kosher bookworm: alan jay gerber

The Kiddush Hashem at Har Nof in Jerusalem

Posted

Shock and tragedy. Those are the first two of so many words that follow when looking back at the murder of four rabbis on the 25th day of Cheshvan 5775: Rabbi Avraham Shmuel Goldberg, Rabbi Aryeh Kupinsky, Rabbi Kalman Ze’ev Levine, Rabbi Moshe Twersky, all of blessed memory and H”yd.

This past week my dear friend and neighbor Kenny Fliegelman and Leiby Zupnik of Judaic Plus in Cedarhurst brought to my attention a recently composed anthology and tribute to these four men by their neighbor Rabbi Daniel Yaakov Travis, entitled “Living On: Messages, Memories and Miracles from the Har Nof Massacre” [Feldheim Publishers]. This week’s essay consists of several quotes from this heartfelt tribute.

From the introduction, written by some of the most prominent rabbis of our time who were familiar with the martyrs:

“On the 25th of Cheshvan 5775, four kedoshim were killed, wearing tallis and tefillin, in Beis Hakenesses Kwhilat Bnei Torah in Jerusalem’s Har Nof neighborhood. All Klal Yisrael mourned the untimely passing of these four tzaddikim and strengthened themselves in chessed, unity, Torah, prayer, and many other areas. It is important that we do all we can to preserve the momentum that this tragic incident has generated.

“Rabbi Daniel Yaakov Travis, Rosh Kollel of one of the kedoshim, and a friend and neighbor of all of them, has taken upon himself the task of maintaining the momentum spurred by this event. Following a tragedy of this magnitude, many people are seeking direction and meaning in what took place.

“The book ‘Living On’ draws from insights of Gedolei Yisrael, as well as personal accounts, to clarify the powerful messages that G-d has sent us.

“In this lucid presentation, the author reveals an authentic Torah perspective to guide the reader. We encourage everyone to study and absorb the poignant and timely messages of this critically important work, and we extend to Rabbi Travis our blessings that he continue to inspire his fellow Jews.”

Page 1 / 3