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Сила Теилим

15 Tammuz · Yahrzeit

Yahrzeit/Hillula of Rabbi Yosei ben Chalafta - Tanna

Rabbi Yosei ben Chalafta was a fourth-generation Tanna, frequently mentioned in the Mishnah. Yahrzeit - 15 Tammuz Resting place - Kfar Chananya Rabbi Yosei ben Chalafta was a fourth-generation Tanna and one of the most frequently mentioned sages in the Mishnah, where he is simply referred to as Rabbi Yosei. He was a leading disciple of Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Yosei was close friends with Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Shimon, and Rabbi Meir, and the halacha was always decided according to his opinion in all of his disputes. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi was one of his primary students. After receiving semicha from Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava (an act punishable by death under Roman rule), Rabbi Yosei ben Chalafta fled to Asia, remaining there until the death of Hadrian. As a result of the same incident that caused Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai to hide in a cave, Rabbi Yosei was exiled to his hometown of Tzipori for remaining silent and not praising the Romans. In Tzipori, Rabbi Yosei ben Chalafta was a leader of the community and founded a large yeshiva. He is the author of the Baraita "Seder Olam." In his youth, Rabbi Yosei ben Chalafta once debated a Torah matter with Rabbi Elazar ben Shamua in the synagogue of Tiberias. In the heat of their argument, a Torah scroll was torn. Rabbi Yosei ben Kisma, who witnessed this event, remarked, "I would not be surprised if this synagogue were turned into a house of idolatry" - and indeed it later was. Throughout his life, Rabbi Yosei could not understand the verse: "and you shall grope at noon as the blind man gropes in darkness," for what difference does it make to a blind man whether it is light or dark, since he cannot see either way. Then one day Rabbi Yosei came upon a blind man carrying a torch. When Rabbi Yosei asked him why he needed a torch, the blind man replied that as long as he held the torch, others could see him and help guide him away from pits and obstacles. Rabbi Yosei is buried next to his father, Abba Chalafta, in Kfar Chananya. May the merit of the tzadik protect Am Yisrael! (http://www.zissil.com/topics/Rabbi-Yossi-ben-Chalafta)
Pilgrimage site: Grave: Yose ben Chalafta