The Committee of friends of Torah Institutions in Azerbaijan,
under the leadership of HaRav Moshe Kishon (Kashei), chief
rabbi and av beis din of Azerbaijan, has decided to
organize a special visit by a delegation of rabbonim, public
personalities and philanthropists which will soon depart for
the country, to strengthen the local community and to address
the issue of how to increase spiritual rescue and strengthen
Torah there.
HaRav Moshe Kishon (Kashei) has been active in recent years
in Azerbaijan and has succeeded in reviving
Yiddishkeit there, including Torah-true schools, a
yeshiva and a halachically-based community. From the very
beginning he merited the brochos of Morenu HaRav Shach
ztvk'l, and ylct"a today's gedolei
Yisroel.
Over the past two years there have been a series of worrisome
reports from Azerbaijan concerning a string of acts of
harassment which have endangered the activities of
strengthening Yiddishkeit and spreading Torah in that
country, with the express purpose of disrupting the work of
the Chief Rabbi of Azerbaijan and his close students. The
disgraceful attempts to make difficulties for, and hamper,
the impressive chizuk and outreach activities which
have been carried out in the last few years amongst the Jews
of Azerbaijan, have caused great distress to gedolei
Yisroel, who have expressed their pain about the
resulting chilul Hashem as well as their worries about
damage which may have resulted to all the Torah and
educational enterprises which have been painstakingly setup
there.
As a result of this HaRav Shmuel Auerbach sent the following
letter of chizuk to the Jews of Azerbaijan. "I am
sending you this letter to recognize the great standing of
the great, highly-esteemed, truly G-d fearing gaon,
who is full of wisdom, understanding and knowledge, HaRav
Moshe Kashei (Kishon) shlita. I have known him well
for many years and we have discerned his greatness in Torah
and extraordinarily pleasant middos. At the
recommendation of the Rosh Kol Bnei Hagolah Maran HaRav Shach
ztvk'l he went to settle in Azerbaijan some eight
years ago, and has done things and helped others do them with
enormous mesirus nefesh, and he serves there as chief
rabbi and av beis din of that country. He has set up
many Torah institutions with great enthusiasm and astuteness,
including many yeshivos, boys' and girls' schools and
chessed organizations, and he is utterly honest,
scrupulously trustworthy and totally G-d-fearing.
I am requesting of all the Jews in Azerbaijan — men,
women and children — to listen to this honorable rav
and gaon, HaRav Kashei shlita, regarding
everything. Those who do so will be greatly blessed in all
things. And may Hashem's pleasantness be upon you."
In a second letter HaRav Auerbach addressed the
philanthropists, asking them to assist in expanding the holy
ventures there, and to enable HaRav Kishon to continue both
of his undertakings: that of spreading Torah and
Yiddishkeit and also the establishment of Torah-true
schools with no non-Jewish enrollment. Admission of non-Jews
is a tendency that has managed to infiltrate even the "Jewish
institutions" in the area, which have experienced distressing
upheavals and reforms since the harassment towards the local
rav began.
He writes in this letter:
"The high esteem in which the great man, who constantly
exerts himself for Torah, HaRav HaGaon Moshe Kashei (Kishon),
is well-known. His reputation goes before him and his praises
are sung because of his laudable endeavors in spreading Torah
and strengthening Yiddishkeit. He settled in
Azerbaijan more than eight years ago as an emissary, and at
the recommendation, of the Rosh Kol Bnei Hagolah Maran HaRav
Shach ztvk'l, and he disseminates Torah and
strengthens and draws Jews' hearts closer — there in
Azerbaijan — to their Father in Heaven, with remarkable
mesirus nefesh. He has, with G-d's help, single-
handedly founded Torah, educational and chessed
institutions and built up a splendid community.
From the time that he was chosen by the Jewish community
there and with the recommendation and brochoh of
gedolei Yisroel, as chief rabbi and av beis din
of the country, he has been fighting the war of Hashem to
prevent assimilation, Heaven forbid, and he has guarded
against any breach in upholding the purity of Jewish descent
by not allowing non-Jews to be registered in various
institutions, an area which has been neglected and violated
to a vast extent in our generation. HaRav HaGaon Moshe Kashei
shlita has been on full alert to safeguard this."
HaRav Shmuel Auerbach ends with his blessing and support to
HaRav Kishon, "who I know well and who is famed for his
honesty, trustworthiness and fear of G-d," and he adds, "now
that he has been given further support for everything we have
already mentioned, he has taken even more on himself to
increase the amount of holy projects."
The Committee of Friends of Torah Institutions in Azerbaijan
has resolved that a situation of outside pressures such as
this one calls for implementing a counteraction: `so we will
increase and multiply.' It has therefore declared that there
will be a surge of activity in the Torah institutions in
Azerbaijan headed by HaRav Moshe Kishon (Kashei). The special
visit by the delegation of rabbonim and philanthropists,
which will soon leave for the country, is intended to show
support for the chief rabbi and av beis din of
Azerbaijan, and to expand the projects for spiritual rescue
and strengthening Torah there.
