Rabbi Matisyahu Salomon, a longtime spiritual counselor at America’s largest yeshiva who spearheaded a movement to warn vigilant Jews of the dangers posed by the Internet, died on January 2 in Lakewood, New Jersey. . He passed away at the age of 86.
The death was confirmed by Rabbi Avi Shafran, director of communications for Agudath Israel of America, an umbrella organization for numerous Hasidim and other ultra-Orthodox groups. He said Rabbi Salomon had been ill for many years.
Rabbi Salomon held the title of dean of students for 30 years at Beth Medrash Govoha, a religious school in Lakewood that serves about 9,000 students and is the only Mir Yeshiva in Israel. However, through his weekly lectures and personal encounters, he achieved far more influence than the title suggests by guiding thousands of young people to ethical and godly behavior.
Many of his followers became leaders of Hadi, or ultra-Orthodox communities that abound in Brooklyn, England, Israel, and even small enclaves around the world.
He used his influence in a campaign he led a decade ago to warn observant Jews that new technology threatened observance of the laws, traditions and principles that are the foundation of their faith.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews, like their non-Jewish and more secular neighbors, were enthusiastic about the benefits of computers, the Internet, and smartphones. But Rabbi Salomon and other community leaders have made it clear that these new technologies also pose a risk of misleading devout Jews with videos. Images or ephemeral content that distracts from family life, daily religious duties, Torah study, or other tasks.
Their concerns came to a head on a Sunday night in May 2012 at a rally that filled 40,000 seats at Citi Field, home of the New York Mets. The stadium was filled almost entirely with ultra-Orthodox Jewish men, and the 20,000-seat Arthur Ashe Stadium, normally used for tennis tournaments, was oversubscribed as women were offered another location to watch the live broadcast. The crowd was packed.
It was significant that the gathering was organized by two rabbis from a major sect of ultra-Orthodox Ashkenazi Judaism. Rabbi Salomon was a disciple of the so-called Litvish sect, which until World War II was the center of Lithuania’s famous yeshiva and was the priority in Lithuania. Rabbi Israel Portugal, grand rabbi of the Skren Hasidim, who, like other Hasidim, values the scholarly study of the Torah and Talmud as much as scholarship.
Speakers at the gathering urged attendees to limit their Internet use to business and other practical concerns and to avoid frivolous social media, pornography, and other sites that get in the way of Torah study and relationships. I asked you to avoid it. Rabbi Salomon said at an earlier gathering in Lakewood that the gathering’s organizers are seeking God’s help in combating the “evil tendencies” that cause people to wander the Internet.
Speakers at the rally did not call for a ban on internet use. But they urged the audience to adapt their computers and other electronic devices to filters designed to block content objectionable to observant Jews. Ultimately, Orthodox Jewish communities around the world established approximately 50 offices, known by the acronym TAG (Technology Affairs Group), to provide technical assistance in blocking problematic content. did.
Rabbi Salomon, a broad-bearded British-born man with a seductive, gentle voice, found what he was asking for demanding. The following month, he continued to speak in Flatbush, Brooklyn, and appeared to soften the mood of the gathering, pointing out that the pursuit of holiness was “presented as a promise, not as a command.”
“Hashem wants us to know that all we have to do is want to be holy,” he says, using God’s alternative title, which means “name.” he said. “God knows every person’s difficulties. He just needs to know what you want and what you understand.”
“Don’t give up,” he added. “Don’t say it’s impossible.”
Rabbi Binyomin Schoenblum, 43, of Lakewood, a disciple of Rabbi Salomon, said Rabbi Salomon’s internet campaign and Monday night standing-room-only ethics lecture were “done with love.” ” he said.
“It’s not like somebody was shot in the head,” he said. “He wanted what was best for your soul.”
Rabbi Salomon was also known for teaching about decent behavior, touching on conduct that may not be explicitly covered in Jewish scripture.
After his death, Rabbi Shafran wrote a column in which he recalled hearing about the incident in Gateshead, northern England, where Rabbi Salomon grew up and worked as a young man. A police officer who tried to stop a snowball fight between several students that was causing a nuisance to neighbors was himself beaten and treated with disrespect. The next morning, Rabbi Salomon appeared with the chief constable and announced to the entire classroom: “I cannot teach you Torah until you learn how to respect the laws of the society in which you live.” To the surprise of the students, he strode out of the room.
Matisyahu Chaim Salomon was born on November 28, 1937 in Gateshead, a city with a flourishing Orthodox community. He was one of eight children of Yaakov Salomon and Ettel (Falk) Salomon, owners of a small general store. His parents had fled Germany with the rise of Hitler and the Nazis.
After receiving his basic Jewish education in London, Matisyahu returned to Gateshead and studied at a yeshiva.
When he was 16 years old, his father died, leaving his mother to raise the children alone. His experiences shaped Rabbi Salomon’s compassionate view of Jewish precepts, students said. At Gateshead Yeshiva, Rabbi Salomon became assistant mashgiach ruchani, or assistant spiritual director. Within a few years, he became senior superintendent, a position he held for the next 30 years.
In 1960 he married Miriam Falk, the youngest of a family that wrote several important religious commentaries. She passed away in 2016. His survivors include three sons, Yaakov Yehuda, Moshe, and Meir Salomon. seven daughters, Naomi Jacobs, Nechama Weinberg, Ettel Halpern, Chani Gittelson, Esther Knopf, Rochelle Solotkin, and Rifka Perkowski; two brothers. and many grandchildren.
He was appointed spiritual director of Lakewood Yeshiva in 1997 and remained in that position until his death. Rabbi Schoenblum said that on the first Friday night after he arrived at the yeshiva, students lined up to greet him with “Gut Shabbos,” and one student brazenly said, “So, here we are. “What are your plans for Lakewood?” he asked.
“Do you see people standing in this line applying?” replied Rabbi Salomon. “My plan is that each of these people should have a bigger smile on their face.”
