Mordechai Eliyahu

Mordechai Tzemach Eliyahu (מרדכי צמח אליהו, March 3, 1929 – June 7, 2010, on the Hebrew calendar: 21 Adar I, 5689 - 25 Siwan, 5770), was an Israeli rabbi, posek, and spiritual leader.

The son of a Jerusalem Kabbalist, in his youth, Eliyahu was active in Brit HaKanaim, a radical religious underground organization.

He served as a dayan in Beersheba, and in the Supreme Rabbinical Court in Jerusalem.

In 1950–1951, Eliyahu was among the leaders of Brit HaKanaim (Hebrew: בְּרִית הַקַנַאִים, lit. Covenant of the Zealots), a radical religious Jewish underground organization which opposed the widespread trend of secularization in the country.

The group was involved in torching the cars of people who drove on Shabbat, and also butcher shops where non-kosher meat was sold.

They once plotted to toss a smoke bomb into the Knesset during a debate on drafting Orthodox women into the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

A member of the group was in the audience during the debate with the smoke bomb in his pocket, but lacked the opportunity to activate it.

On May 14, 1951, the group's members were arrested by the Shin Bet.

Eliyahu was sentenced to ten months imprisonment for his part in the group's deeds.

Later in his life, he stated that even though his opinions did not change, "The path that I chose in the past was mistaken."

Eliyahu received semikhah (rabbinic ordination) from Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim.

The latter requested from him to arrange for the reinterment of Chaim Yosef David Azulai (the Hida) from Livorno, Italy to Israel.

On May 17, 1960, the Hida was laid to rest at Har HaMenuchot in Jerusalem.

That year, Eliyahu was appointed dayan in Beersheba, the youngest one in the country.

He was often involved in adjudicating complicated family issues.

Eliyahu was a favorite of the Baba Sali, who lived nearby in Netivot.

One day, the latter insisted Eliyahu stop whatever he was doing and come visit him for a glass of arak.

Not wishing to upset the holy man, Eliyahu accepted the invitation, only to find out later that a disgruntled ex-litigant had gone to the beth din seeking to do him harm.

Four years later, Eliyahu was transferred to the Jerusalem regional beth din, and later was elected to the Supreme Rabbinical Court in Jerusalem, a position he would retain during his term as Chief Rabbi of Israel and afterwards.

He later served as the Rishon LeZion, or Chief Rabbi of Israel, from 1983 to 1993.

As a leader of Religious Zionism, Eliyahu was instrumental in moving many of its members over to the religious right, sparking the beginnings of the Hardal movement.

A supporter of Meir Kahane and Jonathan Pollard, Eliyahu expressed his opposition to the Israeli disengagement from Gaza.

Eliyahu died at age 81, after complications from a heart condition.

He was buried on Har HaMenuchot in Jerusalem.

Mordechai Eliyahu was born in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem, the son of Iraqi Jewish rabbi Salman Eliyahu, a Jerusalem Kabbalist, and his wife Mazal, who was a sister of Yehuda Tzadka.

The family surname was Hebraicised from Elias.

He had an older brother, Naim Ben Eliyahu, a younger sister Rachel, and brother Shimon.

Salman was a disciple of Yosef Hayyim (the Ben Ish Hai), who was Mazal's great-uncle.

The family was so poor that Eliyahu had to improvise ways in which to study, which often meant learning by candlelight.

Salman died when Eliyahu was eleven, but not before he instilled in his son a love of Torah and Kabbalah.

In his youth, Eliyahu attended Porat Yosef Yeshiva, and had the opportunity to learn from many great teachers such as Ezra Attiya, Sadqa Hussein, and Avrohom Yeshaya Karelitz (the Chazon Ish).

He would later come into contact with Mordechai Sharabi, Yaakov Mutzafi, and Yitzhak Kaduri.

Later in life, he cultivated a unique relationship with Menachem Mendel Schneerson (the Lubavitcher Rebbe).

As a teenager, Eliyahu teamed up with Shabtai Yudelevitz in order to conduct Jewish outreach.

On March 18, 1983, Eliyahu was appointed Rishon LeZion (Chief Rabbi of Israel) at the Yochanan Ben Zakai Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem.

He served concurrently with Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Avraham Shapira until 1993, when both of their terms expired.

During his term as Chief Rabbi, one of Eliyahu's focuses was on attempting to reach out to secular Israeli Jews, giving them a better understanding of Jewish customs and their importance.

He traveled extensively throughout Israel and the world, often together with Shapira, emphasizing the importance of Jewish education, Shabbat observance, niddah (family purity), fighting assimilation, and making aliyah.

Eliyahu showed a willingness to go to secular environments in order to connect with other Jews, occasionally lecturing in secular moshavim and kibbutzim.

After stepping down from his official post, Eliyahu remained active, even ramping up his work for the Jewish community in Israel and the diaspora.