Rav Shmuel Eliyahu was asked a question about buying imported cheeses that bear a hechsher and also says "mehadrin" along with the stamp of approval from the Chief Rabbinate.

The specific product is not mentioned, nor is the specific hechsher on the product mentioned, so presumably it makes no difference and the question asked is regarding all foreign hechshers, not the specific hechsher on the specific cheese this fellow saw in the store.

I do not know why such a general question was asked. If the hechsher is one the buyer normally relies on, why would he ask now? And if the buyer was unfamiliar with this hechsher, why did he not just ask about the specific hechsher? I suspect that either the question is fabricated to get to the point in the answer, which is fine and not uncommon.

Rav Shmuel Eliyahu, Chief Rabbi of Tzfat and member of the kashrut committee for imports,  responded with a psak that one should not purchase imported cheeses. Rav Eliyahu stressed that it does not matter which hechsher is on the cheese nor if it claims to be mehadrin and cholov yisrael, and even if it bears the logo of multiple hechsher companies, and even with the approval of the Chief Rabbinate, or whatever else it might be - do NOT buy imported cheeses.

Rav Eliyahu quotes his father, Rav Mordechai Eliyahu zt"l, to explain that the level of kashrut in Israel is far superior to the kashrut levels abroad. he says the best hechshers in chutz laaretz don't come to 1000th of the level of the basic hechsher level in Israel.
source: Kipa

Presumably cheese is only mentioned because of Shvuos right around the corner, but his approach is surely on all imported goods - the quote from his father makes no mention of cheese, just the levels of kashrut in Israel and abroad.

There are kashrut awareness organizations in Israel that believe the same and promote the same approach. A particular organization I am familiar with rejects the kashrut of imported products, no matter the hechsher on them with the same explanation of the best of kashrut abroad using too many kulas, leniencies, and being a far lower level than kashrut here. I myself have tested this by asking about products bearing the most widely acceptable of hechsherim and have been told not to rely on them.

a new documentary looking at Israel's leading rabbis of recent history, starting with Rav Mordechai Eliyahu..

Some big news recently was the High Court deciding in favor of the Meuhedet health clinic against a family whose baby was born paralyzed.

Meuhedet had refused to cover treatment of the baby, because they said a doctor had warned the parents early in the pregnancy that the baby would be born paralyzed, and recommended that they abort the pregnancy. The parents went to Rabbi Mordechai Eliiyahu who advised them to not abort. They followed the rabbis advice, the baby was born paralyzed as the doctor had said would happen, and Meuhedet refused to cover expenses.

Based on some reports (not in the INN article linked below) it seems the wife got pregnant while on an IUD, which is considered dangerous. It is risky for the pregnancy, and it is risky for the baby. The doctor recommended aborting, as the baby would, based on his exams, be born paralyzed, and the family chose to continue the pregnancy, based on advice form the rabbi. They sued claiming the doctor did not give them all the necessary information they need in order to make the decision.

The family sued, the family won. Meuhedet was obligated to pay. Meuhedet appealed to the High Court, and the High Court now ruled in favor of Meuhedet, overturning the original decision. The Court considers it unlikely that the doctor would not have explained to them the dangers and they need to be held responsible for rejecting the doctors advice.
source: INN

We don't know, from the articles, what the advice from Rabbi Eliyahu was based on. Was it a bracha? Was it advice? was it a psak halacha against abortion? Was it based on a kabbalistic vision? Was it psychological support for a troubled family in a difficult time? I'm not sure it matters, but we cannot comment on it because we don't know what it was.

I agree that Rabbis are not doctors. Rabbis can be approached for comfort and guidance, but they should not give medical advice, unless they have acquired expertise in any particular field (like they should not give financial advice unless they have expertise in those matters). This is not to say anything bad about Rabbi Eliyahu - we don't know what he said. Maybe he gave a bracha, maybe he gave a psak halacha, maybe he just offered comfort, or maybe he gave [bad] advice. We don't know, so we cannot comment on it.

On the other hand, I can say I am surprised that parents are obligated to follow a doctors advice to terminate a pregnancy. I never heard such a thing before. I do wonder if they went to another doctor for a second opinion. Regardless, I am surprised to hear that they were obligated to terminate a pregnancy like this. Advice to terminate can be understood, perhaps, especially if there was some sort of danger to the mother's life (which it does not say was the case), but to turn that to an obligation to terminate?

I fear where this might take us. Will parents now feel more pressure to terminate high risk pregnancies out of fear of how they might later be obligated based on the outcome?

Rabbis are not doctors, but doctors are supposed to work to save lives, not end them.

From INN:
Popular religious singers Yonatan Razel and Yosef Harakdan ("Yosef the dancer") have combined forces in a new single, in which they sing a prayer written by former Sephardic Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu z''l, who passed in 2010.

