The Kiruv Gadol

One of the AMZING things about Rav Ovadiah ztz"l was that despite the fact that he knew EVERYTHING by heart word for word and that he could have given the highest level shiurim to any group of scholars, he chose to focus on educating the masses and inspiring them to tshuva by telling stories and teaching simple halachos. It is honest to say that he was the most successful one man kiruv program in the world. [Another example of a gadol focusing on kiruv richokim was the Lubavitcher Rebbe]. He went from shul to shul and was mekarev countless numbers of people. It actually HURT him to have to close his beloved sfarim and to travel from place to place [he REALLY enjoyed learning], but he knew that it was the will of Hashem.

He once had a dream that the Ben Ish Chai was leafing through his Yabia Omer volume one and was impressed. But he told Rav Ovadiah in the dream that the shiurim he gives being mekarev people was more valuable in shomayim than his sefer. [Told by Rav Yitzchak Peretz, Sfardic Rav of Rechovot].

He was once at home and was visited by the legendary Rav Betzalel Zolty, the Rav of Yerushalayim [and author of the Mishnas Yaavetz]. Rav Zolty told Rav Ovadiah that the mikva in a certain neighborhood was about to be closed by the city because it had fallen into disuse. He put on his purple robe and went with Rav Zolty from DOOR TO DOOR in the neighborhood and spoke to the people about the importance of mikva. Weeks later the mikva was so packed the women had to wait on lines to go in.

זכות הצדיקים יעזור ויגן ויושיע!

[לזכות רבי אפרים אבא שליט"א בן מרים שושנה הוא וכל אשר לו לאורך ימים טובים וארוכים]