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“I will give them in My house and in My walls a place and a name,
better than sons and daughters; an everlasting name I will give him,
which will not be discontinued.”
Isaiah 56:5
Ahuva Balofsky, Breaking Israel News (BIN) — Israel’s Foreign Affairs Ministry has released details about the four men who were
killed by terrorists Tuesday morning while attending prayer services in Jerusalem. The men were all immigrants from English-speaking countries, including three Americans. They were all residents of Jerusalem.
Rabbi Moshe Twersky, 59, originally from Boston, immigrated to Israel in 1990. He lived next door to the Kehillat Bnei Torah synagogue where he was killed. Twersky came from a well-known family in the worldwide Jewish community; he was the eldest son of Boston’s Rabbi Isadore Twersky, founder of Harvard’s Center for Jewish Studies, and a grandson to one of Modern Orthodoxy’s greatest leaders, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik. Twersky was the head of the Torat Moshe Yeshiva, one of the country’s first post-high school Torah study programs to cater to English-speaking foreign students. He is survived by his mother, brother and sister, wife, five children and ten grandchildren.
Twersky was buried the same day in Jerusalem, where he had chosen to make his home. At his funeral, which was attended by thousands, his youngest son, Avraham, spoke. “Father, everyone saw your greatness, but there was so much more below the surface that people didn’t know,” he said tearfully.
“You never took offense from anyone and always forgave others,” he continued.
“Who will lead me under the wedding canopy now, who will guide me and tell me what to do?” he cried.
Avraham called attention to his father’s connection with God, even in his final moments. “You lived with self-sacrifice for others, and you departed this world at the highest level, wrapped in your tallit [prayer shawl] and tefillin [phylacteries], with the words of Shema Yisrael on your lips, going toward God.”
Twersky’s cousin and close friend, Rabbi Moshe Meiselman, also serves as dean of the Torat Moshe Yeshiva. He spoke of Twersky’s devotion to his students. “His sons were his students, and his students were his sons,” he said, calling his death a great loss to the Torah world.
One of Twersky’s students, speaking on behalf of his fellows, agreed. “God gave us a special soul…Everyone knew that they could always get some time to learn with him directly, since he found it impossible to refuse a request to study with one of his students.”
Rabbi Avraham Shmuel Goldberg, 68, was a British-born rabbi who moved to Israel in 1993. “He was the most wonderful person you could meet, a pillar of the community,” said one of Avraham best friends, David Osborne. “All he wanted was to live a peaceful life. His family are the nicest people you could meet. They had lots of children and several grandchildren.”
According to Osborne, Goldberg had been a regular at the Kehillat Bnei Torah synagogue. “Avraham prayed there most days for the past 10 years or so; he was a devout Jew with no political agenda. All he wanted was to live a peaceful life.” Goldberg was a husband, father of six and a grandfather.
Goldberg’s family issued a statement saying they would not be giving press interviews. “The Goldberg family accepts the divine decree with love,” they said.
Rabbi Kalman Ze’ev Levine, 55, moved to Israel from the Kansas City after his marriage. Levine devoted his life to Torah study, splitting his time between Kehillat Bnei Torah and another institution in the city. According to his neighbor, Levine “was always the last one praying at the synagogue. He would get up at sunrise and go to bed at two in the morning. He hardly slept and always had a book in his hand.”
Levine’s son, Yerachmiel, said the following about his father in his eulogy: “My father would study (Torah) all day long and would return home at night only to learn some more until he would fall asleep in his chair. Abba (Father), you were in the middle of saying the Shema (prayer) when your soul left your body and the terrorists came and murdered you.”
Levine is survived by his wife, nine children and five grandchildren.
The fourth fatality, Aryeh Kupinsky, 43, also immigrated to Israel from the US. He worked in computers and attended the Kehillat Bnei Torah synagogue regularly. He was described as a kind man, always looking for ways to assist others. “You were a man of kindness, with modesty and humility,” his brother Chaim eulogized. Kupinsky’s family is no stranger to tragedy, as his 13-year-old daughter died in her sleep two years ago. He leaves behind a wife and five surviving children.
Avi Nefoussi, a volunteer medic who lives a few blocks from the synagogue, arrived during the shooting. He helped evacuate some of the wounded. “Then, unfortunately, we saw some bodies lying on the floor,” he said. He came across Kupinsky, whom he “knew personally, very well.” Kupinsky’s prayer shawl was still wrapped around his shoulders, as it is during daily prayer, and sometimes at burial. Nefoussi took his friend’s prayer shawl and covered the fallen man’s body before leaving.
All four men were buried yesterday in Jerusalem. A fifth victim, a Druze police officer who struggled with the terrorists, succumbed to his injuries later that night. Zidan Sayif leaves behind a wife and infant daughter. Several of the wounded remain in hospital, including one in serious condition.
Ahuva Balofsky grew up in Toronto, Canada and obtained her B.A. Hons. and B.Ed. at York University. She taught Tanach, Rabbinics and English at the Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto. After making Aliyah in 2004 with her family, she completed a Master's degree in Tanach at Bar Ilan University, and currently teaches Bible studies and English.
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