Community Magazine February 2003

32 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE s ” xc At that time, the population of Jerusalem included the full gamut of people from the most learned rabbis to the common working men, which constituted the vast majority. Rabbi Alfia had a vision: to give the working men the opportunity to learn in the evenings. He raised money and hired Rabbis to be available at night in the Midrash where the great Tzede Chemed used to learn. He hoped that in the merit of the Tzede Chemed and the sanctity of the Midrash where he wrote his holy books, the evening learning pro- gram would be a success. Rabbi Alfia pasted posters all over Jerusalem, urging all common men to come and learn. The classes grew steadily, twenty, forty, sixty, a hundred men . . .until the rooms were packed every night. Many men were learning for two hours a night in the sum- mer, and three hours during the long win- ter nights. They learned six nights a week: Gemarah two nights, Halachah (religious law) two nights, the Zohar one night, and on Thursday nights they stayed up all night and finished the entire book of Tehillim. In the months of Elul and Nissan, the men would visit Rachel’s tomb and other graves of righteous Jews, and pray. Rabbi Yitzchak Alfia dedicated these prayers and all the learning to lift- ing the souls of all those that have passed away, for the success of every Jewish per- son, to heal every sick person, and to raise the Shechinah (heavenly presence) from the dust. Rabbi Alfia took to heart a dictum from the Noem Elimelech which said that if a person finishes Tehillim three times in one day, it is as if he fasted the whole week. It wasn’t possible for working men to fast since they were engaged in strenu- ous physical activity during the day. He wanted them to know, though, that there was a way that they could gain that merit and effect a tremendous tikkun (repair) for their souls just by guarding their tongues — something that everyone can B Y R A B B I D A V I D S U T T O N Giants of The Glory Days Dedicated By The Norensberg Foundation In Memory of Our Grandparents Sam & Mollie Placer www.norensberg.com T he son of Rabbi Yaakov Alfia, Yitzchak’s mother Sylca, hailed from the Dayan family, whose lineage can be traced back to King David. In 1907, he moved with his father and grandfather to Jerusalem, where they became judges, on the Beit Din (rabbinical court). This was a prestigious position, and provided a good living, which was extremely difficult to come by in those days when most people in the region lived in poverty. Rabbi Alfia though, wanted more spiritual fulfillment. He wanted to find a way to be Mezaceh et Harabim, help other people gain merit. Three generations of Alfia Rabbis: Right - Rabbi Yitzhak Yeshua, Left - his son Rabbi Yaakov Haim, Center - the grandson Rabbi Yirzhak Rabbi Yitzchak Alfia Aleppo, Syria 1878 – Jerusalem, Israel 1955