Does death end life, or is it the passage from one stage of life to another? In The Death of Death, noted theologian Neil Gillman offers readers an original and compelling argument that Judaism, a religion often thought to pay little attention to the afterlife, delivers a deathblow to death itself. This new work is an intellectual and spiritual milestone for all of us interested in the meaning of life, as well as the meaning of death. Combining astute scholarship with keen historical, theological, and liturgical insights, Gillman traces the evolution of Jewish thought about death and the afterlife. From Judaism' s original belief not only in the afterlife but in bodily resurrection, to later ambivalence about resurrection and reincarnation, today, somewhat surprisingly, more contemporary Jewish scholars including Gillman have unabashedly returned to the notion of bodily resurrection. The Death of Death gives new life to a very old debate. By exploring Jewish thought about death and the afterlife, it presents readers with challenging new ideas.