The Lone Jew
I was born in the former Soviet Union, what is today western Ukraine. At home we spoke Ukrainian, Russian and Yiddish. Along the way I also learned to speak Slovakian languages, Hebrew, English and French- all of which help me in my work today. I was the only Jewish student in our school. The only other Jew who had learned there was my brother. I quickly learned that if I was a good student, the others would be dependent on me. That also helped me avoid being teased in school because I knew that antisemitism had always been a part of that scene, and that Jews were a targeted minority. I graduated with excellent marks and at the same time I had been learning music and by age 16 I began learning mathematics in university. A year later in 1991 after the Iron Wall had collapsed, we left for Israel and I left my studies.
The Rabbinate Replaces the Math
Upon arrival in Israel, I spent the first year in a yeshiva in Bnei Brak followed by five years in a yeshiva in Jerusalem. I pursued rabbinical certification and received “Yorah Yorah” smicha. The exams were very tough, and my Hebrew was still limited. But I never gave up. Everyone was shocked when I succeeded and by age 27 I made the decision to invest in my new land and signed up for the army. The next nine years were spent in the IDF- first as a soldier in the Menashe Brigade in the Shomrom, followed by
three years as a brigade rabbi, then senior roles in the Ephraim brigade and the Military
Police alongside another five years in the IDF rabbinate.
Rabbi Doctor…
At age 32 following release of several books on halachic topics I received my PhD and
became Rabbi Dr. Elimelech Parievsky. In 2010, I retired from professional service with
the IDF with the rank of Major.
In the current war, I serve as an officer on the Shura Base which has been tasked with
identifying fallen IDF soldiers. While there are times when we literally feel like we’re
standing on the gates of hell as we witness truly horrific images, we know that every
person who dies in defense of the land and our people is immediately ushered into Gan
Eden, so we feel as if we are accompanying these holy souls on this path to Heaven.
Sprouting Roots
After leaving the army, I became an “investigative rabbi” for Tzohar’s Shorashim Project
and in 2022 I was appointed Shorashim’s CEO. Shorashim was founded in partnership
with the Prime Minister’s Office with the goal of assisting those people who need help
proving their Jewish identities for the purpose of marriage through the Israeli Rabbinate.
This is not simple work and sometimes demands investigations that can span
international borders. When I’m presented with a particularly complex case, I sit with
the applicants to ensure a comprehensive investigation. I review all the materials and
forensically research the available documentation. Where relevant we request additional
documents and based on all that we commence our work. We go into the archives in
the country of origin and work to find birth, burial or other records pertaining to the
family. The furthest back I’ve ever gone on a case was proving Jewish roots going back
150 years. We know that people could pursue these cases privately with a lawyer or
private investigator, but these cases require a great deal of special effort, experience
and language skills which makes this real detective work. Our commitment is to work
closely with the people and very often we are referred to by the rabbinical courts who
know that we can be trusted and that when we secure information it is reliable for them
to make the proper decisions. We have never had a case where we made a
recommendation, and the rabbinical court didn’t accept it.
Soviet Fear
Most people who come to us for assistance come from the Former Soviet Union. The
cases can be very complicated because often they had destroyed their documentation
out of fear of retribution from the Soviet authorities. After World War II many archives
were destroyed and in general the Soviet regime only listed nationality in identifying
papers, as opposed to listing religion. Many of these people hold onto those tendencies
to fear the authorities and it can be hard to get them to cooperate. Particularly now with
the war in Ukraine there are many areas that we can’t access, and archives are located
deep in combat zones. But sometimes our people have to take chances because we
need to help and we know that there’s no one else who will be able to help.
A Heartwarming Wedding
This work can be very emotional. One case which stands out came about during the
current war. The case involved a soldier, the son of a woman who was born in the FSU
She lived shortly with her parents in Israel before moving to the US. There she married
a Jew and they had this son who has Israeli citizenship on account of his mother’s
Israeli citizenship. He decided to move to Israel, serve in the army, and upon finishing
went back to America where he fell in love. When the war broke out, he volunteered to
come back as a reservist while promising his girlfriend that as soon as he finished
fighting he would come back and they would get married. She didn’t want to wait so
she got on a plane to Israel with the goal of getting married right away. We were called
upon to confirm his Jewish status, but all the communication had to go through the
mother because the son was fighting in Gaza and not available. This case was
particularly moving because the war showed us how important this concept of Jewish
family really is. These people understood that they needed to start a family right now
without waiting. It took a lot of work, but we succeeded in proving his Jewish identity
and we found all the missing pieces of the puzzle allowing them to get married.
