Our Gemara on Amud Aleph quotes a verse in Ezra that refers to a series of sacrifices brought in Ezra’s time to atone for the idolatry committed during the time of Tzidkiyahu.
The Gemara asks: but we do not bring an atonement sacrifice after the sinner is deceased, so how could they have brought a sacrifice for the people of a previous generation? The Gemara answers that this applies only to the sin offering of an individual. Regarding a congregation, however, “a congregation never dies”.
The simple explanation is that since the congregation is a collective, even when one member dies, the rest remain living. Even in our own bodies, depending on the type of cells, they are replaced every few weeks to ten years. If so, are we even the same person? Obviously yes, because only the tiniest portion of us dies and then is replaced. So too can be said about the principle that “a congregation never dies.” (See: Discovery.com).
Although, one might argue against this metaphor, noting that the one kind of cells that never die and remain from birth to death are neurons. And maybe that is why — because they are us.
As science progresses, philosophical ideas such as this will no longer be theoretical. Probably, 150 years ago, someone would have scoffed at the idea of transplanting a heart, claiming it would make a new person or that it would never be possible. (Believe it or not, there is growing anecdotal evidence that transplant recipients take on some of the memories of their donors; see: IFLScience). Right now, we say the same about the brain — or other vital parts — that swapping a brain with another body, or even more chilling, the Kurzweil’s Singularity, where a mind is uploaded into a computer, will never happen. But so many other scientific achievements were once dismissed as impossible.
Translations Courtesy of Sefaria, except when, sometimes, I disagree with the translation
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Rabbi Simcha Feuerman, Rabbi Simcha Feuerman, LCSW-R, LMFT, DHL is a psychotherapist who works with high conflict couples and families. He can be reached via email at simchafeuerman@gmail.com