Rabbi Moskowitz Memory #7: Immortality in This World
This is the last of the Facebook posts I wrote during the period immediately following the death of my rebbi zt"l. Like the others, it still holds true today.
The Torah content for this week has been sponsored by Judah and Naomi Dardik in honor of Rabbi Moskowitz's second yahrzeit and in appreciation for all those whose love of Torah and excitement for ideas shines in their teaching.
Click here for a printer-friendly version of this article.
In honor of the second yahrzeit of my rebbi, Rabbi Morton Moskowitz zt"l, I will be reposting all the "Rabbi Moskowitz Memory” Facebook posts that I wrote during the period following his passing.
Rabbi Moskowitz Memory #7: Immortality in This World
I'm writing this on June 21st, 2022 (22 Sivan 5782), shortly after the conclusion of the joyous (yes, joyous) occasion of Rabbi Moskowitz's shloshim memorial. These two hours were filled with wonderful ideas, anecdotes, and memories of Rabbi Moskowitz, shared by students, friends, and family all over the world.
If you had the privilege of knowing Rabbi Moskowitz, or if you missed out but you want to get a clear sense of who he was and what he was like, I urge you to watch or listen to the recording of the shloshim. (see below for the video and) One of my friends put it aptly in a text he sent to me afterwards: "That was a dream team of speakers. And they painted an incredible picture of Rabbi Moskowitz in a short period of time. The most impactful two hours I've experienced in a long time."
I'm not even going to attempt to summarize in this short write-up what was said this evening. Instead, I'd like to recount in writing what I, myself, shared at the very end of the shloshim, which was an observation about the shloshim itself.
Tonight, we heard from dozens of people from all ages and walks of life, spanning 50 years. Each person spoke about their own personal relationship with Rabbi Moskowitz - yet, we all felt like this was exactly the Rabbi Moskowitz we knew and loved! I found that it didn't matter whether or not I had previously heard the particulars that were mentioned. I just repeatedly found myself smiling and nodding and thinking, "Yup! That is SOOO Rabbi Moskowitz!"
I was reminded of a quotation from a novel which I have slightly modified to suit the occasion:
“I often think that he’s the only one of us who’s achieved immortality. I don’t mean in the sense of fame and I don’t mean that he won’t die some day. But he’s living it. I think he is what the conception really means. You know how people long to be eternal. But they die with every day that passes. When you meet them, they’re not what you met last. They change, they deny, they contradict – and they call it growth. At the end there’s nothing left, nothing unreversed or unbetrayed; as if there had never been an entity, only a succession of adjectives fading in and out on an unformed mass. How do they expect a permanence which they have never held for a single moment? But [Rabbi Moskowitz]? – one can imagine him existing forever.”
That is the feeling I had upon hearing what everyone had to say. Make no mistake: Rabbi Moskowitz certainly did change and grow. He repeatedly joked that Mrs. Moskowitz should have their marriage annulled because "I'm not the same man I was when she married me." He was a truly independent thinker. As many of the speakers said, he had no ego attached to his own ideas, and readily changed his mind when shown to be wrong or when a better idea was suggested. His constant reinvention of himself and his ever-evolving methodologies were a core part of who he was.
It is that core which endowed him with the aforementioned quality of "immortality." Rabbi Moskowitz was not consistent in his ideas over the course of his life, but he was consistently himself. That essence of Rabbi Moskowitz was the constant thread that ran through all the stories tonight, and expressed itself in all the colorfully diverse ways we heard about this evening.
But Rabbi Moskowitz was more than that. In "Halakhic Man" Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik describes what it means to be a man of God:
"But there is another man, one who does not require the assistance of others, who does not need the support of the species to legitimate his existence. Such a man is no longer a prisoner of time but is his own master. He exists not by virtue of the species, but solely on account of his own individual worth. His life is replete with creation and renewal, cognition and profound understanding. He lives not on account of his having been born but for the sake of life itself and so that he may merit thereby the life in the world to come. He recognizes the destiny that is his, his obligation and task in life ... He is not passive but active. His personality is not characterized by receptivity but by spontaneity. He does not simply abandon himself to the rule of the species but blazes his own individual trail. Moreover, he, as an individual, influences the many. His whole existence, like some enchanted stream, rushes ever onward to distant magical regions. He is dynamic, not static, does not remain at rest but moves forward in an ever-ascending climb. For, indeed, it is the living God for whom he pines and longs. This is the man of God."
This was Rabbi Moskowitz. Chazal teach us that "tzadikim, even in death, are called 'living.'" As a man of God, he achieved this level of immortality. Rabbi Moskowitz is no longer with us, but one thing was clear from tonight's event: the life he lived continues in the hearts and minds of the countless people he touched.
Here’s a link to the audio recording of the shloshim memorial. Video is below:
If you have any thoughts on this or any of your own memories of Rabbi Moskowitz you’d like to share, I would love to hear them! I’ll make sure they reach Mrs. Moskowitz as well.
Like what you read? Give this article a “like” and share it with someone who might appreciate it!
Want access to my paid content without actually paying? If you successfully refer enough friends, you can get access to the paid tier for free!
Interested in reading more? Become a free subscriber, or upgrade to a paid subscription for the upcoming exclusive content!
If you've gained from what you've learned here, please consider contributing to my Patreon at www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss. Alternatively, if you would like to make a direct contribution to the "Rabbi Schneeweiss Torah Content Fund," my Venmo is @Matt-Schneeweiss, and my Zelle and PayPal are mattschneeweiss at gmail. Even a small contribution goes a long way to covering the costs of my podcasts, and will provide me with the financial freedom to produce even more Torah content for you.
If you would like to sponsor a day's or a week's worth of content, or if you are interested in enlisting my services as a teacher or tutor. Thank you to my listeners for listening, thank you to my readers for reading, and thank you to my supporters for supporting my efforts to make Torah ideas available and accessible to everyone.
-----
Substack: rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss
YouTube: youtube.com/rabbischneeweiss
Instagram: instagram.com/rabbischneeweiss/
"The Stoic Jew" Podcast: thestoicjew.buzzsprout.com
"Machshavah Lab" Podcast: machshavahlab.buzzsprout.com
"The Mishlei Podcast": mishlei.buzzsprout.com
"Rambam Bekius" Podcast: rambambekius.buzzsprout.com
"The Tefilah Podcast": tefilah.buzzsprout.com
Old Blog: kolhaseridim.blogspot.com/
WhatsApp Content Hub (where I post all my content and announce my public classes): https://chat.whatsapp.com/GEB1EPIAarsELfHWuI2k0H
Amazon Wishlist: amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/Y72CSP86S24W?ref_=wl_share