that they never speak a word in the whole Torah! Why, the observer might follow, don't you bless your sons to be like Abraham, Joseph, Moses or King David? The blessing that Jewish boys receive on Friday night was given in the Torah — but not by a father. It was given by a grandfather. The truth is: The blessing only gets stranger. The blessing that Jewish boys receive on Friday night was given in the Torah — but not by a father. It was given by a grandfather, Jacob (who is also known as Israel). So why, at the holiest moment of the week, do Jewish parents pass on a blessing from a grandfather to two otherwise obscure grandchildren? Because the Bible is revealing something profound about human flourishing. Ephraim and Menasseh are the only characters in Genesis who have a relationship with a grandparent. And when Jacob blesses them, the Torah doesn't call him Jacob. It calls him Israel. What is the significance? Let's turn to Exodus 1:1: "These are the names of the sons of Israel who are coming to Egypt. With Jacob – each man came with his household." The text uses both names of our patriarch – Jacob and Israel – and modifies the tense accordingly. Unlike the name "Jacob," which is rooted in the past, "Israel" is the name of becoming. That's the heart of grandparenthood. In Exodus, the Torah instructs us to teach "your children and your children's children." The Torah tradition is filled with stories of grandparents – not as soft-spoken and candy-dispensing extras, but as teachers, transmitters, moral educators. Grandparenting, at its best, is a sacred calling. Science backs this up. Among the nine million or so species on Earth, creatures from only six live after childbearing age. So grandparenthood is a very rare phenomenon. Why do humans live so long after raising their own children? In 1998, Professor Kristen Hawkes of the University of Utah discovered the answer: the grandmother hypothesis. Active grandparents free up the middle generation to do more, especially to have additional children. Grandparents extend the human story. Grandchildren who are close to grandparents are more secure, perform better in school and are less impulsive. And everyone benefits. Grandparents who stay involved – but aren't full-time caregivers – live longer, think more clearly, and are happier. The Berlin Aging Study, which began in 1990 and tracked aging participants for over three decades, found that grandparents who provided noncustodial care for their grandchildren had a 37% lower risk of dying over 20 years compared to those who were less involved. Grandchildren who are close to grandparents are more secure, perform better in school, are less impulsive and are less anxious. What's the secret to a meaningful grandparent-grandchild bond? A 2020 study from Hong Kong University found it: future consequence appreciation. Not nostalgia, but investment in what's coming next. A grandparent who always talks about how things were better "back in the day" might be tolerated. But a grandparent who's excited about his or her grandchild's dreams and who helps with assignments, celebrates milestones and passes on wisdom is loved, remembered and emulated. That's why Israel, not Jacob, gives the blessing. And that's why it's the one we repeat every week. God was right. Grandparenthood, lived with love and future orientation, is one of the most powerful gifts – for all three generations. Mark Gerson's new book is "God Was Right: How Modern Social Science Proves the Torah Is True," published by BenBella Books and distributed by Simon & Schuster (June 2025). This article is the first in a series featured exclusively by Fox News Digital.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Nintendo Download: Keeping Things Classy
REDMOND, Wash., April 24, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--This week's Nintendo Download includes the following content: Nintendo eShop on Nintendo Switch: Sunderfolk – Rediscover game night with the magic of Sunderfolk, a shared turn-based tactical RPG adventure where your mobile device becomes the controller* and your Nintendo Switch system becomes your guide to the Sunderlands. Up to four players can play in this couch co-op adventure using their own devices. Choose from one of six classes, including Arcanist, Bard, Berserker and more. Help improve your home village of Arden between missions by unlocking different local vendors and building relationships with other Sunderfolk to earn in-game rewards. Don't forget to outfit your characters with new skills, weapons, trinkets and more before heading out on your next run! Sunderfolk is available now. Game Boy Advance – Nintendo Switch Online Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones – The kingdom of Renais lies shattered by a sudden invasion. Use cunning strategy to guide the royal heirs Eirika and Ephraim on their twin quest to rebuild their home. Take advantage of the terrain and the weapon in your hand, attacking enemies from afar using magic or up close with your sword. Each weapon has its own strength and weakness, so choose wisely when attacking your opponent – if a soldier perishes on the battlefield, they're gone forever! Upgrade your troops to different classes, each with their own skills and weapons, and save the land from the forces of darkness. Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones is available now for Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack members**. Nintendo Music: Chorale of Heroes – Engage in the audio journey of a Divine Dragon with the Fire Emblem Engage soundtrack, available now on Nintendo Music – the smart-device app for Nintendo soundtracks***. Experience tracks that evoke the world of the game, from the Somniel's dulcet tones to the heart-pounding battle beats played across the continent of Elyos! Nintendo Music is exclusively for Nintendo Switch Online members. For more info, visit: Activities: F-ZERO 99 1.6.0 Update – A new update for the F-ZERO 99 game** boosts onto the speedway! Race in newly added Ace League Mirror tracks, play Classic tracks added to the Ace League, unlock color variations for select machines and more. This patch also introduces the Mini World Tour event, where pilots will compete in seven consecutive races to compete for the top rank. Check it out when the first Mini World Tour starts on May 5! Creator's Voice – Hogwarts Legacy – The next installment of the "Creator's Voice" video series is here, featuring Hogwarts Legacy. Hear from the game makers as they dive into the development process and unveil how they brought the magic behind Hogwarts Legacy to life on the Nintendo Switch 2 system. You can watch the video here: For more information on the series, visit Nintendo eShop sales on Nintendo Switch: Last Chance to Save With the Partner Spotlight Sale! – Time is running out to save up to 50% on select Nintendo Switch games! From now until April 27 at 11:59 p.m. PT, don't miss your chance to save on a dazzling selection of hit digital games when you shop on or Nintendo eShop on your device. For more information and to view the full list of games, visit Also new this week on Nintendo eShop on Nintendo Switch: 9th Dawn Remake Adventures In Time & Space – Available April 29 Aha! Spot the Change Brain Teaser Arcade Archives Tatakae! Big Fighter Atama Bee Flowers: Royal Garden Blazing Trail – Available April 30 Bosorka – Available April 29 Brain Challenge Spot the Real One! Brain Teaser! Spin & Build Castle Capy's Quest – Available April 25 Cats Visiting Historical Times Cave of Illusions Clash of Rivals Cooking Companions – Available April 29 Deep Deep Deep Nightmare DOKAPON! Sword of Fury Dungeon Slide Escape game R00M03 Gnomes and Knights – Available April 25 JALECOlle Famicom Ver. Magic John & Totally RAD Kao The Kangaroo + Urban Trial Playground Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club TOKIMEKI Roadmap to Future Masters Bowling Monster Popper MotoGP25 – Available April 30 Munchy Mammals Ogu and the Secret Forest – Available April 29 Out of Moves Plot of the Druid Sakura Bunny Girls – Available April 25 Seedsow Lullaby – Available April 30 Silent Mist Sixtar Gate: STARGAZER Splatter Blocks – Available April 26 Spot the Difference Detective Spot the Difference with Masterpieces Sprint for Survival Spy Guy Jigsaw Fun – Available April 25 Sunseed Island – Available April 25 Super Technos World: River City & Technos Arcade Classics The Fairy's Secret – Available April 25 The Hundred Line -Last Defense Academy- The Safe Place Where's That Person? Witching Stone – Available April 30 夢現しろっぷ - Dreamy Syrup - * The free mobile app is required to play the game. ** Nintendo Switch Online membership (sold separately) and Nintendo Account required for online features. Membership auto-renews after initial term at the then-current price unless canceled. Not available in all countries. Internet access required for online features. Terms apply. *** Nintendo Switch Online membership (sold separately) and Nintendo Account required. Not available in all countries. Internet and compatible smart-device required to use app. Data charges may apply. Terms apply. Nintendo Switch Online is a paid membership service that allows members to team up or face off online in compatible Nintendo Switch games, such as Splatoon 3, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Nintendo Switch Sports and Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Members also enjoy a curated library of classic NES, Super NES and Game Boy games, including Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Metroid, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Kirby's Dream Land, among many others. To find out more about the benefits that come with Nintendo Switch Online, to view membership options and to learn about a free seven-day trial for new users, visit With a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership, players get access to even more benefits, including a library of Nintendo 64 games with added online play for up to four players (additional accessories may be required for multiplayer mode; sold separately), a library of select Game Boy Advance games, Animal Crossing: New Horizons - Happy Home Paradise DLC, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass DLC, Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion DLC (full version of game required to use DLC for that game; sold separately) and retro SEGA Genesis games. Nintendo eShop is a cash-based service that features a wide variety of content, including new and classic games, applications and demos. Users can add money to their account balances by using a credit card or purchasing a Nintendo eShop Card at a retail store and entering the code from the card. All funds from one card must be loaded in Nintendo eShop on the Nintendo Switch family of systems. Customers in the U.S. and Canada ages 18 and older can also link a PayPal account to their Nintendo Account to purchase digital games and content for the Nintendo Switch family of systems both on-device and from the Nintendo website. Remember that Nintendo Switch features parental controls that let adults manage some of the content their children can access. Nintendo Switch players who register a Nintendo Account gain access to free-to-start games and free game demos from Nintendo eShop, and also get the latest news and information direct from Nintendo. For more information about parental controls on Nintendo Switch and other features, visit and Note to editors: Nintendo press materials are available at a password-protected site. To obtain a login, please register on the site. View source version on Contacts Eddie GarciaGolin213-335-5536egarcia@ Justin AclinGolin212-373-6004jaclin@ Sign in to access your portfolio
The Independent
11-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
King meets Muslim and Jewish faith leaders after ‘Reconciliation Accords' signed
