On the occasion of the “Sheloshim”, of my dear mother, Bertha Lopes Cardozo a’h, 26 Shevath, 5767, February 14th, 2007
Some reflections
Just before Rabbi Avraham Yaacov passed away, he complained bitterly about the length of the exile and the fact that the coming of the Mashiach was taking too long.
He then said the following:
“Lord of the Universe. I know I do not have the merit to enter Heaven, together with the righteous Jews of my generation,
So, perhaps You can permit me to enter Gehenna with all those Jews who are not righteous.
But you know, Lord of the Universe, how much I despise those who violate Your Torah.
How will I be able to be to dwell with them in Gehenna?
Therefore I beg You to move all those sinful Jews in to Heaven, so that I can be alone in Gehenna”.
Passed away on the fifth day of Nissan. 1827
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At the time that unborn twins need to depart, at the end of their nine months in their mother’s womb, one says to the other: |
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“My brother, I feel that I am leaving this world, my death is near. You will now be alone” And his brother will cry But when he passes away and leaves the womb and leaves his brother behind there is a mazal tov on the other side. |
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When Rabbi Simcha was near the end of his life and his wife stood at his bedside crying, he said the following words: My love, why do you cry? Life was just given so as to know the art how to die.
Passed away on the twelfth day of Elul, 1827
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Death is horrible, hard and black ******* Real life starts long before existence commences ****** In the Torah nobody dies ****** Life is beautiful when it is carried by the body ***** The righteous even in their death, they are called alive. Berachoth 18b Just as there is death while one lives. So there is life when one has died ****** The body is not a jail, but an accommodation. Each accommodation is for a short duration. Only the continual is eternal. Life is the task. Each moment can be a great achievement. Rest comes later, after the achievement, never before or in the middle.
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When a righteous person dies, Heaven becomes more beautiful. For the Righteous it is a privilege to die. |
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Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
Rabbi Dr. Nathan Lopes Cardozo is the Founder and Dean of the David Cardozo Academy and the Bet Midrash of Avraham Avinu in Jerusalem. A sought-after lecturer on the international stage for both Jewish and non-Jewish audiences, Rabbi Cardozo is the author of 13 books and numerous articles in both English and Hebrew. He heads a Think Tank focused on finding new Halachic and philosophical approaches to dealing with the crisis of religion and identity amongst Jews and the Jewish State of Israel. Hailing from the Netherlands, Rabbi Cardozo is known for his original and often fearlessly controversial insights into Judaism. His ideas are widely debated on an international level on social media, blogs, books and other forums.
