The mainstream news in Israel on Sunday leads with the death of a prominent national author, 83-year-old Yoram Kaniuk. The niftar, who died following a difficult illness in Ichilov Hospital, refused Jewish burial and decided to leave his body to scientific research. He wrote about that decision in the daily Haaretz, explaining “I donated my body to science so that I will continue to exist a few years after I die, and the young doctors will learn about me what doctors know these days about what they do. In my mind, for a moment I gained a few more years, and like Moses, no one knew my burial place because I made sure there would not be one. And from this, my descendants will benefit.”
Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Yonah Metzger announced on Sunday, 2 Rosh Chodesh Tammuz 5773 “While I am very pained by his decision, as well as the legal battle he fought, permitting a Jew to declare himself without a religion, the Chief Rabbinate of Israel will make certain Kaddish is recited for him during the year for after all, he was a Jew.”
Kaniuk was married to a non-Jew and fought in the courts to have his nationality removed from his identity card to replace it with the words “without a religion” as was reported by YWN-ISRAEL in 2011.
Zaka’s Rav Yaakov Rosa, who has waged many a battle over the years to prevent an autopsy, is quoted by Kikar Shabbat speaking of the irony of this case, with the niftar deciding to defy the Halachic requirement of kvura. He explains that is why we say “מנוחת עולמים” which can only take place for the neshama when the body is buried as required.
In a ruling appearing in the sefer Chazon Ovadia of Maran HaGaon HaRav Ovadia Yosef Shlita, it says one should not mourn a person who requests donating a body to science for it is written
בקשתו של הנפטר היא עבירה על חוקי התורה ואין לציית לה.
This being the case, Rav Metzger decided to announce publically that he feels Kaddish should and will be recited for the niftar.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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5 Responses
No Kaddish will help this Rasha. having his body for an autopsy is the least of his problems. The other evil things he did is a lot more worrying and no Kaddish will help him. The “Chief Rabbi” is giving a really bad example by whitewashing this Rasha. If they want to help they need to go around the country and the Jewish world and bringing the Torah to the nation.
fool
TzViD
are you a musmach who can pasken who is a rasha or not. don’t be judgmental about someone else. who knows what he saw in his life to make him this way.
#1&2
Saying kaddish for a Jewish Niftar is not whitewashing anything, its a chiyuv and commendable. Read what Rav Lau wrote about Tommy Lapid after he was niftar and you might learn something.
#1, this morning we both said נשמה שנתת טהורה היא. It sounds from that as though saying kaddish is much in order. Another reason for not withholding kaddish is that yisurim in the present world atone for sins in the present world, and Kaniuk appears to have gone through plenty of both.