In Loving Memory of Rabbi Neil Lash
In Proverbs 10:7, the Wiseman penned the timeless words; “The memory of the just is blessed.” No one can give more credence to this observation than the gently wise and humble Rabbi Neil Lash, beloved husband of 48 years to Jamie Lash, and father of Jonathan and Jesse Lash.
The Lord answered a long-time prayer and deep desire of my heart when He blessed me and my husband Benny to meet Neil and Jamie in the summer of 2017 in the quaint town of Venice, Florida. We were vacationing in Tampa, and they were finishing up Jamie’s conference in Naples. They drove out of their way to meet us for dinner. I am not embellishing when I say about Neil that I felt I was in the presence of greatness; that’s exactly what I told my husband afterwards. Curiously, it was not because his demeanor was powerful or forward, but rather gentle and unassuming. But when he spoke, you knew this was a man who was intimate with his Lord. While Jamie and I bubbled joyfully at similarities we share in life and ministry, Neil’s interjections were both simple, yet heavy with the wisdom of God.
Last July we were delighted to meet Neil and Jamie in Washington, DC at the Museum of the Bible. What a wonderful memory I will always cherish. I was struck by how Neil and Jamie were so lovey-dovey, holding hands and sweetly considerate of one another. Again, I was blessed when we ate lunch, joining hands in prayer as Neil gave the blessing in Hebrew. I kept thinking how good the Lord is to me to let me have this experience. And I will never forget Neil jumping over the barrier rope to turn the heavy wooden crank on the replica of the first Guttenberg printing press, when no younger men volunteered.
You see, I had loved Neil and Jamie and their two sons from afar for many years. Having suffered a debilitating back injury, for years I was bedridden for 18 hours a day. Unable to attend church services, I depended on Christian TV to minister to my spirit. When I discovered Jewish Jewels, I fell in love. I have always been a lover of language and had studied some New Testament Greek, but as the Hebrew language of my Lord opened up to me, with all of its nuances and rich layers of meaning, my spirit was intrigued. And who couldn’t love Neil and Jamie—her effervescent love for her Messiah and his complementing spirit of grace—a truly dynamic duo!
I learned so much about the Jewish roots of my faith as I watched week after week. I ordered DVD’s and watched the 22 programs of the Hebrew alephbet series at least six times each. I felt like I knew them, and often wished I could meet them. But of course, that wouldn’t happen.
It was when Jamie was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012 that I reached out to her, weekly sending her cards of encouragement. One day, she wrote me back to thank me. In 2016, I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and I wrote her asking for prayer. This time she called me, and we have been happy friends ever since.
I minister in the church my father founded over 60 years ago in Baltimore. My messages have been greatly enhanced by the remarkable knowledge I have gleaned from watching Jewish Jewels, and our congregation loves the Hebrew nuggets.
And I have taken to shooting emails to Jamie to ask Neil to explain certain Bible passages to me. He always responded with the best answers. Recently I asked him a stumper, and he wrote back telling me to “ask God.” A few days later, he wrote again with a Scripture that hit the nail on the head.
I am really going to miss my Rabbi!
Psalm 112 states, “The upright is gracious and full of compassion…. He guides his affairs with discretion….” And in verse 6: “Surely the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.”
In the margin of my Bible, next to this verse, I have written “Neil Lash.”
Minister Sharon Hardy Knotts
March 25, 2019
