The following are excerpts from the book "Avihem shel Yisrael" on Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu of blessed memory
Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu (1929-2010) was one of the greatest torah scholars and kabalists of our times. He was elected chief rabbi of Israel in 1983, a post which he originally rejected, but Rabbi Yisrael Abuhatzeira (Baba Sali) convinced him to accept the office. He was exceedingly humble, and was beloved by a wide range of Jews. The following are some of the tens of thousands of stories told over by eyewitness accounts.
Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu zt'l was very careful to guard himself from all forms of avodah zarah (idol worship). Once he was on a visit to Canada, and the mayor invited him to the museum which had all sorts of christian statues which are essentially idols of silver and gold. When they came out of the museum, Roni, the driver, saw the Rav lift his eyes to the heavens and say "Master of the world, please clean me from this tuma now". They started to drive away and suddenly the car slipped on the snow and fell into a channel. Everyone came out of the car and saw that, thank G-d, nobody was hurt. But when they returned, Roni heard the Rav say "Master of the world, thank you."
The wife of Rav Yitzchak Kaduri (the late chief sefardi kabalist) told over that one time she arrived at the home of Rav Mordechai Eliyahu, and saw him learning with a man dressed in white who had an extremely impressive appearance. Since she did not want to disturb their learning, she decided to return the next day. When she returned the next day, she told the rav that she came the day before but didn't want to disturb his learning with the man in his room. The rav asked surprisedly, "you saw him?" she answered "yes, why is the rav surprised?", "if so", he answered "you merited to see Beniyahu ben Yehoyada!" (see Shmuel II ch.23:20-22)
"Several times, the Rav came to me in dreams to tell me what to do. One time I needed to drive the Rav but did not arrive. I fell asleep and didn't wake up. Twelve minutes before I was supposed to arrive at the home of the Rav, I see the Rav in a dream, saying to me "Roni, where are you?". I jumped from the bed, and arrived at the home of the Rav at the exact time we were supposed to leave. One time, I wanted to take my daughter out of her kindergarten and to move her to a different kindergarten. The Rav was not happy about this. Because this would have hurt the first kindergarten teacher, and she was a woman with a difficult financial status. But, for me it was difficult with her, and I decided to move her to the other kindergarten. At night, the rav came to me in a dream and said to me "don't cause hurt to the kindergarten teacher. She doesn't have parnasa (money) and your daughter won't be damaged". I was shocked, and in the morning I asked the Rav what to do. He answered me, "Like I told you in the dream".
Source and more at: Daf Yomi Review
4 comments:
If you look into Rav Eliyahu's face he has a sweet look and a look of royalty. May his memory be a blessing.
Yes, Leah, I totally agree.
I see Chessed - kindness and Malchul - Royalty 'written all over the Rav's face'!There's no doubt that all the middot in-between are there, too!
The Rabbanit in the story saw what most people don't see.
I am sure the Divine Shechina radiated from his countenance, too.
From the latest Kol Tzofayich:
Once, a woman who had just gotten married and had just moved to Neveh Yaakov had some Taharat Hamishpacha questions and didn't know whom to ask. She was too embarrased to ask her husband at the time. She was told by her neighbors to ask R' Mordechai Eliyahu. She called him up and Rav Eliyahu told her that he needs to see the question (I guess this was a bedika cloth) and cannot make a Psak over the telephone, so he told her to come to his Beit Midrash in the Bucharim neighborhood. She replied that "it's too far to go there, so forget it, I'll just be stringent on myself." Rav Eliyahu replied that it's a sin to be stringent unnecessarily.
The woman started to cry and said that she was too embarrassed to come so far and she's very confused about the matter. Rav Eliyahu told her that he's waiting for her in the Beit Midrash for another half hour. She replied that he doesn't need to do so.
At 1:00 that afternoon, her husband came home from Kollel unexpectedly saying, "Rav Mordechai Eliyahu came to my Kollel and told me, 'While you are sitting here learning, your wife is sitting at home troubled because she has unresolved questions. Go home and bring the questions and I'll wait for you until you come.'"
The woman told her husband that she indeed had called Rav Eliyahu, but didn't say who she was, so how did he know who she was and how to contact her husband?
Thank you YAK.
I visit your site, too, from shiratdevorah.
Your comment today brought tears to my eyes.
Mamash... May "Abba's" memory be a blessing:
which it obviously is... And may his pure and
holy neshama go from 'strenght-to-strenth' in
The Worl of Truth... Y'hei Zichro Baruch!!!
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