It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the petirah of Rav Shlomo Mordechai Hager zt”l, a distinguished talmid chochom, descendant of renowned Chassidic dynasties, and a respected figure in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn. He was 96.
Reb Shlomo Mordechai was a descendant of the Kossov–Savron lineage and was known throughout Crown Heights for his exceptional brilliance and encyclopedic knowledge of Torah.
The levayah is being held at the Shomrei Hadas Funeral Home on 14th Avenue in Borough Park, proceeding to Montefiore Cemetery in Queens for kevurah.
Reb Shlomo Mordechai was born in Yerushalayim. His father was a grandson of the Savroner Rebbe, Rav Moshe Tzvi of Savron, and he was also a grandson of the Toras Chesed of Lublin. The sandek at his bris was Rav Avrohom Yitzchok Kook.
In his youth, Reb Shlomo Mordechai studied for many years at Yeshiva Torah Vodaas in Brooklyn. He also developed a close kesher with Rav Aharon Kotler, who held him in great esteem.
During a period living in Eretz Yisroel, Reb Shlomo Mordechai spent 16 years learning at Kollel Chazon Ish in Bnei Brak. He later settled in Crown Heights, where he continued his lifelong dedication to Torah study, earning a reputation as an extraordinary illui and a master of Torah.
In recent years, Reb Shlomo Mordechai drew public attention after sending a letter to Donald Trump, who responded with a personal letter expressing appreciation for his words and offering support. Reb Shlomo Mordechai also met with Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Reb Shlomo Mordechai is survived by his family and descendants. His son is philanthropist Reb Yitzchak Meir Hager.
Yehi zichro boruch.
{Matzav.com}
Dear Matzav Inbox,
There has been an avalanche of criticism — videos, emails, posts, and commentary — aimed at Eli Stefansky over his Daf Yomi AI rap video and some of the antics that have found their way into his (pre-game) shiur. The tone of much of it has been harsh, dismissive, and, at times, deeply unfair.
But the truth, as it so often is, does not live at the extremes. It lives somewhere in the middle.
On the one hand, the criticism is not entirely baseless. The AI gimmicks, the games, the entertainment factor … at a certain point, it does cross a line. When silliness becomes part of a shiur, something precious risks being diluted. We are not dealing with a talent show or a late-night comedy sketch. We are learning the heilige Gemara, the words of Abaye v’rava, Ravina and Rav Ashi. This is the beating heart of Torah Shebaal Peh. This isn’t color war.
And yet — and this is the part that so many critics refuse to acknowledge — you cannot argue with success. Eli Stefansky has brought an untold number of people into Torah learning. People who were disconnected. People who never opened a Gemara. People who felt that Daf Yomi was beyond them. He doesn’t just teach Torah. He made it accessible, exciting, and alive for thousands. That matters. A lot.
To dismiss that because the style is not to everyone’s taste is unfair.
At the same time, success brings responsibility. When you are influencing that many people, the “ramah” (level) has to rise. A shiur cannot feel like a circus. Energy is good. Passion is good. Creativity can be powerful. But dignity matters too. Torah deserves reverence, not just reach.
So yes, the pile-on has gone too far. The attacks have been excessive, personal, and at times mean-spirited. But it is also fair to say that say that Eli now needs to elevate the tone, tighten the boundaries, and remind everyone — himself included — that while Torah can be engaging, it must always remain sacred.
Criticism without appreciation is cruel. Innovation without restraint is dangerous. The balance between the two is hard, but it is exactly where true growth happens.
Wishing Eli hatzlacha. I know he’ll do the right thing.
A Daf Learner
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Leah Tzipporah Goleventzitz a”h, approximately 3-½ months old, and Aharon (Ari) Katz a”h, an infant of about four months.
Authorities are continuing to investigate the precise cause of death amid mounting questions surrounding a suspected poisoning and revelations that the facility was operating without the required license.
Both infants were evacuated from the scene and transferred to the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute, where external medical imaging tests, including CT scans, are expected to be conducted without autopsy in an effort to determine whether a toxic substance entered their bodies.
At this stage, officials say the exact cause of death and the source of the suspected poisoning remain unknown.
In total, 55 infants were evacuated from the daycare following the incident. Two were pronounced dead, while the remaining 53 were taken to hospitals across the city for medical evaluation.
Health officials said all hospitalized infants are under observation and that their conditions are currently described as good.
Leah Tzipporah Goleventzitz was the daughter of Rabbi Mordechai Goleventzitz, a talmid of Yeshiva Ateres Yisrael and the son of Rabbi Binyamin Goleventzitz of the Ramot Shlomo neighborhood. Her mother, Mrs. Bracha Goleventzitz (née Rolnik), is from Romema. After their marriage, the family lived in Pisgat Ze’ev and had recently relocated to Romema. Leah is survived by her parents and a younger brother.
Leah’s father, Motti, works as a driver and was in the middle of a route at the time of the incident. He was unreachable for nearly two hours until relatives managed to contact him and convey the devastating news.
Leah’s mother later posted a brief message expressing her grief: “My Leah, thank you for being mine. Your soul will be within me forever. Baruch Dayan HaEmes.”
The second infant, Aharon (Ari) Katz, had begun attending the daycare that very day for the first time. He was the son of Rabbi Yaakov Katz. His mother, Mrs. Chana Katz (née Eisenbach), works at the Tachshik jewelry store on Rechov Shamgar. A relative of the family wrote that this was the first and only time since Ari’s birth that his mother had left him for several hours with a caregiver she knew personally and trusted, adding: “We do not know the calculations of Heaven.”
As the investigation continues, enforcement and health authorities are focusing on multiple possible scenarios. During the afternoon hours, a concern was raised that a gas leak from heating systems may have caused the incident. However, Fire and Rescue officials ruled out that possibility.
Fire Commissioner Shmulik Friedman, commander of the Jerusalem District, said no heating devices were found in the room where the infants were located other than an air conditioner, and a gas leak from that unit was definitively excluded.
Police forensic teams collected evidence from two apartments in the building in which the daycare operates. Three caregivers who were present at the time of the incident were detained for questioning and are being interrogated regarding the daycare’s daily routine, the care provided to the infants, and whether any unusual substances or materials had entered the facility in recent days.
Adding to the severity of the case, the Education Ministry confirmed this evening that the daycare was a private framework operating without the license required by law. The ministry described the incident as “grave and deeply tragic” and said it is maintaining close contact with law enforcement authorities as additional details emerge.
Residents of the neighborhood, however, said the daycare has operated in the building for roughly three decades and was widely regarded as an established institution within the community.
In the political arena, members of the Knesset faction of United Torah Judaism expressed profound shock at the opening of their faction meeting and placed responsibility on government decision-makers.
Faction members sent condolences to the bereaved families and wished a speedy recovery to the infants who were injured. They sharply criticized government policy in recent years, arguing that the cancellation of daycare subsidies for working mothers imposed crushing financial pressure on families and led to severe overcrowding in remaining facilities.
“We warned again and again, in real time, about the cancellation of the subsidies,” the faction said. “We said clearly that the harm is not only to working mothers, but first and foremost to the infants themselves— to their safety and to their health.”
United Torah Judaism members said those responsible for setting policy bear heavy responsibility for the events and called for an urgent reassessment of daycare subsidy structures and oversight mechanisms to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
Umacha Hashem dimah me’al kol ponim.
{Matzav.com}
