Mourning and Tearing Clothing

Question

When a close relative passes away, which relatives should tear clothing? If one is wearing a suit, which piece of clothing should be torn, the shirt or the suit jacket?

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Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    All first degree relatives should tear their clothing for mourning – spouses, children, parents, brothers and sisters.

    For the death of a parent, all uppers clothing should be torn. This means shirt, also sweater if it is worn, also jacket if that is being worn. If there is a piece of clothing that the mourner does not want to tear, he should remove it before beginning the tearing process. He can then put it back on. For all other relatives, only the outermost piece of clothing is torn.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team