On the occasion of the seventh anniversary of the passing of the virtuous Rabbanit Madeleine Mazal Pinto zal, wife of the illustrious pillar of prayer of the Jewish people, the Tsaddik Rabbi Moshe Aharon Pinto zatsoukl, hundreds of avrekhim, together with a large audience from Israel and abroad, gathered for a grand Siyum HaShas, accompanied by words of spiritual strengthening and inspiration.
The gathering took place at the “Orot Haïm ouMoché” institutions in Ashdod, under the leadership of the Admour, the Gaon and Tsaddik Rabbi David Hanania Pinto chelita, and in the presence of his brother, the Rav of the city, the Gaon and Tsaddik Rabbi Haïm Chimone Pinto chelita, family members, Roshei Kollelim, Rabbanim, as well as his sons chelita: Rabbi Raphael, Rabbi Moshe, Rabbi Yoel, and Rabbi Mikael Pinto.
The event was opened by the Admour, the Gaon and Tsaddik Rabbi David Hanania Pinto chelita, President of the Torah kingdom “Orot Haïm ouMoché.” In his address, he spoke with deep emotion about the personality of his mother: a modest, simple, and discreet woman, the Rabbanit Pinto zal, who merited to take full part in the sacred mission of her illustrious husband, the pillar of prayer of Israel, Rabbi Moshe Aharon Pinto zatsoukl. She stood faithfully at his side with total devotion, both in the service of Hashem and in the dissemination of Torah and faith, never ceasing to pour forth pure and silent prayers for the benefit of the community and of each individual.
He reminisced with nostalgia about his childhood, when he was still a young boy, before the age of bar mitzvah. With remarkable courage and self-sacrifice, his mother sent him—accompanied by the Tsaddik Rabbi Moshe Ibgui zal, author of Hokhmat HaMatspon—to enter a yeshiva. Together with his older brother, the community Rav Rabbi Haïm Chimone Pinto chelita, they were sent to study in Europe for several years, driven by her immense love for the Torah and her deep desire that her children continue the prestigious family lineage through the study of the holy Torah.
At the conclusion of his remarks, the Rav blessed all those present that they should merit protection, blessing, success, health, and ample livelihood, by the merit of the holy ancestors zal.
The Rav of the city, Rabbi Haïm Chimone Pinto chelita, then addressed the assembly and spoke of the greatness and nobility of this Siyum HaShas in honor of his mother, the Rabbanit zal. He explained with profound insight why our Sages instituted the recitation of Kaddish at the completion of a tractate of Gemara, similar to the Kaddish recited after a passing: its purpose is primarily to nullify negative forces, so that they do not interfere with the study of Torah.
He recounted that at the age of ten, he was sent to a yeshiva in Casablanca, and after his bar mitzvah to Armentières, France. When their mother came to visit them, she did not take them home, but instead sent them to continue their studies in a yeshiva in England.
They grew up in Mogador, a large and modern city where approximately 19,000 Jews lived at the time, not including those in the surrounding villages. It is striking that among this entire population, only they—or perhaps a few rare others—were sent to yeshiva. While many chose modern schools, the Rav and the Rabbanit zal made the courageous decision to send their children to yeshiva, sometimes for six months without seeing their parents.
Relatives once asked their mother:
“Why do you send your son to the Nevé Shalom yeshiva? Send him instead to a secular school—he will grow up and have a career.”
She replied that she wanted her children to grow in the path of Torah and to continue the prestigious Pinto family lineage, which has existed uninterrupted for five hundred years. She herself descended from an illustrious lineage, being the granddaughter of the Tsaddik Rabbi Yoshia Pinto zal, author of Ein Yaakov.
In France, they studied under Rabbi Haïm Shmuel Lopian zal, Rabbi Shammaï Tsahan zal, Rabbeinu Gershon Libman zal, Rabbi Moshe Schneider zal, as well as other Tsaddikim who shaped their spiritual path.
At the beginning of the aliyah from Morocco, many young Moroccan Jews entered yeshivot and grew in Torah thanks to these activists of Torah, who saved multitudes by educating them in the world of Torah.
He then recalled the exceptional holiness of his father, the pillar of prayer of Israel, Rabbi Moshe Aharon Pinto zatsoukl, who lived his entire life separated from the vanities of this world, distant from materialism: forty years without leaving his home, his eyes always lowered to the ground, wholly devoted to holiness, purity, and the service of Hashem.
During a hiloula in Morocco, he was once asked why he remained at home instead of going to the grave of the Tsaddik Rabbi Haïm Pinto zatsoukl on the 26th of Elul. He replied:
“What is there at the grave? Holy bones. But here, the walls are imbued with Torah. It is here that the Tsaddik Rabbi Haïm Pinto zatsoukl studied and served Hashem.
Which is more important: walls saturated with Torah or bones?”
Only their father zal could speak in such a manner. They grew up in a home filled with Torah and fear of Heaven, and they strive to continue this path, so that all may be helped with salvation and mercy, by the merit of the holy ancestors.
After the recitation of the Kaddish, the audience gathered for a se’udat mitzvah in the hall of the institutions, organized with great care and a prestigious production in honor of the Torah, where the Siyum HaShas in honor of the Rabbanit zal took place.
The central address was delivered by the Admour Rabbi David Hanania Pinto chelita. He praised the precious avrekhim who devote themselves body and soul to Torah, for having studied—between regular study sessions—tractates of Shas in elevation of the soul of the Rabbanit zal, highlighting their diligence and effort. He also blessed his sons, who stand at his side in leading the institutions with wisdom and determination.
In conclusion of the gathering, all participants passed by to receive a blessing and were given by the Admour chelita the “wine of the Siyumim,” blessed by him.
