Ethical Wills
What an ethical will?
An ethical will is a letter or recording created for your descendants or other loved ones. Although often shared during life, an ethical will is created intentionally to last beyond your lifetime – for the purpose of communicating feelings, values, wisdom, stories, wishes, advice or important information. Writing an ethical will enables you to:
- Confirm whats important and renew your appreciation for life
- Provide inheritors a personal context for material assets
- Explain potentially controversial elements of your legal will
- Link the past, present and future generations of your family
- Rest easy, knowing you’ve communication what’s most important
History: A fresh take on an ancient practice
The impulse to communicate what we think is important to those we love is as old as the human race. But it was 12th century Jewish men who began to formalize an oral tradition into a written one. The earliest medieval documents were personal treatises on how to live an ethical life, written from father to son.
The stern, prescriptive tone of the old Hebrew ethical wills no longer fits our modern worldly sensibilities, but this wise and ancient practice is now enjoying a renaissance. It speaks to people of all ages and traditions who are seeking a pathway to reflect on their own life journey, and to lovingly and naturally reinforce the core values they hope they are transmitting to those who will follow them.
Read excerpts from medieval era documents
Read some examples of contemporary ethical wills
Spiritual and legal perspectives on ethical wills
“The young doctor, father of two little girls, knew …”
Read this lawyer’s excellent background article on ethical wills that appeared in the ACTEC Journal
“Do you have a will? We know we should – our culture and and experience tell us that. As an affluent and acquisitive lot, we want and have, lots of things…”
Read this minister’s thoughts on the contemporary relevance of ethical wills
