The Torah world was plunged into mourning on Motzei Shabbos (Motzei Shvi’i shel Pesach) upon hearing the news of the petirah of HaGaon HaRav Meir Nissim Mazuz, Z’tl, Rosh Yeshivas Kisei Rachamim in Bnei Brak, at the age of 80.

The Rosh Yeshivah has been weak in recent months and was hospitalized, with his situation becoming critical over the past week.

The Rosh Yeshivah was marbitz Torah to thousands of talmidim in his yeshivah and tens of thousands of people who attended his shiurim, and established many mosdos Torah.

HaRav Mazuz, z’tl, was born in Tunisia in 1945, a bechor to his father, HaGaon HaRav Matzliach Mazuz, H’yd, a dayan who was one of the leaders of Tunisian Jewry and the founder of Yeshivas Kesei Rachamim in Tunis.

He learned in Yeshivas Chevras HaTalmud as a boy and in Yeshivah Ohel Yosef Yitzchak of Chabad in Tunis as a bochur. When he came of age, he married and established a family of six children.

In 1972, after his father, HaRav Matzliach, H’yd, was murdered by an Arab, HaRav Mazuz, z’tl, and his family and his brothers, HaRav Tzemach and HaRav Rachamim, moved to Eretz Yisrael.

Later that year, the brothers founded Yeshivas Kesei Rachamim in Bnei Brak. The mosdos of the yeshivah include daycares, pre-schools, Talmudei Torah, girls’ schools, a high school, yeshivos ketanos, yeshivos gedolas, and kollelim in Bnei Brak, Jerusalem, Elad, Emmanuel, Bat Yam, Akko, and other cities.

In 1977, the brothers established the Rav Matzliach Institute, which publishes siddurim, Tehillim, and sefarim.

HaRav Mazuz was very meticulous about the precise Sephardi pronunciation of the letters of the Hebrew language, especially in tefillah and Kriyas Hatorah and endeavored to impart and preserve it in his shiurim and sefarim.

Regarding the preservation of the minhagim of kehillos in the Golah – and in particular of Djerba Jewry in Eretz Yisrael, HaRav Mazuz took a middle position – between the opinion of HaRav Ovadia Yosef on the one hand, who believed that in every matter, one should follow the opinion of the Beit Yosef and the minhag of Eretz Yisrael, and the position of other North African Rabbanim on the other hand, such as HaRav Shalom Messas, who believed that one should not change at all from the minhagim of the Gola. HaRav Mazuz’s position was that when the Beit Yosef was more machmir than the minhag in the Gola, one should act according to the Beit Yosef’s opinion, even though Rabbanim were more meikel in the Golah. But if the minhag in the Golah was more machmir, the minhag should be preserved.

Rav Mazuz served as the Av Beis HaDin of the Mishpat Tzedek Beis Din L’Mamaonos, and in his later years, he served as a consultant only for difficult and complex cases.

HaRav Mazuz published dozens of sefarim in all areas of the Torah.

כל בית ישראל יבכו את השריפה אשר שרף ה.

The levaya took place on Sunday, Isru Chag, beginning at Yeshivas Kisei Rachamim in Bnei Brak at 1 p.m. The Rabbanim of Badatz Neve Tzion announced a bittul melacha in Bnei Brak during the levaya.

Tens of thousands of Jews from across Israel flocked to Bnei Brak for the levaya. No hespedim were delivered, in accordance with the niftar’s tzaavah, but the maspidim spoke words of chizzuk and hisorrerus. Maspidim included the niftar’s brother, HaGaon HaRav Tzemach Mazuz; his only son, HaRav Gideon Mazuz, HaRav Yisrael Meir Lau, and Chief Rabbanim HaRav Kalman Bar and HaRav Dovid Yosef.

During the levaya, HaRav Mazuz’s younger brother, HaGaon HaRav Tzemach Mazuz, was appointed in his older brother’s place as the Nasi of Yeshivas Kisei Rachamim and its mosdos.

The kevurah took place at the Ponevezh beit hachayim, where the niftar was buried next to his Rabbanit, a’h, and their daughter, a’h.

(YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated on Isru Chag in Israel)