The Rabbi Who Crossed Boundaries: The Remarkable Journey of Rabbi Aharon Mendel

The desk of Rabbi Aharon Mendel, the Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Cairo, was piled high with books. It was 1898, long before computers, but sheets of paper lay about, filling up with thoughts and ideas. A new book titled 'The Soul and the Kaddish' was about to join Rabbi Mendel's impressive collection. This work delved into the fascinating topic of proving the soul's immortality through tradition and Jewish mysticism. It was sure to make waves in an era still dominated by the simplistic Enlightenment of the 19th century.

But Rabbi Mendel was about to leave his desk, his family, and his community behind. Today, he boarded a ship in the port of Cairo, headed for Europe. His motivation? The pressing condition of the Jewish people. Despite his extensive work in his community and his globally distributed books, he wasn't satisfied. He felt the urgent need to act, to wage Hashem's battle. The Enlightenment was seducing young Jews like ripe fruits, and he believed rabbis needed to unite, rise above differences in customs and traditions, and work together to strengthen faith and bring about redemption!

Born in Tiberias to a family from Lithuania, Rabbi Mendel descended to lead the congregation in Egypt before he embarked on a unique journey through Europe. On his travels, he met with hundreds of rabbis and community leaders, pleading and urging them: Let us unite, let us come together to make decisions. Some turned away, questioning his authority in their humble generation. Critics compared his initiative to the Enlightenment or deemed it impractical. But by the journey's end, 500 rabbis from all over Europe had joined the 'Knesset Gedolah,' among them Rabbi Elijah Akiva Rabinowitz from Poltava and the Rebbe from Zvihl. Thus, in 1903, the World Rabbinical Congress convened in Krakow, initiated by Rabbi Mendel, to seek a way to raise the banner of the Torah and find suitable means to strengthen faith and unite the scattered.

Yet, until the last moment, it wasn't clear who would fund the congress. Then, Rabbi Elijah Bakhor Hazzan of Alexandria, knowing many philanthropists as a global fundraiser, found an American donor, Jacques de Menasce, from a prominent Alexandrian family. Though living in the United States, de Menasce covered the entire expense, allowing the congress to proceed smoothly and successfully. Rabbi Mendel recorded the discussions and decisions in a special book, 'Knesset Gedolah,' and they were also reported in the orthodox European press, particularly in 'Hapeles.'

But Rabbi Mendel wasn't finished. He saw the need to establish the Sanhedrin and scouted for suitable land in Jerusalem. He initially acquired a large tract in what's now Bayit VeGan, intending to establish a new neighborhood with the Sanhedrin at its center. But the area was too far from old Jerusalem at the time, so he bought another plot between Bezalel Street and Nahlaot, where he indeed established the 'Knesset Israel' neighborhood, named so to this day, although the Sanhedrin has yet to stand there...

In 1917, thirty years after becoming the Ashkenazi community's rabbi, some of Rabbi Mendel's wealthy supporters thought they could sway him spiritually. 'You speak fluent German, why not preach in German in the synagogue as the progressive do? That way, everyone will understand you.' Rabbi Mendel knew this was a hallmark of the Enlightenment and Reform movement, so he refused staunchly. The patrons threatened and pressured him, ultimately dismissing him for defying them.

Unfazed, Rabbi Mendel stated that he had no interest in a rabbinical position if it meant compromising his beliefs. He packed his belongings and books, leaving the rabbi's house that had been his home for thirty years. Perhaps the Ashkenazi community was pained by the scene, but they dared not oppose the assertive patrons. The Sephardic community, however, who knew him and his work, did not stand idly by. That very day, Rabbi Raphael Aaron Ben Shimon, the Sephardic chief rabbi of Cairo, invited Rabbi Mendel to serve on the Sephardic rabbinical court, asking him to join their community and continue his impactful work.

For ten years, Rabbi Mendel served as one of the rabbis of Cairo's Sephardic community, during which he continued advocating for the Sanhedrin and settling the land of Israel. In his twilight years, he decided to move to Israel and settled in Haifa.

In 1928, Rabbi Aharon Mendel passed away and was buried in the 'Knesset Israel' cemetery in Haifa, symbolically preserving the name of his great project, the unification of rabbis and the renewal of the Sanhedrin.