"Dad Didn't Hesitate, He Charged into the Bunker Filled with Egyptian Soldiers"

Does the combination of an army officer and a Jerusalem Kabbalist seem impossible to you? Those who knew Rabbi Yeshua Ben Shoshan, may his memory be a blessing, who passed away a few years ago, can attest to a unique Jewish personality who was a famous Kabbalist and, at the same time, an IDF officer holding senior positions.

When mentioning Rabbi Yeshua's name, one cannot overlook his father, who was a study partner of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, may his memory be a blessing, as well as his notable grandfathers – Rabbi Mordechai Ben Shoshan and the Kabbalist Rabbi Shalom Yaish, who immigrated from Tunisia. Throughout his life, he also studied extensively with important Kabbalist rabbis, including Rabbi Mordechai Attia, Rabbi David Batzri, and Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Hillel. He was a mohel and was known for his blessings to those who sought his guidance.

However, the most interesting aspect is that alongside his rabbinical duties, Rabbi Yeshua also fought bravely in Israel's wars, achieving astounding and almost incomprehensible results. How did this happen, and how could he combine these roles? His son, Rabbi Chaim Ben Shoshan, shares a fascinating story about it.

Rabbi Yeshua Ben Shoshan, may his memory be a blessing

In Prayer and in Battle

"We grew up in a home full of an atmosphere of awe of Hashem and a great concern for the Jewish people," Rabbi Chaim shares about himself and his ten siblings. "Dad was a true servant of Hashem, and the principles that guided him throughout his life were Torah, halakha, care, and complete loyalty to the Jewish people. Because of this, he went to fight in the army; he felt and emphasized that these were Hashem's wars, and he wanted to take part in them. From the same perspective, he also did much through prayers and supplications, in various ways, for the salvation of the Jewish people. It is essential to emphasize that although these are two different areas, both came from the same place. Dad had complete faith in the Lord of the Universe, and likewise in the redemption of the Jewish people, and from that, he would pray and fight."

Rabbi Chaim adds an important point: "Even when Dad took off his uniform, he continued to fight Israel's wars, doing so during prayer. Just like Moses, whose hands were outstretched in prayer, so did Dad fight, whether he was on the battlefield or in prayer. Dad would liken the battles to 'and when the Ark set forward,' explaining to us that when Hashem's ark is before us, then the Divine Presence moves among us, allowing us to defeat all enemies. He also emphasized that this is not only during war, and the wisdom is to always feel that the Divine Presence moves among us, happening all the time, whether in the synagogue or when going to war against the enemies."

Rabbi Yeshua's first enlistment in the army was while he was single, and later he fought during the War of Attrition, serving in the Shaked Reconnaissance Unit. "Fifty years ago, it was unusual to see observant soldiers in special units. My dad also did not reach the position easily. He persisted greatly to succeed in joining. The unit at that time was mainly composed of members from moshavs and kibbutzim, while the initial gap between them was enormous since he came from old Jerusalem, from a synagogue, study, and the atmosphere of Jerusalem's sages, seemingly the complete opposite of the other soldiers. At first, his friends thought he was just there as a kosher supervisor, and they feared he might have special demands. But as they later recounted – slowly, they realized Dad did not demand anything from them, but from himself, he demanded above and beyond. Even on the busiest and most challenging days, he adhered to a lifestyle of Torah and halakha, going to sleep after everyone even with exhausting training, because 'he needed to study,' and waking up very early to pray before the official wake-up time. He never asked for special prayer hours, but instead, he strived to find them."

Rabbi Yeshua was also a true hero. "True heroism comes from the feeling of 'For in the name of Hashem, we will remember' and the understanding of 'In Your kindness, I have trusted,'" Rabbi Chaim explains. To illustrate his bravery, his son recounts that one of his platoon mates told them during training there was a friend carrying him, and at some point, they both fell to the ground, breaking several of Rabbi Yeshua's ribs. Rabbi Yeshua knew that if he went to the clinic, they would diagnose fractures and send him on medical leave, causing him to miss the course and perhaps preventing him from integrating into the combat track. So, he suffered silently and continued training with broken ribs, enduring unimaginable pain. But he was committed to his mission, with a strong desire to be a fighter in Israel's wars.

"Dad's heroism was for Heaven's sake," his son emphasizes again, "He truly fought on behalf of Hashem, fulfilling all his obligations and much beyond, all without compromising on the smallest detail regarding the Torah and halakha. This was the case in all the wars he fought in: he adhered to the mission with self-sacrifice, a sense of security from the Creator, and joy in the mission entrusted to him."

Few Against Many

Rabbi Chaim has many stories of his father in war, but he chooses to focus on one, the miraculous story from the Yom Kippur War. "On Yom Kippur, Dad was at home," he says, "and right after the holiday, he realized he needed to enlist, so he hurried to build a sukkah and then immediately went to enlist. Dad fought as an officer throughout the war, but his unique story occurred towards the end when the IDF had already crossed the canal. During Sukkot, the army succeeded in turning the tide, pushing back the Egyptian army, and with Hashem's grace, crossing the canal and taking vast territories.

