Grave of Rabbi Mendel Weg’s Mother Discovered in Old Safed Cemetery After Decades
Rabbi Mendel Weg, a revered figure in the Hasidic community of Tiberias and a prominent transmitter of the Salons-Lawkowitz teachings, is buried in the old cemetery of the students of the Baal Shem Tov in Tiberias. For decades, the burial site of his mother, Chaya Sarah Weg, remained unknown, troubling thousands of her descendants. Born around 1862 to Rabbi Tzvi Fischer, Chaya Sarah married Rabbi Yechiel Michel Weg from Ober-Wishiva, with whom she had several children, including Rabbi Mendel. After her husband’s death in 1894, she moved with her children to Safed in 1896, where she remarried off her children, including Rabbi Mendel around 1906.
Rabbi Mendel traveled abroad before World War I and was unable to return to Tiberias during the war. During this time, his mother passed away in Safed and was buried in the old cemetery there. Rabbi Mendel later recounted that she had saved money for her burial expenses, as her children were not nearby at her death. Despite knowing her yahrzeit was on the 29th of Menachem Av, Rabbi Mendel could not determine the exact year of her passing.
Efforts to locate her grave continued for decades, including attempts by Rabbi Mendel’s grandson, Rabbi Avraham Weg, and later by Rabbi Yaakov Segal of Bnei Brak, who enlisted the help of Rabbi Moshe Tzvi Weg, a son of Rabbi Mendel. Although they narrowed down the date of death to between 1915 and 1919, the grave remained elusive.
Recently, Rabbi Binyamin Panteliat discovered the long-lost grave in section Kaf of the old Safed cemetery, near the graves of Rabbi Isaac Luria and Rabbi Leib Baal HaYesurim. The gravestone, mostly buried in earth, bears the inscription of Chaya Sarah, daughter of Rabbi Tzvi, with the date 29 Menachem Av 5678 (1918). The grave has been restored and cleaned with the assistance of Rabbi Eliyahu Ben Tovim of Safed. Descendants can now visit the site to honor her memory. For further information, contact Rabbi Yaakov Segal at 052-7649790.
