Meir Mazuz מאיר מאזוז | |
|---|---|
 Mazuz in 2009 | |
| Personal life | |
| Born | (1945-03-27)27 March 1945 |
| Died | 19 April 2025(2025-04-19) (aged 80) |
| Nationality | Israeli |
| Spouse | Esther Mazuz |
| Parent |
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| Religious life | |
| Religion | Judaism |
| Denomination | Djerban/Tunisian |
Meir Nissim Mazuz (also spelledMazouz;Hebrew:מאיר מאזוז; 27 March 1945 – 19 April 2025) was a Sephardi-TunisianHaredirabbi in Israel,rosh yeshiva and a political leader.[1]
Mazuz was the dean of theKisse Rahamim yeshivah,[2][3] and the son of rabbi Mazliah Mazuz ofTunis (1912–1971), who was assassinated. Meir Mazuz served as the spiritual leader ofYachad. He was the rabbinic leader (mara d'atra) of theTunisian Jews.[4]
Mazuz was born inTunis, Tunisia to noted sage and scholar Rabbi Matsliah Mazuz, who was a judge in the high court of Tunisia and the dean of the originalKisse Rahamim yeshivah in Tunis, which he founded in 1963. Following the assassination of Matsliah by an Arab nationalist in 1971, Meir and his brothers Tsemah and Rahamim fled to Israel, where they re-established their father's yeshiva inBnei Brak.[5][6]: 3
The yeshiva became an elite institution that, apart from producing knowledgeable scholars, sought to make them into leading rabbis. It follows the traditional approach to learning done in Tunisia for centuries. The yeshiva later started its own press, theRav Matsliah Institute [he] (Mechon HaRav Matsliah) that prints the works of R. Matsliah Mazuz as well as other Jerban or Tunisian scholars, andprayer books andtikkunim based on the customs of Jerba.[6]: 3 The yeshiva is connected to sevenTalmud Torahs for Sephardic children throughout the country.[7]
Mazuz died in 19 April 2025 after a long battle with illness and a deterioration in his health. He was 80.[8] His funeral was attended by thousands. His brother Tsemah will succeed him as the dean of Kisse Rahamim.[9]
Mazuz espoused a method of learning traditional to Tunisian Jews (though historically it was common to most Sephardic communities, originating from the influentialDarkhe Ha-Talmud of R.Yitshak Campanton [1360–1463]) and was its principal exponent responsible for its dominant position among Sephardic approaches to learning.[6]
Mazuz strongly encouraged the study ofHebrew grammar and of pronouncing the words in prayer and study with precision and clarity.[10] He himself would speak in a highly traditional pronunciation even in his everyday speech.[11] Part of the "Tunisian approach" he taught involves accounting for and understanding the purpose and meaning of every single word of the text being studied.[6]: 6–7
Mazuz authored dozens of works on various subjects. Some of these include:
In addition, there was a weekly publication namedBayit Ne'eman based off his popular lectures.
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