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An Arizona cemetery now requires mourners to leave before burial. A rabbi plans to sue.

JL;DR SUMMARY A new safety policy at Paradise Memorial Gardens in Scottsdale, Arizona, is causing controversy by requiring families to leave before a casket is lowered into the ground, which conflicts with Jewish burial traditions. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

MourningLitigationReligious RitualJewish FuneralBurial CustomsScottsdaleSafety PolicyParadise Memorial GardensRabbi AlloucheCindy Carpenter

Places mentioned

Scottsdale, Arizona, United States
"At a cemetery in Scottsdale, Arizona, that moment now does not happen."
Arizona, United States
"Messinger Mortuaries operates multiple funeral homes, cemeteries and crematories across Arizona, including Paradise Memorial Gardens, which has a large Jewish section."
Atlanta, Georgia, United States
"Eddie Dressler, a funeral director who has served Atlantas Jewish community since the 1990s, said he has never encountered a cemetery policy requiring families to leave before the lowering of a casket."
Washington DC, United States
"Rabbi Randy Brown, the resident rabbi at Arlington National Cemetery who has officiated at more than 900 funerals there, said safety concerns at gravesides are real."
Turks and Caicos Islands
"The photo is from the May 2021 wedding of Chelsea and Andrew in Turks and Caicos."

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Cairo Item ID 76179
Cairo Source ID 35
Retrieved 2026-02-25 05:31:24 UTC
Curated 2026-02-25 08:31:54 UTC