The street corner by
our house was black, full for the second time in less than 24 hours, with men
dressed in black suits and hats,
returning from a funeral.
Yesterday evening
of course, the crowds were much more massive. Rav (Rabbi) Vozner had died, and
the Jewish world came to mourn his passing. Unfortunately, the funeral ended in
tragedy when someone was trampled to death in the pushing and shoving. This was
a mere two blocks from my house. This
afternoon the casualty was buried, and people apparently felt a need to say
with their presence at HIS funeral that “This should never have happened.”
I am sure that Rav Vozner would agree. Indeed, I am positive, as my son told me this story this
morning:
Several years ago,
on the eve of the Passover holiday, my son went to watch Rav Vozner (and other
Rabbis) drawing water to bake matzot with, at the city well near our house.
Suddenly there was a lot of shoving as people strived to get closer for a
better look. Rabbi Vozner stopped in his tracks, refusing to continue until the
pushing stopped.
Unfortunately, he was not able, at his funeral, to protest
the unruly behavior…..
