Fallen scholarly soldier’s holy text donated to the National Library of Israel

The National Library of Israel announced on Sunday that they would receive the annotated mishnah of Res. Eyal Meir Berkowitz, a medical student who fell in battle just before the Jewish holiday of Hannukah, on Friday.

Berkowitz fell in battle during an operation to rescue the bodies of hostages Eden Zakaria and Sgt. Maj. Ziv Dado. He was killed alongside his friend  Master Sergeant (res.) Gal Meir Eisenkot.

The astute Berkowitz, in addition to being a reservist and medical student, was a gifted artist and an active participant in a WhatsApp group dedicated to Torah studies.

Fulfilling his duties in Gaza and as a student, the dedicated Berkowitz carried around a pocket-sized Mishna Sedora which he meticulously wrote notes in. After his death, Berkowitz’s father-in-law discovered the holy text and consulted several scholars. The scholars informed him that the notes made by Berkowitz were both impressive and valuable.

The densely annotated Mishna Sedora belonging to Eyal Meir Berkowitz, will be gifted to the National Library. The volume has already been scanned and will be available online. 

Dr. Chaim Neria, Curator of the Haim and Hanna Solomon Judaica Collection at the National Library of Israel, said, “The unique contribution of the Mishna studied by Eyal Berkowitz to the National Library’s manuscript collection combines our ancient Jewish heritage, expressed in the study of the Mishna, with a present-day, personal memorial for a soldier -- a warrior, who fell in battle. It is deep emotional connection tying Jewish history with the national history of State of Israel.”

Who was Eyal Meir Berkowitz?

After his death, Berkowitz’s grandmother wrote about the loss in the Jerusalem Post.

“ON THE eve of Hanukkah this year, my talented and beloved grandson, Eyal Meir Berkowitz, 28, was killed in Gaza, along with his close friend Gal Meir Eizenkot, the son of former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot. Eyal was eulogized by many in glowing terms, and hardly anyone – in the family or the army – knew all of his accomplishments and interests,” Grandmother Leah Abramowitz wrote.

“Eyal was a first-year medical student and gifted artist. He read voraciously, yet was noted for being so modest and unassuming that few knew how well-rounded he was in so many fields.

“He was married to Michal Broyer, a nurse at the Hadassah-University Medical Center, for only a year and four days before he fell in battle. They met through a volunteering activity, working with young adults with cognitive disabilities, on alternative Sabbaths.

“He had a wicked sense of humor, supreme intellect, was creative, kind, and patient – an adam mushlam (a perfect person). When he was appointed leader of his unit, he confided in his father that he didn’t feel comfortable commanding his friends, but if he had to be assertive he was able to do so and fulfilled that position as well, fully and with tact.