A Toronto rabbi who served as spiritual leader of a congregation for thirty years is retiring and immediately making aliyah to Netanya, Israel. The rabbi, visiting Israel with congregants, received a surprise honor Sunday at a festive lunch in Beit El. Rabbi Baruch Taub, founder and spiritual leader of the Beth Avraham Yoseph Of Toronto (BAYT) synagogue, was honored with his wife Malkah after announcing his retirement and his plans to immigrate to the coastal city. Larry and Sue Zeifman, long time congregants and friends of Rabbi Taub, dedicated a shtender (speaker's lectern) to the Beit El Yeshiva Center on the occasion of the Rabbi's aliyah to Israel and completion of 30 years of spiritual leadership at the BAYT synagogue. Beit El Rabbi Baruch Gordon noted that Rabbi Taub's decision to immigrate to Israel immediately after his retirement reveals retroactively that he was fully connected to the Land of Israel with "every fiber of his body and soul" during all his years of service as a pulpit rabbi. Gordon congratulated the BAYT congregation for having such a spiritual leader. The BAYT congregation and the Beit El Yeshiva Center community partnered as "twin cities" seventeen years ago, and BAYT members have visited Beit El every year since on the synagogue brotherhood's annual Israel mission. "Our shul's connection with Beit El and all of Israel is very close. It is only natural that our spiritual leader would make aliya upon his retirement, joining many of our members who come home to Israel," said Lazer Rand, BAYT Brotherhood President. Photo: BAYT Brotherhood Mission Chairs Moishe Posner (far left) and Larry Zeifman present the Shtender to Rabbi Baruch and Malkah Taub in a lecture hall at the Beit El Yeshiva Center / Hanoch HaCohen See more pictures here .