After Rabbi Eliyahu passed, his family found in his pocket a prayer written by the rabbi, which he used to recite daily.

Razel, who won song of the year with his hit "Katonti" in the ACUM Israeli Music Awards ceremony for 2013, composed music for the prayer, which he sang with Yosef Harakdan, who was Rabbi Eliyahu's personal singer.

Regarding the way people run after pesach for bread and pizza as if a week without bread was the worst possible thing that could happen, I heard the following story about Rav Mordechai Eliyahu zt"l:

Every year on motzai Pesach the Rav would look from his window (he lived across the street from Angel's Bakery) and see the long lines of Jews lining up to buy bread and say to himself  "is this what's important to am yisrael, that they are willing to stand hours in line just to have bread after a week". 


Until one year he realized "mi keamcha Yisrael"- obviously these people love bread enough that they are willing to stand hours in line, but when the Torah forbids it, they willingly forego it for Pesach.

A modern day Berditchever...

Effie Eitam went to visit a mechina, a religious army preparatory school, in Lod. When talking to the boys about religion and the army, he related some stories from his personal experiences. One of those stories was an absolutely amazing story with Rav Mordechai Eliyahu zt"l.

Eitam relates that while the IDF was still in Lebanon, when he was commander of Otzavat HaGalil (ugda 91), he was the only senior commander that was religious in the whole division. He says he went to his rabbonim in Yerushalayim to discuss how he, as a high ranking religious commander could add a unique flavor to the army in his position. His rabbonim told him that he should form a "prayer commando unit" - he should form a select group of rabbonim that will daven every time the division is in distress.

Eitam says that Rav Mordechai Eliyahu was the "commander" of this special commando unit, and he would call him at any hour of the day or night if something serious was going on with their unit.. One time, a unit went into a mine field by Musawa. These were laser triggered mines, and the unit found themselves right in the middle of the field, in a very difficult situation. It was the middle of the night, and the moment the commander updated him with the situation, he immediately called Rav Eliyahu and the other rabbonim and asked them to daven for the unit.

While the rabbonim were davening for the unit, Rav Eliyahu told Eitam  that he should the order to to immediately leave the mine field. Just walk right out. Eitam asked for confirmation, as the mines could be activated at any moment. The rav repeated his instructions that the unit should be told to leave the area. Eitam says he gave the instructions and the unit began to leave.

While this was happening, Eitam says, he heard over the communications that area commander of Hizballah was complaining that he was not able to activate the mines, and he has a whole IDF unit trapped in the field. This Hizballah commander kept complaining, frustrated that he couldn't do anything.

The moment, Eitam says, the commander in the field reported that the last soldier had gotten out, he told Rav Eliyahu they can stop praying. Moments later, right after the rabbonim stopped davening, the whole field of mines exploded. (source: Srugim)

An amazing story of Rav Eliyahu's power and effectiveness of prayer, and I would add that it took a lot of emunas chachomim for him to move his men through an active mine field on the words of a rav.

Just when it looked like the Bank of Israel had come to a simple and easy decision, and there was not much to fight about, the decision on the new bills, and what images would grace them, has been put on hold.

Turns out, nothing is an easy decision.

Menachem Begin's family, his son Benny Begin and others, oppose his image being used. he was a very private and modest person and would not want his image on the bills.

The haredi reps said that while they would not turn it into a crisis, they oppose having the image of a woman on the bills.

A new proposal, put forth by many, is to have a religious leader's image grace the bills, and that would be the image of Rav Mordechai Eliyahu zt"l.

So, in the meantime, the decision has been put on hold while all these issues get debated and worked out. As they say, it ain't over till the fat lady sings...

The upcoming Christian and secular holidays, Christmas and New Years, fall out on two consecutive Saturdays. I don't know how often that happens, and I doubt Torah Tidbits will give us the stats and the probabilities for such a sequence.

Rabanit Tzviya Eliyahu, the wife of Rav Mordechai Eliyahu zt"l, realized the opportunity this would present in the sense that on two consecutive Shabbos days Jews will not have a need to go to work. She saw the opportunity presented that it would therefore be easier to encourage people to keep shabbos, thus presenting the opportunity have all or most Jews keep two Shabbatot in a row thus guaranteeing the immediate arrival of Mashiach, as per the dictum of the Gemara.

She got a team together and they promoted their message in a number of countries. They say the response has been tremendous. Obviously not every Jew is going to keep Shabbos completely, but perhaps enough will, the one Jew who will tip the scales will be keeping Shabbos in some way, and Mashiach will come.

