New Books and Educational Projects Bring Rabbi Eliyahu’s Legacy to a Wider Audience

Moshe Halevi, one of the members of the “Darkei Mordechai” group, spoke at the yahrzeit commemorations for Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu of blessed memory about new Torah projects designed to preserve his legacy, including a halachic volume and a new educational project for children. Halevi, a member of the yeshiva students’ group “Darkei Mordechai,” appeared in the Channel 7 studio as part of the events marking 16 years since the passing of the former Sephardi Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu of blessed memory, and described a series of Torah and educational initiatives intended to continue his path and make his teachings accessible to the wider public. According to him, the group’s work focuses on disseminating the rabbi’s Torah and making his rulings and conduct accessible to the current generation.

One of the main projects is the annual volume “B’Darko,” which brings together Torah insights, articles, and halachic discussions based on the rabbi’s teachings. This year the volume reached a significant milestone with the publication of its 50th edition. Halevi said the volume includes dozens of rabbis, judges, halachic decisors, yeshiva heads, and yeshiva students from across the country, and is distributed to hundreds of study halls. He said the number of learners and writers grows each year, and interest in the rabbi’s teachings continues to expand many years after his passing. “These things are simply essential for our generation,” Halevi said. In his view, as the years pass, the great relevance of the rabbi’s rulings and outlooks becomes increasingly clear in many areas of halachic and social life, and the need to continue making them accessible to the public only grows.

Alongside the Torah activities, Halevi unveiled a new project for children that members of the group have been working on for more than a year. He said it is a special collection of stories based on stories that Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu himself used to tell and chose to share with the public, מתוך a belief that they carry important educational and moral messages. Halevi stressed that those involved in the project put great effort into verifying the material and cross-checking different versions of the stories from numerous recordings and documents. In addition, each story includes a brief overview of the rabbinic figures appearing in it, in order to give young readers background and a broader familiarity with the world of Torah in which the stories were set. He said the choice to focus specifically on stories the rabbi himself chose to tell gives the project a unique value, since these are educational messages that passed his personal filter and were intended to strengthen faith, good character, and love of Torah.

At the end, Halevi expressed hope for continued expansion of the Torah and educational activity surrounding Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu’s legacy. He said that producing books, study materials, and educational content based on the rabbi’s teachings is a meaningful way to continue his influence, strengthen the world of Torah, and pass on his values to future generations.