Constantinople As a youth, Solomon Eliezer was noted for his sharp understanding of Torah subjects. Yet he refused to accept a rabbinical position or to wear the customary dress of the city's sages. He did agree to join the
Vaad Haruchani (Spiritual Council) of Constantinople, and accepted the position of
rosh yeshiva in a yeshiva which the city's Jews founded for him. In the latter post, he taught many outstanding scholars, including Rabbi
Chaim Hezekiah Medini, later known as the Sdei Chemed.
Damascus The Saba Kadisha decided to leave Constantinople to accept the position of
Chief Rabbi of Damascus, which he was appointed to by imperial decree in 1888. There he founded a yeshiva which trained dozens of students who served as rabbis and
dayanim in
Sephardic communities in the region. After the
Young Turk Revolution of 1908, the Jews of Damascus demanded that Alfandari be removed from his post, and he was subsequently dismissed by the
Minister of Justice, the authority responsible for non-Muslim religious affairs.
Safed At almost 90 years of age, he moved to Palestine, then also a part of
Ottoman Syria. At first he lived for several years in the city of
Haifa, but then accepted the invitation of the Torah leaders of
Safed, in the
Beirut Vilayet, to serve as their Chief Rabbi, a position he held until 1918.
Jerusalem In his final years, Alfandari suffered many ailments, for which he sought medical treatment in
Jerusalem. Although he tried to travel incognito, many Torah leaders desired to meet him when they found out he was in their city. One of these
gedolim was Rabbi
Ezra Attiya, who later became rosh yeshiva of
Porat Yosef Yeshiva. The Saba Kadisha held Rabbi Attiya in high esteem, and would always stand up for him when he visited. In 1925, Alfandari developed a serious illness while in
Tiberias. He refused to be treated in the local hospital, where the rules of
tzniut (modesty) were not meticulously observed, and was taken to
Shaarei Tzedek Hospital in Jerusalem instead. After he recovered, Jerusalem's sages begged him to stay in their city. He rented an apartment in the Ruchama neighbourhood (today
Mekor Baruch). There he hosted meetings with many prominent Torah scholars who came to consult with him and speak with him in learning. These included: Rabbi
Tzvi Pesach Frank,
Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem; Rabbi
Velvel Mintzberg, leader of the
Ashkenazi community in the
Old Yishuv; Rabbi Avraham Weinberg of
Slonim, author of
Birkas Avraham; and Rabbi
Yitzchak Abuchatzeira, brother of the
Baba Sali and a Torah sage in his own right. Alfandari contracted
pneumonia in May 1930 and was treated by Dr.
Moshe Wallach of Shaarei Tzedek Hospital. His disease worsened, however, and he died on 20 May 1930 (22
Iyar 5690), while the Munkatcher Rebbe was at his bedside. His funeral was attended by thousands, as his students carried his casket on foot from his home all the way to the
Mount of Olives. He was nearly 110 years old. ==Views==