Dear Shaare Family,
Thank you to everyone who made last Shabbat such a memorable and uplifting experience. Of course, to R’ Pdaya Halperin for his tefilot and for leading the singing at the tish, but also for the sponsors who made the Shabbat possible. A special thanks goes out to all those who attended, who organized and who sang. There is another oneg this Friday night at Ohr HaTorah as part of the Shabbat Project. In a conversation with Rabbi Feigenbaum earlier this week, I described it as a “rematch.” We are among the partner organizations and I hope everyone will be able to attend! This Friday, you can get a double dose of simcha by going first to the Shalom Zachar of Baby Boy Hirschberg, at the home of Susan and Jeremy Hollander at 9 PM at 5965 Meletio.
Please Write
You may have already seen a video of Jewish students being locked in a building at The Cooper Union in New York, while an angry mob of pro-Palestinianb student were chanting slogans and trying to break down the doors, The students were fearful for their lives and were eventually escorted out of the building by tunnel by police, who had not yet arrived after 40 minutes (!). So far, the leadership of Cooper Union has been silent. Please flood the inbox of President Laura Sparks at lsparks@cooper.edu demanding a response.
A Larger Than Life Rabbi
It is a sign of our times that, wIth reports of so many people dying or dead in Israel in their under the most horrific circumstances in their tender years, it is almost a comfort these days when someone dies at an advanced age after a full life. The Torah world in Israel is mourning the loss of the great Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Baruch Mordechai Ezrachi at the age of 94. Rav Ezrachi was the Rosh yeshiva of Yeshivat Ateret Yisrael, formerly of yerushalaim and, since 2019, in Kiryat Sefer.
From a young age, as a student in the Chevron Yeshiva, Rav Ezrachi was known for his nimble intellect, his charisma and his diligence in his studies. He married Shulamit, the daughter of Rav Meir Chodosh, the legendary Mashgiach of the Chevron Yeshiva who then served as Mashgiach in Ateret Yisrael. Shulamit, who died in December of 2022, was an author in her own right, who penned biographies of several noted Rabbis including her father. In 1964, Rav Exrachi began the movement called Bnei Torah, geared toward students in Israeli Yeshiva High Schools, especially Religious Zionist ones, in an attempt to introduce them to the Israeli Chareidi Lithuanian Yeshiva world.
