Rabbi Benny Elon was a man of consensus. Despite being one of the most prominent symbols of religious Zionism, everyone loved him. Haredim as well as secular, dati as well as national haredi. So it was in his life; so it is in his death.
At the funeral we found them all. Thousands of people stood there for hours - wailing, praying, honoring his memory. Wanting to take part in his last journey. There were kippot and hats from the entire spectrum, and some that were not from the spectrum. That was Rabbi Elon. One man for everyone in the full sense of the word. For him, all were his children.
Faith was constantly rebounding within Rav Alon. He was a giant in spirit and saturated with optimism that he inculcated into his students and those who took his counsel. His noble sons who eulogized him at the funeral spoke much of the quality of giving that so characterized him. Of his generosity, of the light on his face. How could one forget the huge smile that filled so many hearts for years?
And with the same intensity that radiated benevolence outward toward his surroundings, he could inwardly contain the pain, the suffering, and the hardship - provided that his public activism for the masses and for the individual continued to function. "You accepted the agony with love, with humility, and the ability to separate yourself from it," eulogized his wife, author Emuna Alon. "Your only regret was if it hampered your activism, your mission, your Torah study, and your work for the people of Israel." That was Rabbi Elon.
Politics couldn't dull his sensibilities. It did not spoil his heart. Even after leaving the Knesset, he dedicated his work to the invisible people. The weak, the needy, those whom no-one would touch. Those who see and are unseen, every single day.
He was one of the fighters for Greater Israel. One of the things that made him unique was his out-of-the-box thinking. Rabbi Benny Elon not only objected to the Israeli Left's ideas, coming out against the policy of relinquishing territory for all the years in which he was part of the circle of influence in the Knesset and the government, he also presented an alternative.
He later wrote a political program that he presented to the cabinet and asked them to refer to it during negotiations. Realism was an integral part of it. Thus did he seek to protect the people living in Zion. Thus did he act to enhance the State of Israel's standing among Diaspora Jews.
Throughout his life, he enshrined unity and united ranks within religious Zionism. He hated the factionalism. He viewed with contempt the petty political conspiracies. He despised immediate political gains that could tear the national-religious camp apart.
Rabbi Elon was a huge man, from the generation of the giants of religious Zionism who were and are no longer.
May his memory be a blessing.