עברית
Faith
A Child Born in a Year of Mourning, Is It a Good Sign?
Question
My mother passed away not long ago. I was told that it is written in the Gemara, that if a boy or girl is born into a family within the year of mourning, it signifies good for the departed above. Is this true? And is there a source for this? Thank you very much
Answer
Greetings,
If a boy is born, it is a good sign for the family of the deceased, as our sages stated in the Yerushalmi Moad Katan (Chapter 3, Law 7), and it is likewise in the Shulchan Aruch Yoreh De'ah (Section 340, Paragraph 4), that throughout the year of mourning, the measure of judgment is strict against that family, and if a son is born into that family, the entire family is healed.
May you be comforted from above,
With good tidings,
Hillel Meirs