The Rabanit says that before her husband died he said that the time is ripe and all the conditions have already been met and all we need is just the one Jew who will tip the scales, and the redemption will be immediate. He said, everything happened already, including the war of Gog and Magog, and we have experienced everything we need to experience. We are ready.

Rav Mordechai Eliyahu zt"l was by all accounts a very special rav and beloved by all factions, sectors and groups.
I read an interview, a couple of weeks ago, with his son Rav Shmuel Eliyah, the Chief Rabbi of Tzfat. He said that since the death stories of his greatness have been pouring in non-stop. Some stories related miracles the rav had been involved in performing for people. Some had been stories that showed his sensitivity, caring and empathy to every person from the simplest to the greatest of people. Rav Shmuel Eliyahu said they were compiling stories into a book.

An interesting story was printed in this book that was just published. I have not seen the book, but Ynet has reported on it.

I am not going to translate it completely, but will review it briefly.

It came to light after his death that Rav Modechai Eliyahu had been a judge on a special, secret, beis din that had been formed of mekubalim. His participation was meant to be kept secret, and only after his death did the other mekubalim feel it appropriate to tell his family about it.

This beis din met once a year and debated whether or not the jewish people were "ready" for the geulah. Has the time of geulah come yet, or not.

The beis din debated it and paskened that the time for geulah has come.

I would venture to suggest that the purpose of this is a concept we have that when beis din down here in this world paskens a certain way, the beis din above in heaven follows suit and paskens the same way. If that is correct, this would have been a way to "force God's hand", kevayachol, and bring the geulah.

As part of the beis din, they kept detailed ledgers of the arguments and logics presented, along with the final decision issued by the beis din. In a very unusual move, Rav Eliyahu was buried with the folder of documentation of the proceedings of the beis din. The purpose was for Rav Eliyahu to take the folder to the beis din above and show them how they debated the issue, the logic presented, how they came to their decision, and the decision that it is time for the geulah.

This, too, would be a step in "forcing God's hand".

This was all revealed to the family right after the death, as the mekubalim had to tell them about it so that they could bury the rav with the folder.

Let us hope that Rav Eliyahu's powers of persuasion are good enough to work wonders up there!

Achas L'Maala pointed out this story being told of Rav Mordechai Eliyahu, zt"l from when he first became a dayan in the rabbinical court of Beer Sheva:

When Rabbi Eliyahu first became a dayan in Be’er Sheva, in 1957, his was the only rabbinical court in the entire south, between Eilat and Be’er Sheva. On his first day on the job, he saw a woman standing outside, praying from a small Book of Psalms. She remained outside all day. The next day, the rabbi saw the same thing, and the next day again, and so on. Finally, he asked the court secretary to ask her to come in. He asked her why she stood outside and prayed all day, and she related in all innocence: ‘I came on Aliyah [immigration to Israel] from Morocco by myself, and they sent me to Be’er Sheva. I asked where the closest rabbinical court was, I was told it was here, and so here I am.’

He asked her, “What are you praying for?” and the woman said, “My husband in Morocco was a taxi driver, and a week after we were married, at the end of the Sheva Brachot [the seven days of wedding festivities], he crashed - and his body was never found... After a while, I went to the rabbis to be declared a widow so that I could remarry, but they said that without a body, they could not be certain that he was dead – and so I remained a ‘chained woman’ [aguna, unable to marry]. But when I came to Israel, I had faith that what the rabbinical courts in Morocco could not accomplish [in permitting me to remarry], the courts in Israel would be able to do.”

Rabbi Eliyahu asked, “So why did you remain outside the court? Why didn’t you come in to the dayanim?”

The woman said, “Who are you? I pray to G-d, not to you!”

Rabbi Eliyahu immediately took up her case. He took all her papers and went to the Baba Sali, who told him of his brother, the Baba Haki, a leading rabbi in the Israeli city of Ramle who was familiar with all those engaged in Jewish burials in Morocco. Rabbi Eliyahu traveled to Ramle, where the Baba Haki told him, “There were only two Jewish kavranim [people engaged in burials] in Morocco, and both have since come to Israel. One lives in Dimona and one lives in Kiryat Ata [near Haifa].”

Rabbi Eliyahu said, “I live in the south, so I might as well try Dimona.” He went to the exact address supplied to him by the Baba Haki – only to find that the man’s family was sitting shiva for him; he had died just a few days earlier.

Quite disappointed, Rabbi Eliyahu went in anyway, shared some words of Torah and solace with the mourning family and friends, and explained why he was there. Immediately, a man jumped up and said, “I am the other kavran, and I know that story! I was the one who buried the taxi driver!”

Rabbi Eliyahu asked him to accompany come him to other rabbis, who questioned him and determined that his testimony was acceptable. Rabbi Eliyahu convened the rabbinical court, and the woman was declared “unchained” and permitted to remarry.

