Subscribe to Print Edition | Fri., December 19, 2008 Kislev 22, 5769 | | Israel Time: 02:53 (EST+7)   Back to Homepage web haaretz.com Haaretz Toolbar Diplomacy Defense Jewish World Opinion National Print Edition Car Rental Books Haaretz Magazine Business Real Estate GA 2008 Travel Week's End Anglo File

A precious light dims with Yakar founder Mickey Rosen's death By Raphael Ahren, Haaretz Correspondent Tags: jewish world, israel news Tributes came in from all over the world for Rabbi Michael (Mickey) Rosen, one of the most popular and most revered Anglo rabbis in the country, who died Sunday in Jerusalem, aged 63. Rosen had a rare condition called Mitochondrial myopathy. He had been in a coma for three weeks after sustaining serious injuries in a fall. Best known for founding the Modern Orthodox Yakar communities in London and later in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Rosen was also committed to social activism and political engagement in many different areas. Advertisement Yakar in Jerusalem's Old Katamon neighborhood is known for its soulful, Carlebach-inspired prayer services and is very popular with the city's English-speakers. "Mickey's wife Gila is surrounded by a mob of people," Rosen's mother-in-law, Micheline Katzersdorfer, said yesterday about the shiva at the Rosen residence. She wasn't exaggerating. At around noon the house was filled with around 100 people of all ages and religious orientations. Relative and visitors spoke animatedly, recalling fond memories of Rosen that touched on his deep spirituality and the respect and openness with which he greeted every person he met. "At the funeral, so many people came up to me and told me that Mickey had completely changed their lives," Katzersdorfer said. "It reminded me of when he was the rabbi of Sale, a suburb of Manchester, in the 1980s. Under his influence a whole group of people became so enveloped in yiddishkeit, that they all immigrated and moved to Jerusalem together. He was the hero of the town, but not because of that. They loved him because he played on the football team," Katzersdorfer said. "For somebody who believed as deeply as he did and was so careful about Halacha, his openness toward secular wisdom, his seeing truth in secular wisdom and his progressive, liberal political understanding, were a special and valuable contribution to religious life in this country," Rabbi Levi Lauer, a close friend, said. "In Israel, religion is often seen as something primitive, people either practice it even though they see it as primitive, or they don't do anything at all," Rabbi Yehoshua Engelman, who was the rabbi of Yakar in London before being recruited by Rosen to lead the new Yakar branch in Tel Aviv, said. "Mickey was someone who passionately tried to show that the Jewish God is also an intelligent God. In Yakar, he showed that religion is not primitive, that it can be worthwhile, that it can classy, intellectual and serious and also spiritual, deep and challenging. Mickey always wanted people to challenge themselves." Rabbi Rosen is survived by his wife Gila, six children and seven grandchildren. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Picking up the pieces U.S. Jews ponder 'catastrophic' effects of Bernard Madoff affair. Little Adolf Three-year-old Adolf Hitler finally gets his name on his birthday cake.   1.   It`s Ratzersdorfer, not Katzersdorfer 06:07  |  Glenn Richter 12/12/08   2.   yakar 07:45  |  rut 12/12/08

Read & React 3-year-old Adolf Hitler finally gets his name on his birthday cake Responses: 177 Barak: Iran could attack the U.S. with a nuclear bomb Responses: 132 Britain steps up fight against West Bank settlements Responses: 180 Leftist U.S. Jewish group backs Israelis who shun IDF draft Responses: 68 Jews of Yemen reportedly to be relocated in wake of deadly attack Responses: 33 More Headlines 00:14 Israel: We hold Hamas responsible for any future Gaza violence 01:10 Olmert: It is possible to negotiate peace deal with Syria 01:12 Eilat crash driver under house arrest; bodies of Russian victims flown home 23:34 Labor youth hand out condoms to avoid being 'screwed by Netanyahu' 02:32 Shady land deal unfolds from West Bank to California strip mall 00:04 IN PICTURES / The victims of Bernard Madoff's fraud scam 00:04 Palestinian journalists protest for release of Iraqi colleague who threw shoes at Bush 20:29 Want to help improve the Haaretz.com homepage? 01:54 Bush, Rice to host Palestinian leader Abbas in goodbye visit 22:28 Radioactive bomb-detection system installed in Haifa port 01:41 Netanyahu to Sarkozy: Israel can`t accept ongoing Gaza rocket fire 01:14 VIDEO / Hadassah Women: We lost $90 million in Madoff's Wall Street scam 15:53 School teacher dies after falling eight meters into Golan Heights stream 12:11 Israel bites back at UN watchdog over alleged strike on Syria reactor 10:59 Leftist U.S. Jewish group backs Israelis who shun IDF enlistment 14:46 Dozens of police officers injured in botched civil unrest drill 10:17 Exclusive Jewish country club feels the sting of Madoff fraud Previous Editions Select Day 18 dec 17 dec 16 dec 15 dec 14 dec 12 dec 11 dec 10 dec 09 dec 08 dec 07 dec 05 dec

Special Offers Advertisement Summer in Israel Israeli style - Tzofim Chetz V'Keshet 2009 Summer Camp in Israel The best place for your children this summer Living in Israel Studying in English Click & Meet our students from all around the world Fattal Hotel Chain Perfectly located hotels on best resorts of Israel. Car rental in Israel Shlomo Sixt Receive $15.00 from our low rates. Eldan Rent a Car Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on all online reservations Jewish Singles Personal Ads Find the love of your life on JDate.com Hebrew Summer courses From $39.95 Junkyard Junk a car - get free towing nationwide and a tax-deductible receipt

Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Underground | Site rules |

Real Estate in Israel | Travel to Israel with Haaretz | Hotels Israel | Restaurants Israel | Tourist attractions Israel | Shops Israel

birthright Israel | Search engine marketing

Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.

© Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved