ethical will

noun

1. a document in which the writer shares personal values and beliefs, life stories, advice etc., with the intent of passing them on to future generations.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ethical will¹

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Everplans, for example, has a worksheet to help people create an ethical will, a document that communicates their values, life lessons and most important experiences.

From Seattle Times

In the Jewish tradition, an ethical will is a statement of values, laden with wisdom and propelled by aspiration.

From Washington Post

One can only wish that Sacks’s brilliant, urgent “ethical will” can transcend his grandchildren and inspire all who fervently hope to emerge from this difficult time with an enhanced sense of human solidarity, responsibility, morality and love.

From Washington Post

Jonathan Sacks’s latest, and last, book, “Morality: Restoring the Common Good in Divided Times,” is an ethical will of sorts, in the form of a comprehensive, erudite survey of moral philosophy and a plea for a renewed commitment to a communal moral code.

From Washington Post

I still haven’t written an “ethical will” — I’m saving that for when I have grandchildren someday — but my file includes a letter to my girls only to be opened when I’m gone.

From Seattle Times