"On the other side of the canal lay African soil, where large areas had been conquered, yet there were constant shellings directed at IDF concentration points, endangering them. Dad went there with a group of about 20 soldiers to search for those directing the Egyptian artillery fire at the Israeli forces and neutralize them. During the search, they encountered a group of three Egyptians trying to attack them. Dad responded with fire, and after killing them, he took the big binoculars that hung on one of their necks, hung them around his neck, and continued on his way.

"Dad and the other soldiers reached a large cornfield when, unexpectedly, a deadly fire opened from less than 100 meters away. They immediately lay on the ground and discovered it was an Egyptian commando battalion of hundreds of soldiers while they were only 20. At this point, Dad could have retreated and waited for assistance, but his blazing bravery led him to do what seemed impossible—to charge at that Egyptian array, with the other soldiers watching him and joining him. Dad would tell us about this, emphasizing that it was just like Chanukah, as they were few against many—20 Israeli soldiers against a battalion of 400 Egyptian soldiers.

"Dad and the Israeli soldiers crawled through the cornfield, and while crawling, Dad identified open trenches and realized that there was a whole array of trenches and bunkers from which continuous shooting was aimed at Israel. He understood he needed to clear them, so he charged the trenches and bunkers, starting to shoot at them.

"Dad ran and shot, ran and shot, as he saw the Egyptians falling before his eyes, and with immense devotion, he sang the verse: 'From the straits, I called upon God; God answered me with relief.'" Chaim pauses his narrative to stress: "This is not a delusion; Dad truly sang, prayed, and fought. These aren't stories about King David, but stories about someone from our generation."

Miracles and Wonders

He continues to describe what happened on the ground: "At a certain point, the Egyptians surrendered. Dad and his comrades took advantage of the situation, rushed to tie them up; lacking handcuffs, they pinned them to the ground and bound them with telephone wires, questioning them and extracting essential information. Meanwhile, Israeli reinforcements arrived, and Dad proceeded to conduct searches to ensure all bunkers were captured. Suddenly, he heard Arabic voices from within a bunker and shouted: 'I will pursue my enemies until I overtake them and will not turn back until they are annihilated.' He threw a grenade into the bunker and immediately jumped in to clear it and decide the battle decisively. The bunker was built with concrete walls forming a zigzag, so when the grenade exploded, the Egyptians managed to hide behind a wall. When Dad entered, he found himself before three Egyptian commando officers, with less than a meter between them. Dad recounted seeing the fire coming from the Kalashnikov barrels, and bursts of shots were heard. Those remaining outside couldn't believe there was a chance he would remain alive. But then a great miracle occurred – although the Egyptians shot at Dad, he managed to fire at them first, and his rifle broke into pieces, the magazine broke, and the stock disintegrated, but Dad fired a few more bullets, killing one of the Egyptians.

"Dad was hit by four bullets—two in his hand, one in his leg, and another in his chest which could have been fatal; however, the binoculars he took from the Egyptian moments earlier protected him. A bullet struck the binoculars' hinge, continued into his sternum, and stopped by the heart. Dad later told us clearly that he felt when Hashem wants someone to be saved, He will do so in any possible way. It was truly supernatural, as Dad was shot at many bullets, and later they saw all his clothes were perforated, but Dad emerged alive. The miracle was even greater because just afterwards Dad's comrades fired at the bunker, and he could have been harmed by their fire, but Dad managed to escape the bunker with his last strength, moments before it was cleared by his friends. They fired a bazooka at the bunker, hitting an Egyptian explosives box, causing the entire bunker to explode. Afterwards, 12 Egyptian officers' bodies were found there."

Despite this, Rabbi Yeshua's injury was severe. "Dad tried to bandage himself and applied a tourniquet with telephone wires; he lost consciousness and nearly left us. His evacuation wasn’t easy due to the fear of significant blood loss. Eventually, he was taken to Beilinson, where he was admitted for surgery, only asking the doctors to wait a bit so he could say the midnight prayer. Afterward, he underwent successful surgery, followed by a lengthy rehabilitation process."

"Dad suffered various pains until his last day, especially in the hand area, as the injury caused the nerves to transmit pain without reason. He was left with scars along the entire length of the arm from the bullets that hit him. But all the hardship was always directed toward one goal – to recount Hashem's kindness and wonders. Every day during the Maariv prayer, he emphasized the words 'Hashem has kept our soul alive and not allowed our foot to stumble,' and continued: 'Who has guided us over our enemies' heights and exalted our horn over all our foes…'

"Every year on the date his life was spared during the war, he would bring refreshments to the synagogue and recite 'Nishmat Kol Chai,' filling with faith in the Creator's supervision over His people Israel, thanking more and more for the kindness and wonders."