Ethical Wills

Leave your loved ones a legacy of blessings, wisdom, gratitude and hope. "Done right, an ethical will is a gift of love, a way of saying, 'This is what I found gave me satisfaction and gave my life meaning. It animated my relationship to you and to your mother (or father). May it do the same for you. I send this to you with much love.'" —from the Foreword by Rabbi Harold S. Kushner Ethical wills are precious spiritual documents, windows into the souls of those who write them, and are often a treasured part of a family’s history. These “legacy letters” sum up what you have learned in life, and what you want most for, and from, your loved ones. This book—a unique combination of “what is” and “how to”—offers a step-by-step process to help you prepare an ethical will of your own, and provides a wide range of contemporary ethical wills to help you do it. It reveals the ongoing relevance of this traditional Jewish practice for people of all faiths, all backgrounds. The emotional power of the nearly one hundred last letters collected here, written by both famous and ordinary Jewish people, will inspire you to live more fully now, and to record your own blessings for the generations to come.

With this book, anyone, from any tradition, can write an ethical will. Words that come from the heart enter the heart.” Many of these wills come from plain ordinary fathers and mothers, yet they touch the hearts of all who read them. And so I suggest that you read these wills, and then that you try your hand at writing one of your own. If you do, you will leave a gift to the future, and the not-yet-born children of your children’s children will thank you and bless you for it. from the Introduction Ethical wills are precious spiritual documents, windows into the souls of those who write them. Those who write ethical wills—often parents writing letters to their children or grandparents to their grandchildren—try to sum up what they have learned in life, and what they want most for, and from, their loved ones. In this unique combination of “What Is” and “How To,” Riemer and Stampfer show how to prepare an ethical will and provide as guides examples of ethical wills written by almost 100 famous and ordinary people. This wide range of contemporary ethical wills reveals the ongoing relevance of ethical wills for people of all faiths, all backgrounds.

English and Hebrew.

Contents: Collection of wills originally written in English, German, Hebrew and Yiddish.

As evidenced in the Terri Schiavo case that made national headlines, having a living will is an essential element in ensuring that the way in which you would like to spend your last days will be respected. It informs both family and doctors of your medical treatment preferences in specific situations. An ethical will is a complementary text that communicates personal values, beliefs, blessings, and advice to relatives and to future generations. It can be more meaningful to friends and family than any material possession you could bequeath to them. Together, living and ethical wills ensure that your wishes and hopes are "on the record," not to be lost, ignored, or forgotten. Offering practical and inspirational advice for people at any stage of life, Ethical and Living Wills includes: --Three recommended writing approaches to capturing our feelings for posterity --Expert information for understanding the legal and practical issues involved in documenting your medical care and treatment preferences in commonly occurring situations --Advice on when to distribute both ethical and living wills -- Tips to protect the legacy you leave in an ethical will-preparing and caring for the document you create

Addresses such topics as "cloning, genetically modifying food, mapping human chromosomes, and using animal organs for human transplants." Provides an "engaged--and engaging--answer to one of our era's most difficult questions: should society set ethical limits on scientific advances?"

Maximizing productivity without regard for human consequences, the quest for profit above all else, the stifling of individual personality and creative expression, a competitive atmosphere-these are the reigning features of the modern workplace. Although many writers have called attention to the debilitating effects of this dehumanization of the working environment, solutions have been less in evidence. In The Anatomy of Ethical Leadership, Lyse Langlois frames the problem in terms of ethics, pointing to the fact that managers are often uncertain how to integrate ethical considerations into their process of decision making. She explores the instrumental, often highly legalistic patterns of thought that pervade modern organizations and proposes instead a new emphasis on dialogue and on modes of reasoning that make room for the complexity of ordinary reality. To that end, she outlines a trajectory for ethical, responsible, and authentic decision making--the TERA model-that managers --

What does pleasure have to do with morality? What role, if any, should intuition have in the formation of moral theory? If something is ‘simulated’, can it be immoral? This accessible and wide-ranging textbook explores these questions and many more. Key ideas in the fields of normative ethics, metaethics and applied ethics are explained rigorously and systematically, with a vivid writing style that enlivens the topics with energy and wit. Individual theories are discussed in detail in the first part of the book, before these positions are applied to a wide range of contemporary situations including business ethics, sexual ethics, and the acceptability of eating animals. A wealth of real-life examples, set out with depth and care, illuminate the complexities of different ethical approaches while conveying their modern-day relevance. This concise and highly engaging resource is tailored to the Ethics components of AQA Philosophy and OCR Religious Studies, with a clear and practical layout that includes end-of-chapter summaries, key terms, and common mistakes to avoid. It should also be of practical use for those teaching Philosophy as part of the International Baccalaureate. Ethics for A-Level is of particular value to students and teachers, but Fisher and Dimmock’s precise and scholarly approach will appeal to anyone seeking a rigorous and lively introduction to the challenging subject of ethics. Tailored to the Ethics components of AQA Philosophy and OCR Religious Studies.