Cemetery FAQs
- A Jewish cemetery is considered consecrated ground where Jewish burial practices and customs are observed. A cemetery is a holy place-more sacred than a synagogue. The care of cemeteries is an essential religious and social responsibility.
- A Jewish cemetery has physical boundaries that sets the cemetery off from its surroundings, making it holy for Jews.
- A Jewish cemetery is owned by the Jewish community and is intended to serve the members of that community.
- Only Jewish symbols are permitted on a Jewish cemetery.
- Only Jewish clergy or lay people may officiate at a burial service or any other religious service at a Jewish cemetery.
- Perpetual care funds are managed by and for the care of the Jewish cemetery.
- The cemetery is closed on Shabbat and all Jewish holidays.
- Cremations are prohibited,
- Generally, disinterment is prohibited without the express permission of an affiliated Rabbi.
“Jewish gravestones are fairer than royal palaces” (Sanh 96b; cf. Matt. 23:29)
Jewish law prohibits the burial of cremated remains and the burial of persons who are not officially of the Jewish faith.
Members of an affiliated organization should contact the individual organization to purchase a plot. Cedar Sinai Synagogue, Congregation Shaarey Tivah, Congregation Shomre Shabbos, Forest City Benevolent Association, Green Road Synagogue, Park Synagogue, Taylor Road Synagogue, Temple Israel Nir Talmid, and Young Israel of Greater Cleveland are all affiliated with Mount Olive Cemetery. Most offer plots for sale. Qualifications for purchases vary.
If you are not a member of an affiliated congregation, you may purchase directly through Mount Olive Cemetery or the Memorial sections. To purchase a plot through Mount Olive please call the cemetery office. For plots in the Memorial Sections please call their office.
If you a veteran or their relative and are interested in purchasing plots from Jewish War Veterans Post #44 please contact Mount Olive Cemetery directly.
Perpetual care is an endowment fund, whose proceeds, only in the form of interest and dividends, may be used for the maintenance, supervision, improvement, and preservation of the cemetery.
Perpetual care does not ensure that every time that you visit a grave it will look pristine. It does mean that when you are concerned about your grave, whether it be the headstone, frame, plants, etc., you can contact the cemetery office and discuss the situation with the cemetery staff. The work (if it is within the cemetery staff’s ability) will be completed with no additional cost to the family.
Those graves without perpetual care will be charged for the requested work. Payment is required before the work is completed.
There is a security system in place at Mount Olive Cemetery.
Perpetual care at Mount Olive Cemetery brings comfort in the knowledge that our sacred grounds will be lovingly tended in perpetuity.
If a purchased grave will not be used, you may be able to donate it back to the synagogue or institution from which it was purchased. This donation, if accepted, may qualify as a tax-deductible charitable contribution.
If you would like to know alternatives to donation, please contact the individual institution where the plot was purchased.
If your plot was purchased directly from Mount Olive Cemetery please call the cemetery office to discuss your various options.
Please contact the individual organization where the grave was purchased.
The custom of placing a monument over the grave of a departed person is a very ancient Jewish tradition. Dating to when Jacob erected a tombstone (Matzevah) over the grave of his wife Rachel.
The monument is erected to indicate clearly where a person is buried, so that family and friends may visit the gravesite. It is also a way of remembering and honoring the memory of the person who has died.
Today, we refer to the ceremony of formally consecrating a tombstone as an “unveiling.” While this ceremony has no origin in pre-modern Jewish life, this has become an acceptable practice today.
The unveiling provides mourners with the opportunity for emotional and psychological healing. Family members often gather, often from distant cities, and continue their mourning as a family, lending each other comfort and support in dealing with their grief. For individuals who were not able to attend the funeral or Shiva, the unveiling ritual provides an opportunity to grieve and to acknowledge one’s loss.
The service for the unveiling of a monument is a short and simple. It consists of the recitation of several Psalms; the removal of the veil from the memorial; the recitation of the Malei Rachamim (the Memorial Prayer) and the Kaddish. A Minyan (a gathering of 10 Jewish adults) is required for the recitation of Kaddish. If there is no Minyan available, the Kaddish is omitted. Many choose to appoint an officiating rabbi to conduct the unveiling, however, this is not mandatory.
At the unveiling, it is certainly appropriate for a family member to choose to speak about the person who has died, or to read a supplemental poem or prayer.
The cemetery does not provide anything for unveilings. Contact the memorial company to coordinate any furnishings.