Rabbi Leib Tropper spoke this week in a Synagogue in upstate New york regarding what Philosopher Raymond Belliotti Terms "Posthumous harm"
Rabbi Leib Tropper opened his lecture by sharing the Halachic perspective as described in the Book of the Great Chofetz Chaim, that there is a ban issued by the earlier gaonim against speaking negatively about the deceased.
That is undoubtedly "Posthumous harm" for a number of reasons. However, the revulsion against this harmful speech is highlighted by the inability of the attacked to respond.
Rabbi Leib Tropper continued by saying that Belliotti's book, titled 'Posthumous Harm', is a beautiful education about cultivating an ethic of lasting value. Many values benefit from reciprocity, but the value of refraining from denigrating remarks about the deceased is non reciprocal, hence, an ethic of lasting value.
Rabbi Leib Tropper pointed out that the Torah is replete with stories of doing kindness for the dead. In the Jewish religion, kindness for the dead is called " kindness
of truth", precisely because of the above mentioned.
The Vilna Gaon writes that what gives life existential meaning are acts of kindness to others.The author of the philosophical book "Purpose of love" decided that loving oneself is paramount and as important as loving others. Torah ethics says that, though it is quite important to love oneself, it does not endow one with existential meaning, hence, not as significant as loving others, even the deceased.
The noted author, Karen Armstrong wrote a book '12 steps to compassion' . She also established a prize winning group 'Charter for compassion'.
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