Parshas Bo 5774
Bo: To man and to G-d, a tribute to Rabbi Efraim Greenblatt
When we said farewell to Rabbi Efraim Greenblatt, z’l, of blessed memory, I
remember how strange it was. You mean Rabbi Greenblatt won’t be in Memphis
anymore? Rabbi Greenblatt was Memphis. People still ask me, so is Rabbi Efraim
Greenblatt there? It was hard to imagine our shul, our community without the
presence of his scholarship, his warmth, his outreach to so many.
But then we became used to the situation; Rabbi Greenblatt is not here. But he
is there. He is one phone call away, and many called him all the time. We can
go visit him, and many have. Our mission to Israel made a routine of visiting
Rabbi Greenblatt for a dinner together each year. But now to imagine, not only a
Memphis without Rabbi Greenblatt, but a world without Rabbi Greenblatt, this is
much harder to fathom.
But if we ask ourselves, what was so special about Rabbi Greenblatt and what
made him so beloved and so missed?
Read the rest of Rabbi Finkelstein's drasha here
I have 2 memories of Rav Greenblatt. The first memory was the very first time I came to Anshei, it was Friday night. I had a lot of anxiety because I thought people would judge my lack of experience davening. I davened right next to Rav Greenblatt in the last row and he was very nice and made me feel welcomed and talked to me after the service.
ReplyDeleteThe other memory I have was seeing him in Israel at a group dinner about a year ago. I was impressed how well he remembered me. It was an honor to have dinner with him.