Pinchas (פנחס) Numbers 25:10-30:1
Regarding Pinchas, grandson of Aaron the Pontiff, Gd says:
כה יג וְהָיְתָה לּוֹ וּלְזַרְעוֹ אַחֲרָיו, בְּרִית כְּהֻנַּת עוֹלָם- תַּחַת, אֲשֶׁר לֵאלֹ לֵאלֹהָיו, וַיְכַפֵּר, עַל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל.
He and his posterity after him will possess, as pledge of alliance,
the priesthood in perpetuity; because he sided with his God
and made atonement for the children of Israel.”
Rabbi Pinhas Ha-Cohen is a great Moroccan figure. Born in Taroudant, he was renowned for his kindness, his tolerance, his uprightness and his modesty pushed to the point of humility.
He died in Marrakech on Shabbat afternoon, 14 Tebet 57121. On the day of his funeral, the whole town was present. He is buried in the Jewish cemetery in Marrakech and his grave continues to attract pilgrims from all over the world. It is reported that he several times saved the life of the pasha of Marrakech, Thami El Mezouari El Glaoui2 nicknamed The Black Panther.
The Jewish presence in Morocco is attested as early as the 2th century BCE (some believe it dates back to the time of the First Temple). In 1062, when Marrakech was founded, Jews settled there. In 1492, Rabbi Yitzhak Deloitte, expelled from Spain, founded the Salat al-Azama3 or Laazama synagogue in the Mellah of Marrakech. The current building is a riad4 from the end of the XIXth century in the traditional Moroccan style where zelliges5 are omnipresent. The building was renovated in the 50s and a space for women (עזרת נשים – ezrat nashim) was created and on the upper floor, a yeshiva.
1 January 12, 1952.
2 Grandfather the French actor Moroccan Mehdi El Glaoui (Belle Et Sébastien).
3 Meaning: prayer of dissidents, outcasts or expelled.
4 Traditional urban dwelling of Morocco and Andalusia with a central patio or an interior garden.
5 Mosaic whose elements are pieces of glazed terracotta, cut and assembled geometrically. Originally from Morocco, this type of decor is present in North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula.