Today - the 7th of Kislev - marks 73 years since the passing of Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Charlap, one of the senior students of Rabbi Kook, the rabbi of the "Sha'arei Chesed" neighborhood in Jerusalem and head of the "Merkaz HaRav" Yeshiva. Here are three small stories about this great figure, collected by his great-grandson, Yair Charlap:
* During Havdalah - as former President Zalman Shazar, who was close to him, told - when Rabbi Charlap would say the bracha “…who distinguishes between the holy and the mundane, between light and darkness," he would emphasize the word "light" in a loud and strong voice, and in contrast, say the word "darkness" in a weaker voice, and so on: "the seventh day" strongly, and then "the six days of work" softly, making a clear hand gesture of separation, as if he was truly separating light from darkness. One could see the sorrow on his face for the holiness of Shabbat leaving.
* At an event marking 100 years since the establishment of the "Sha'arei Chesed" neighborhood, Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach spoke about his memories as a child of the neighborhood rabbi, Rabbi Charlap. He spoke about the rabbi's special prayer, said slowly and intentionally, and said: "More than seventy years after those prayers, the way he said 'Shema Yisrael' still echoes in my ears."
* In the rabbi's last days of illness, construction work was being done right beneath the window of his room. The family thought of moving the source of noise to a more distant location. Rabbi Charlap called to them and said: "Until now, I was privileged to go out and see Jerusalem being built. Now I am in my bed and can no longer go out, but when I hear the noise of the machines, I know that Jerusalem is being built. Do not take away this privilege from me, at least to hear Jerusalem being built."
From Havdalah, through the Shema prayer, to the sound of the tractor - 73 years ago today, a man who knew how to sanctify every moment passed away. In his memory.
