The Sun Set at Noon
90 years since the days of mourning for the passing of one of the great men of his generation, the genius Rabbi Meir Shapira z”l
The revered and mighty leader whose vision and power of leadership illuminated the face of the Jewish world in all corners of the world, passed away after a short illness exactly ninety years ago. His untimely departure shook the hearts and hurt Jewish communities everywhere.
There are few leaders who have left such a strong mark on the earth as this historical leader, whose influence for nearly a hundred years has been growing, becoming more and more praised, and his bright, influential and conquering character continues to shine light in the lives of hundreds of thousands.
Much has been written about the character of the rabbi, and Ganzach Kiddush Hashem’s exhibit “Light of Lublin” touched the hearts of thousands of teenagers, as well as the study kits and commemorative works of Ganzach Kiddush Hashem that deal with the character and legacy of the rabbi z”l.
Ninety years have passed since those days of mourning, and now is the time to take out from the archives photos and documents from that period and be moved by the sounds, the echoes, the impressions and the feelings that accompanied those distant days. As well, we think about the horrifying thought that millions of Jews who courageously lived at that time did not know that within a few years the vast majority of them would no longer be here…Above, to the firmament of Heaven, they would soon rise from infernal tortures and murder, and very soon they would meet the revered leader in the yeshiva in Heaven.
The Lubliner Tagblat newspaper on the day of Rabbi Shapira’s death
A description of the day of his death in the book Meir B’Ahava
The funeral on Lubartoska Street
Link to a description of the funeral as well as the obituaries in the Lubliner Tagblat newspaper (in Yiddish): https://forum.otzar.org/download/file.php?id=64625.
The gravestone
Yiddishe Tagblat newspaper
His original grave in Poland today (he was reburied in Israel)
“A Great Mourning for the Jewish People”
The Chachmei Lublin yeshiva’s desperate call for help
“Long live the victorious Israeli army” – A Rosh Hashana greeting card from survivors with an image of Rabbi Meir Shapira
Ganzach Kiddush Hashem’s archives holds photos of Rabbi Meir Shapira’s father, Rabbi Yaakov Shimshon Shapira, participating in lessons his son gave in the Chachmei Lublin yeshiva. Rabbi Yaakov Shimshon Shapira survived the war and in 5708 (1948) made efforts to bring his son’s coffin to Israel. Here is a news item about the plan and how it finally was carried out in 5718 (1958).