“This is the power of prayer,” Rabbi Eliyahu later said, “both hers and mine.”

Yechezkel asks some good questions about the story, and I have another one - how is it that the beis din in Morrocco never was able to confirm his death? Did they not have the ability to ask the only 2 kavranim at the time, and Rav Eliyahu was able to ask many years later?

Rav Eliyahu was a great man.. one of the greatest of our generation they say. I had the opportunity of meeting him once, in his sukka by his house, and saw him numerous times in public appearances. He was great, but he was especially refined. He was kind and greeted everyone warmly and equally.

Perhaps that is why he succeeded in helping the woman when others could not. While not knowing why the beis din in Morrocco did not succeed, perhaps his success in resolving her situation was because of his approach - he treated her, and her situation, along with the way he treated everybody else with whom he came into contact, as if she was the most important person at that time.

That level of empathy, the feeling of urgency to help someone in distress, that sympathy to the plight of someone in need, that, perhaps, gave Rav Eliyahu the strength to succeed and become so great. That gave him the siyata d'shmaya.

Along with the power of prayer, as Rav Eliyahu himself said.

Rav Mordechai Eliyahu just passed away.

Baruch Dayan HaEmmes

The levaya will be at the beis medrash of Rav Eliyahu zt'l in Kiryat Moshe at 22:00.

B'yahchad BS has arranged a bus leaving for the levaya from RBS at 20:30 from the Matnas, and from Migdal HaMayim (by the shul) in BS at 20:45.

The legend of the watch of the Baba Sali is famous. The Baba Sali gave his watch to his prized student, Rav Mordechai Eliyahu (he should live long and be strong) and said that when it gets to 12, the Mashiach will arrive. The watch for many years was famously nearing 12:00.

Rav Shmuel Eliyaho, in an interview to the Chabad website, COL, was talking about mashiach and said that Mashiach is already here, just we have to open the door for him. Rav Eliyahu then said that his father recently told him that the watch has struck 12, and "what are we waiting for now?"

Perhaps he is waiting for an ishur from the askanim....

Seriously though, the story of the watch is famous, and this latest revelation is going to be exciting for many people.

For the interview and for a link to see the video of the full interview, see the COL website...

Last week a story was going around about soldiers who saw a woman in Gaza in different places and she warned them not to go into certain buildings. She identified herself as Rachel.

People were skeptical about the story.

Here is a link where you can watch Rav Shmuel Eliyahu, in a shiur at Machon Meir, talking about the recent story of Mamme Rachel in Gaza. He says he asked his father, Rav Mordechai Eliyahu, if the story is true and can be believed.
He says

his father responded, in these words precisely (I am translating into English), "I said to her - Rachel. There is a war. Do not stop yourself from crying. Go before Hashem and daven for the soldiers who are giving themselves up for the Jewish nation, that they should hit and not be hit."

Rav Shmuel said to his father, "So you should know that she went there."

Rav Mordechai Eliyahu responded, "Did she say I sent her?"

Watch the video clip, in Hebrew. The specific part of the clip begins at about 2:55 or so.

Rav Mordechai Eliyahu is famous for having been one of the students of the Baba Sali. He was considered the best of the students and is known to be a brilliant kabbalist, along with his other qualities.

(Rav Eliyahu should have a refuah shleimah)

There is a story that is clouded in mystery. Supposedly, before the Baba Sali's death, the Baba Sali gave to Rav Eliyahu a gold watch and told him that this is the watch of the mashiach. He supposedly said that when the watch would strike 12 the mashiach would come.

The watch was obviously not a regular watch and its hands did not move at the speed of a regular watch. Over the years, every once in a while, it would advance by some time.

Over the past few years, rumor has had it, that the watch, which remains locked up in a safe in Rav Eliyahu's home, had hit a minute to 12. If true, it is meant to be an indication that mashiach is close. But it stayed at 11:59 all this time and did not advance any further.

Rav Eliyahu has been sick and recuperating in the hospital recently. Reports now have it, or perhaps it is just rumors, that the watch has advanced to 12. In the article about it, some of the details are different than those I have heard over the years, but they are insignificant differences (such as I heard Baba Sali gave it to him but in the article linked it says Baba Sali's son gave it to him. I heard 11:59 and article says 11:55).

It is worth noting that Rav Shmuel Eliyahu says nobody has seen the watch recently and nobody dares to go check it out. They are waiting for the rav himself to feel better enough to go home and look at it himself. That being so, I do not know how rumors could have started that the watch has struck 12, if nobody saw the watch recently.

Halevai that the rumor should be true and the arrival of mashiach should be imminent!