The Last Chief Rabbi of Aleppo, Hacham Yom Tob Yedid, Who Led His People With Courage & Strength
Who was Hacham Yom Tob Yedid? Most people respond to this question with awe, tinged with warmth or fear or both. They talk about his single-minded devotion to Torah, his unbelievable hatmadah, his kedushah, his roar.
His roar? “Like a lion. If a person acted disrespectfully in shul or to a talmid hacham, Hacham Yom Tob called him out. He was not afraid of anyone. Back in Halab, he even put people in herem,” recalled his talmidim fondly.
Fondly?
Yes, fondly.
For it was that uncompromising loyalty to Hashem that kept them strong. While living under a totalitarian government, bereft of mentors and peers of his caliber, with a skeletal collection of sefarim, Hacham Yom Tob became a talmid hacham, trained the next generation of hachamim, and kept his people loyal to Hashem so that, when they finally arrived in the free world—decades after most other Jews—they helped rejuvenate the communities that they entered.
“He was like a hacham of the previous generations,” was another refrain.
He was a dayan, hazzan, sho’het, mo’hel, sofer, and trained others as well. He taught every man and boy in the community, and knew each one by name. He spent every moment either serving his kehillah, or learning Torah, to the point where he did not attend the weddings of his own grandchildren for more than 10 minutes.
And, above all else, he “roared” for the sake of Heaven. In his lifetime, Hacham Yom Tob did not have to “roar” often. He achieved a level where people were afraid of him before he roared.
And now he looks down, from his exalted place, and sees the children and grandchildren of his talmidim learning in yeshivot. He sees all the Torah being learned in Shaare Zion, all the talmideh hachamim coming out of his community, and The Last Lion “roars” with victory and happiness.
In a saga that spans more than a century, For the Sake of Heaven, a brand new biography published by ArtScroll/Mesorah Publications, takes us on an epic journey from Halab of old, to tree-lined Brooklyn streets. With its fascinating twists and turns, this biography about Hacham Yom Tob Yedid, written by Devora Gliksman, author of the bestselling Nouri, reads almost like a novel, leaving us awed as we see so clearly the impact of one who devotes his life to teaching and studying Torah.
Read this book to be inspired by this incredible story of heroism, courage and the power granted to one who is totally devoted to Torah. The book is available at your local Hebrew bookstore, at artscroll.com, or by calling 1.800.Mesorah.
