Community Magazine June 2014

30 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE HaRav Mordechai Yosef (Murray) Maslaton, zt”l PNINA SOUID On Shabbat Parashat Behukotai, the 32 nd day of the Omer, Hashem took from us the pure neshamah of Rabbi Mordechai Yosef “Murray” Maslaton zt”l, at the age of 75. At his funeral, held the next day outsideBet Midrash EmekHaTorah, his sonMoshe recalledRabbi Maslaton’swords at the funeral of his son-in-law, Rav Moshe Simantov, that the deceased can do more on our behalf than he could when he was alive. And so Gd took “Rabbi Murray,” as he was affectionately known, away from his work here on Earth to the Heavenly Throne, where he could do for us even more. H ow much did Rabbi Murray do during his sojourn here on Earth? He is credited with no less than creating a Syrian community comprised of scholars and students of Torah, Gd-fearing men and women, who have built beautiful families based on the solid foundations of Torah study and mitzvah observance. This is the result of his influence, leadership and guidance that inspired countless individuals and families and truly transformed our community into the bulwark of Torah tradition that it is. “He is credited with no less than creating a Syrian community comprised of scholars and students of Torah, Gd-fearing men and women who have built beautiful families based on the solid foundations of Torah study and mitzvah observance.” The Young Minyan Rabbi Murray’s early years were spent under the influence of his grandfather, Hacham Murad Maslaton zt”’l , who came to the U.S. from Damascus. Rabbi Murray’s father, Joe Maslaton, was a shohet whose occupation sometimes took him out of town, and he and his wife, Sophie, raised their family in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of Brooklyn. At age 17, Rabbi Murray went to Lakewood, from where HaRav Aharon Kotler sent him to learn with HaRav Moshe Eisemann of Vineland. Rabbi Murray eventually moved to Israel, becoming the first American to study in Yeshivat Porat Yosef, then headed by Hacham Ezra Attia, zt”l . His rebbes were Hacham Shalom Cohen and Hacham Shimon Baadani, today members of the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah of Shas. Rabbi Murray’s other source of influence, from whom he learned about leadership and about bringing fellow Jews closer to Torah, was Mr. Charles Serouya, zt”l . Mr. Serouya led the Young Minyan at Magen David in the early 1950’s, when young Murray was just “one of the boys” who came to pray and learn. A different floor of the building was used by Mr. Serouya as a gym for the boys, and he put Rabbi Murray in charge of what we might call the first “Kosher Gym” in Brooklyn. Years later, as a leader of theYoung Minyan at Shaare Zion, Rabbi Murray was able to put to use all that he learned from his mentor. He loved the job, and did all he could to attract boys to shul, keep them there, and ensure they would come back. He gave them raffle tickets that he wrote out by hand, and awarded them prizes such as trips to baseball games, ice cream, candy – whatever it took to keep them coming back. A Home Open to All Rabbi Murray was known for his boundless energy, and for the way he channeled that energy toward the service of Gd. He made himself available to help anybody in need at any time, day or night, including the middle of the night. He cared for the sick, even giving up his own bed when necessary. The home he shared with his devoted rabbanit, Suzy, The Servant of Hаshem and the Servant of the People