Earlier this week on Simchat Torah, we read the Torah’s final description of the biblical Moshe’s life of inspired leadership: “There never arose another one like Moshe” (Deuteronomy 34:10). 

These words carry poignant resonance as our Jewish community mourns the sudden death of our beloved sage, Rabbi Moshe Hauer, z”l.  Many Jewish leaders talk about the need for Jewish unity during this time of intense polarization, but Rabbi Hauer actually built Jewish unity. Since he became the leader of the Orthodox Union, Rabbi Hauer became my friend and trusted colleague — even while also an occasional sparring partner.  

Amit Elkayam

Rabbi Rick Jacobs (left) and Rabbi Moshe Hauer at the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations solidarity mission in July 2025.

A few years back, Rabbi Hauer sent me a marked-up copy of a statement I had published. My words were covered with his voluminous comments in red ink. He took issue with pretty much every point I had made. Rather than just thanking him for “sharing his thoughts,” I asked if we could sit and discuss his rather extensive rebuttal. 

How could I not be impressed by the seriousness with which he debated my views about the latest news from Israel? With his characteristic humility, he took me to task, never once raising his voice or dismissing my deeply held convictions. As consummate students of Torah, our session felt like a chavruta, an intense one-on-one learning session with a wise colleague. I thanked him for his thoughtful critique.

Months later, Rabbi Hauer shared this beautiful characterization of our discussions:

“We are an odd chavruta: a Reform and an Orthodox rabbi, and we are unlikely to ever see eye-to-eye either on issues of religion and state in Israel or on matters of Jewish law and practice. Yet we can, and have, worked together as brothers committed to the wellbeing of our beloved Jewish people and State of Israel.”

Yes, we disagreed on many (if not most) things, but we also shared many commitments, including standing up for the safety of our people and our Jewish homeland.

Last year, Rabbi Hauer and I were both at a planning meeting for an upcoming communal event one year into the Gaza War. Each person advocated for which important messages should be conveyed. 

After listening to many wise and appropriate suggestions, including the deep solidarity we Diaspora Jews continue to share with our Israeli siblings, I said: “But if no one raises the suffering of the innocent Palestinians in Gaza, our gathering will be morally incomplete.” 

Rabbi Hauer challenged me, asking if I thought that Orthodox Jews didn’t care about the dignity and safety of innocent Palestinians. I replied, “I don’t know, but what I do know is that I rarely hear Orthodox colleagues raise the subject.”

While the communal event featured several speakers from across the religious spectrum, only one ended up raising the issue of the suffering of innocent Palestinians caught in the crossfire of Israel’s war against Hamas: my chavruta, Rabbi Hauer. Though his voice was usually soft, his Torah was powerful and rooted in the deepest layers of Jewish teachings.

This summer, Rabbi Hauer and I were part of the Conference of Presidents’ Israel Leadership Mission. Our opening session was held at President Isaac Herzog’s home, Beit Hanasi. I took my seat next to my friend — and evidently President Herzog was struck that Rabbi Hauer and I were sitting next to each other. He marveled that the head of the Reform movement was sitting next to the head of the Orthodox Union. I told him that it was completely natural for me to sit next to my friend and cherished colleague. Yes, we disagreed on many issues, but we shared a profound respect and love for one another. 

President Herzog asked me to offer words to close our session. I said that my prayer for the state of Israel was that one day it would not be newsworthy for a Reform rabbi to sit next to their Orthodox rabbi friend at an official meeting in the Jewish State. 

Rabbi Hauer’s humble leadership and devotion to the wellbeing of Klal Yisrael, the entire Jewish People, remains a beacon of light and love during these turbulent times. Our world is always in short supply of such kind, wise and principled leaders. How enormously blessed are we to have had such an exemplary soul leading us.   

In the Talmud, we are taught: “Woe to those who are lost and cannot be replaced” (Sanhedrin 111a). Today, we are the ones who are lost; our teacher, my chavruta, is the one who cannot be replaced.

Rabbi Rick Jacobs is the president of the Union for Reform Judaism.