Journal of the Babylonian Jewry Heritage Center
No.16, Spring  2008


 

Prof. Yaron Tsur, Tel-Aviv University:

DR. HAGAR HILLEL

 

Hagar was my colleague at the Open University for more than fifteen-years. The course which led her to the university was typical of her. We were looking for more people to do research on the Jews in the lands of Islam. One of Hagar’s teachers recommended her. At first she was surprised when she received the award; she did not believe that she was good enough and did not want to commit herself to an academic career. It took a number of years to convince her, but eventually she accepted.

 

Once she began her work she proved to be an exemplary research assistant, but at first did not make an effort to advance herself as an independent researcher. Again, it took a long time to convince her that she should also engage in academic writing. When she did finally acquiesce, she produced one of the most important and mature compositions by members of the new generation of research on the Jews living in the lands of Islam. She analyzed a forgotten newspaper published by the Jewish community of Casablanca, L’Avenir Illustré, and showed in two-hundred pages of wise, sensitive and profound writing how it reflected every aspect of life among Moroccan Jews in the period between the two World Wars. Her Ph.D. thesis, on the Egyptian Zionist paper Israel, was another landmark. Written in three languages, French, Arabic and Hebrew, it was published in book form when she was already very ill. The book has been received with acclaim and will no doubt become an important milestone in the study of the Jewish press and, specifically, the study of the Jews living in the lands of Islam.

 

But Hagar was not just a colleague. This small, spare, silent woman was a human lighthouse. She had a wonderful ability to listen to the troubles of others and to serve as a calm source of empathy, feeling and wisdom. Her sensitivity was constantly mobilized on behalf of others. Her diligence and commitment at work were an integral part of her personality, and characterized her social relations as well. Only rarely does one encounter someone who gives so much to others without asking for, or expecting to get, anything in return.

 

Hagar’s death, although a cruel blow to us all, did not come as a surprise. For a number of years now, the knowledge that this might happen, has hovered over her, her family and us, her friends, like a bird of prey, which eventually swooped down and removed her silent, tormented soul. We can only ask, why Hagar? So many people leave this world and leave very little behind. How many are there who, like Hagar, leave a clear, sharp, imprint of profound intelligence and endless modesty, devotion and generosity? Why was such a woman chosen by fate for such a premature and painful end? We have no answer to console us. But Hagar did not leave this world as she came into it. The light which she disseminated during her lifetime has left behind a brilliant beam of light. The lighthouse which she was, her energy and wisdom, will continue to accompany us, her friends, who love and miss her.