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Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook Born: Latvia, 1865 Died: Israel, 1935 First Chief Rabbi of "Palestine" The first chief rabbi of what was
then Palestine, Rabbi Kook was perhaps the most misunderstood figure of his
time. Born in Latvia of staunch Chassidic
and Mittnagdic stock, he retained throughout his life a unique blend of the
mystical and the rational. He was a thorough master of the entire Halachic,
Midrashic, philosophic, ethical, and Kabbalistic literature. But more
important, he brought to bear the entire tradition upon the contemporary scene.
He saw the return to Eretz Yisrael as not merely a political phenomenon to save
Jews from persecution, but an event of extraordinary historical and theological
significance. Rabbi Hutner once said that Rav Kook peered down on our world from
great heights and hence his perspective was unique. Above all, Rav Kook pulsated with a
sense of the Divine. And, he sought to reach those who had strayed. He once
quoted the rabbinic dictum that one should embrace with the right hand and
rebuff with the left and commented that he was fully capable of rejecting, but
since there were enough rejecters, he was fulfilling the role of embracer. On
the other hand, he was never tolerant of desecration of Torah, as will be clear
to any objective student of his life and works. Though keenly aware of the huge
numbers of non-observant Jews, he had a vision of the repentance of the nation.
His concept of repentance envisioned in addition to the repentance of the
individual, a repentance of the nation as a whole; a repentance which would be
joyous and healing. He refused to reject Jews as long as they identified
themselves as Jews. In a noteworthy exchange with his great friend, admirer, and
opponent, Rabbi Yaakov David Willowski, Rav Kook explained the two components of
a Jew: his essential nature -- the pintele yid, and the path he had
chosen in exercising free will. Even if the second element were weak, as long as
the first was not repudiated, there was still hope. He called for and envisioned a
spiritual renaissance where "the ancient would be renewed and the new would
be sanctified." His vision of repentance disdained fear and apprehension
and looked forward to "the poet of Teshuva, who would be the poet of life,
the poet of renewal and the poet of the national soul waiting to be
redeemed." Rav Kook's printed works to date
are in excess of 30 volumes with many works still in manuscript. There are a
number of translations into English of a small fraction of his works. Selected Teachings of Rabbi Kook on the Land of Israel: ''Only by learning the secrets of Torah can a person experience the highest levels of holiness and the transcendental uniqueness of Eretz Yisrael.'' ''Rooted in kabbalistic literature is the understanding that Hebrew letters are the atoms and building blocks of the soul. When a Jew comes to live in Israel, his small individual letters expand to become the gigantic letters of the whole Jewish nation.'' ''Because the soul of a Jew is connected to all of the souls of the nation, the yearning of even one individual for the Land of Israel has a profound, multiple effect on all of the Jewish People. The mercy of G-d is aroused, and slowly, the nation begins to return to its homeland.'' Books of Rabbi Kook: War and Peace: The Teachings of HaRav Kook (English) The Art of T'Shuva : The Teachings of HaRav Kook (English) LIGHTS on OROT (English) Rav U'Manhig - Rav Kook (Hebrew) May the merit of the tzaddik Rabbi Yitzchak HaCohen Kook protect us all, Amen. |