Israel’s Chief Rabbi and Rishon LeTzion, Rav Dovid Yosef, delivered an emotional and deeply moving hesped on Wednesday at the funeral of Master Sergeant Ran (Rani) Gvili HY”D, whose body was finally brought to burial after being recovered from Gaza following two years of agonizing uncertainty.
Thousands attended the levayah in the southern community of Meitar, where Rav Yosef spoke words of grief, faith, and national reflection, drawing a powerful historical parallel between the present tragedy and the destruction of Beitar during the Bar Kochba revolt nearly two millennia ago.
In his remarks, the Rishon LeTzion recalled the horrors inflicted by the Romans after the fall of Beitar, emphasizing the cruelty of denying burial to Jewish victims and the profound meaning of Ran Gvili finally being laid to rest in a Jewish grave.
“The Gemara tells us that during the Bar Kochba revolt, Beitar was destroyed and the Romans carried out a horrific massacre of the Jews,” Rav Yosef said. “Tens of thousands were slaughtered and murdered. But the Romans were not satisfied with the massacre itself — they wanted to break the spirit of the Jewish people, and they did not allow the bodies to be buried. They used the bodies of Jews to build fences for their vineyards, erecting a barrier eighteen kilometers by eighteen kilometers, as tall as a person. From this we understand the magnitude of the catastrophe and the unimaginable number of those killed in the destruction of Beitar. These events occurred about fifty years after the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash, some 1,900 years ago. Only much later did the Romans allow the bodies to be buried. Our sages instituted a special blessing in response — the blessing of HaTov VeHaMeitiv. To this day, we recite it in Birkas Hamazon. ‘HaTov’ — that they were given burial, and ‘HaMeitiv’ — that the bodies had not decomposed. They remained whole.”
Rav Yosef then drew a direct and haunting connection to the present day.
“1,900 years have passed, and history is repeating itself,” he said. “The entire Jewish people has been fighting to bring our fallen soldiers to a Jewish burial, and here too, the miracle has returned. Ran Gvili comes back whole — whole in body. Wonder of wonders. The G-d of Israel, the Holy One, blessed be He, loves us. The nations of the world — not so much. Sadly, we are dealing with antisemitism. We are a people that rose up and simply wants to survive, wants to live — and the world accuses us. When we seek to defend ourselves, the verse says, ‘The Jews gathered and stood up for their lives,’ yet the world directs its arrows specifically at us. Unfortunately, there is no logical solution to antisemitism. We must fight it, but we must also understand — they hate us because we are Jews. And we must be proud that we are Jews. We are the chosen people of the Holy One, blessed be He. ‘Behold, a nation that dwells alone.’ Yes, we still dwell alone — but we are Jews, and we must take pride in the fact that we merited to be the people of Hashem. As the verse says, ‘All the peoples of the earth will see that the Name of Hashem is called upon you, and they will fear you.’ In the end, the Jewish people live forever. Nothing will help them — we are here because this land is ours, the land of our forefathers, given to us by the Holy One, blessed be He, and we will be here forever, with G-d’s help.”
Toward the end of his address, Rav Yosef turned to the social fabric of Israeli society and issued a heartfelt call for unity, particularly around bereaved and wounded families. He spoke with admiration of the strength shown by the Gvili family and the way their struggle united the nation.
“Rabbosai, it is no secret that we are living through an extremely difficult period, a time of deep internal division,” he said. “Everything we have gone through in recent years reflects a great crisis. But we must also look at the half-full cup. There is no other nation like ours — when one person is hurt or when a soldier falls, the entire people grieves and mourns. When there was a terror attack in faraway Australia, on the first night of Chanukah, I went to the Kosel to light the menorah, and it felt like Tisha B’Av — all of us in deep pain. Ultimately, we are one people. Everything we have experienced proves that we are still one nation, that we love one another. We have a great mission around which we can unite.”
He continued, “We have seen the heroism of the Gvili family. I met the dear parents. They shook the world. The entire world stood astonished, watching how a whole nation fought for what? To return a fallen soldier. To bring a fallen son home. We have much to be proud of — and we also have thousands of broken-hearted families. ‘What shall I testify to you, to what shall I liken you? For your breach is great as the sea,’ says the prophet. We have thousands of bereaved parents, siblings, orphans, and widows. We have a great responsibility to encourage, to strengthen. We have many wounded. Each and every one of us must unite around them. This is how we are one people. We hurt, and when we show them that we hurt with them, we strengthen them — and we strengthen ourselves as well.”
Addressing the family directly, Rav Yosef concluded, “Dear Gvili family, may Hashem comfort you among the mourners of Tzion and Yerushalayim. The entire Jewish people stands with you. On this day, you merited to unite all of Am Yisrael around you. May you be comforted from Heaven. Amen, may it be His will.”
{Matzav.com}