The King has met faith leaders at Buckingham Palace after the signing of a framework to lay the foundation for a transformative relationship between Jewish and Muslim communities – which Charles called 'marvellous'. The 'Reconciliation Accords' were signed by faith leaders on Tuesday at Spencer House, London, after Muslim and Jewish religious and civic leaders were welcomed to Drumlanrig Castle in Scotland last month by the Duke of Buccleuch for an event convened by Chief Imam Dr Sayed Razawi, Buckingham Palace said. Agreed at Drumlanrig Castle, the Accords aim to create enduring frameworks for collaboration and understanding, ensuring Jewish and Muslim communities can navigate challenges together while fostering mutual respect and solidarity, the palace added. Charles welcomed the faith leaders to the palace's 1844 room on Tuesday afternoon. The King first spoke to Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, Chief Imam Dr Sayed Razawi, Senior Imam Qari Asim and Rabbi Josh Levy. Speaking to Dr Razawi, Charles said: 'I'm so glad to hear about this marvellous exercise.' He added that 'it seems to have stood you all in good stead'. Sir Ephraim thanked Charles, saying: 'Thank you so much for blessing us on this historic day.' The King replied: 'It's the least I could do, you know that.' Sir Ephraim added: 'We believe it's the only way forward.' The King spent time speaking to the faith leaders in the room before they posed for a photograph. Last month at Drumlanrig Castle, 11 denominations from Judaism and Islam were represented in discussions focusing on the future of Jewish-Muslim relations, particularly in the context of global tensions and the impact on relationships between these communities, Buckingham Palace said. The UK Faith Minister, Lord Khan of Burnley, and representatives of the UK and Scottish Governments and the European Commission attended as observers, and the First Minister of Scotland addressed the gathering on the closing evening, the palace added. In a statement about the Accords sent to the media, Sir Ephraim said: 'The Drumlanrig Accords represent a bold first step towards rebuilding a meaningful trust between Muslim and Jewish communities over the long term. 'They do not gloss over our differences, they acknowledge them. But they also send out a powerful message that in times of division, when it is far easier to retreat into fear and suspicion, we are prepared to take the more challenging path to reconciliation. We do so not because it is easy, but because it is necessary. 'My hope is that these Accords will now inspire others and give them the confidence to similarly reach out beyond their communities, so that over time, we can built greater trust and social cohesion across the UK and beyond.' A statement from Dr Razawi said: 'As people of faith, we have a duty to rise above division and lead with wisdom, compassion, and unity. 'This accord is not just a statement, it is a commitment to healing, to dialogue, and disagree agreeably.'
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
King meets Muslim and Jewish faith leaders after ‘Reconciliation Accords' signed
The King has met faith leaders at Buckingham Palace after the signing of a framework to lay the foundation for a transformative relationship between Jewish and Muslim communities – which Charles called 'marvellous'. The 'Reconciliation Accords' were signed by faith leaders on Tuesday at Spencer House, London, after Muslim and Jewish religious and civic leaders were welcomed to Drumlanrig Castle in Scotland last month by the Duke of Buccleuch for an event convened by Chief Imam Dr Sayed Razawi, Buckingham Palace said. Agreed at Drumlanrig Castle, the Accords aim to create enduring frameworks for collaboration and understanding, ensuring Jewish and Muslim communities can navigate challenges together while fostering mutual respect and solidarity, the palace added. Charles welcomed the faith leaders to the palace's 1844 room on Tuesday afternoon. The King first spoke to Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, Chief Imam Dr Sayed Razawi, Senior Imam Qari Asim and Rabbi Josh Levy. Speaking to Dr Razawi, Charles said: 'I'm so glad to hear about this marvellous exercise.' He added that 'it seems to have stood you all in good stead'. Sir Ephraim thanked Charles, saying: 'Thank you so much for blessing us on this historic day.' The King replied: 'It's the least I could do, you know that.' Sir Ephraim added: 'We believe it's the only way forward.' The King spent time speaking to the faith leaders in the room before they posed for a photograph. Last month at Drumlanrig Castle, 11 denominations from Judaism and Islam were represented in discussions focusing on the future of Jewish-Muslim relations, particularly in the context of global tensions and the impact on relationships between these communities, Buckingham Palace said. The UK Faith Minister, Lord Khan of Burnley, and representatives of the UK and Scottish Governments and the European Commission attended as observers, and the First Minister of Scotland addressed the gathering on the closing evening, the palace added. In a statement about the Accords sent to the media, Sir Ephraim said: 'The Drumlanrig Accords represent a bold first step towards rebuilding a meaningful trust between Muslim and Jewish communities over the long term. 'They do not gloss over our differences, they acknowledge them. But they also send out a powerful message that in times of division, when it is far easier to retreat into fear and suspicion, we are prepared to take the more challenging path to reconciliation. We do so not because it is easy, but because it is necessary. 'My hope is that these Accords will now inspire others and give them the confidence to similarly reach out beyond their communities, so that over time, we can built greater trust and social cohesion across the UK and beyond.'
