At the ceremony marking the installation of Rabbi Yitzchak Vardi as chief rabbi of Kiryat Ono, Israel’s Chief Rabbi Kalman Meir Bar spoke about his partnership with Sephardi Chief Rabbi David Yosef. Bar said, “Rabbi David and I are servants of the public,” stressing that the role of chief rabbis is a public mission, not one of authority or status.
Bar explained that the key to their relationship is humility and shared duty. Referring to a traditional teaching about the moon, he said the issue is not the complaint itself but the language of kingship, adding that “mission is not royalty, it is servitude.” He said he and Yosef are “servants of the public” and that this allows them to carry out their role “in true brotherhood and friendship.”
The chief rabbi also praised Rabbi Vardi’s election, saying it followed years of dedicated service to the community. He said Vardi did not remain in an ivory tower, did not act with arrogance, and did not distance himself from people, but rather had “his mind mixed with the people.” Bar added that, as in the traditional account of Joshua ben Nun being chosen because he arranged the benches and spread the mats, a leader must be a servant of the people of Israel.
He invoked Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook’s signature, “servant of the holy people in the holy land,” and said Vardi embodies that same spirit of total dedication to public service. Bar concluded that this quality is essential for succeeding in the important new position Vardi has now taken on.
