Shavuous, Mount Sinai and Pride

Posted on Monday, 26, May, 2014Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Shavuous is a time we remember receiving the holy Torah at Mount Sinai. It is said in the holiday prayers, Chag Hashavuous hazeh, z’man matan toraseinu (the Feast of Weeks, the season of the Giving of our Torah), yet this is not a time of pride.

It is written: “With him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit (Isa. 57:15)…. for behold, the Holy One, blessed be He, ignored all the mountains and heights and caused His Shechinah to abide upon Mount Sinai, but did not elevate Mount Sinai up to Himself.” (Sotah 5a)

There was excitement in the town, as a holy rabbi came to visit. The holy rabbi went into the old wooden shul (synagogue), pulled a holy book from the shelf and began to study. Slowly the holy rabbi pushed the book aside, stood up and walked to the window and began to stare at the mountains.

It seemed as though the whole town turned out to catch a glimpse of the holy rabbi. All of the important people and the most learned of the scholars came into the shul (synagogue) just to meet the holy rabbi hoping to grasp his hand and wish him shalom (peace) and maybe get a blessing from him.

The holy rabbi did not turn to face them. He just stood looking through the window at the high mountains in the distance. Everyone who had gathered in the old wooden shul had hoped to hear some lessons or wisdom from his holy lips, but the rabbi remained gazing out the window in deep meditation.

Among all those who came into the old wooden shul was a young man whose learning and prominent family were equaled only by his pride and self-importance. He was very rigid in his approach to study and prayer and as he looked at the holy rabbi he assumed that the rabbi was not showing the proper honor and respect due to the many dignitaries and scholars who had come out to meet him.

The longer the young man stood, the angrier he became. The young man could see no reason for the rabbi’s behavior and so he began: “Rabbi, would you please explain why you are gazing so intensely at that hill, which is, after all, only a pile of dust?”

The holy rabbi took a deep breath and then slowly answered: “that is indeed what amazes me, how can a plain pile of dust blow itself up so mightily until it becomes a proud mountain?…”

The young proud and conceited man had learned his lesson as he prayed:

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Kugel and Shabbos Lights

Posted on Tuesday, 25, February, 2014Friday, 2, February, 2024 by Rabbi

The times were hard, and food was scarce. Each day, a poor widow worked so hard in the hopes of buying food for her children. Each day, she would set aside a small portion of food to be used for Shabbos. One week, sadly, she was only able to save a few potatoes, some eggs, a piece or two of bread, an onion, and some oil.

The winter winds blew, and the snow fell, and sickness knocked at the door. The children of the widow became sick, and every day, their bodies weakened. Her oldest son got up from his sick bed and asked his mother, “Last week, you made such a wonderful kugel for Shabbos. Could you please make it again for this coming Shabbos?…. Please?”

What the child did not understand was that the ingredients for the kugel had been gathered together by his mother throughout the week. His mother would many times give up her daily portion of food to set aside a bit just to honor the Sabbath day. The widow questioned herself, could she make the sacrifice again? How could she not, when her efforts would bring such joy to her children as well as to the Shabbos Queen.

She carefully grated the potatoes and mixed them with breadcrumbs that she saved throughout the week. She added eggs, salt, pepper, and a small onion and was ready to pour the kugel into the pan to bake in the oven, and a thought entered her mind.

She had some oil saved, and that little bit of oil would greatly improve the quality and taste of the kugel. How delighted her six children would be! It would bring nourishment to their weakened bodies and delight to their hearts.

But how could she? She had been saving the precious oil to kindle the holy Shabbos lights. She knew the importance of Jewish law and tradition placed in the lighting of the Shabbos candles. She also knew that the moments after kindling the holy Sabbath lights were the most opportune for a mother to pray on behalf of her children. What better way to help her children than by praying for them as she kindled the Shabbos licht (lights)?

Inside her beat, the heart of a loving mother, and her instincts would not permit her to place the kugel in the oven without the oil. She was torn as to what to do. After some time, she had an idea.

The oil was added to the kugel…. As the sun began to set that Friday night, the widow stood before her Shabbos lights – fixed without oil. She closed her eyes, and gently welcomed the holy Shabbos (Sabbath Day) into her home:

Ribbono shel olam, Master of the universe, please accept these candles without light. In your infinite mercy, illuminate them with your heavenly radiance. Forgive me for having taken the oil from the wicks in order to light the joy of Shabbos in the hearts of my six children. If I have sinned and you cannot accept this prayer, I beg of You who is compassionate and slow to anger, to listen to the Shabbos songs of the children that will resound in my poor house, when I bring this kugel to the table.

That night the children ate their kugel, which tasted of paradise. They burst into song, saying it’s “Shabbos Kodesh (the Holy Sabbath),” and Shabbos Queen responded in kind, “let us sing a song to the love and sacrifice of the Jewish mother.”

A Gut’n Shabbos mit brochah und simcha (A Good Shabbos with Blessings and Happiness)

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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Delight, a Princely Feast and Shabbos – The Sabbath Day

Posted on Monday, 17, February, 2014Friday, 8, September, 2023 by Rabbi

Tam and Chacham were walking through a forest one Thursday and they came upon a clearing. They sat down beneath a tree to rest when they saw a young man come into the clearing from the opposite side and asked:

“May I sit with you?” asked the young man. “Come, sit and maybe share a word or two with us.” answered Chacham.

The young man sat on a nearby stump quietly for some time. He thought and then shared: “I used to learn and marvel in the Holy Writings, but have seen that it is an academic exercise. Since most do not practice what is written.”

Chacham looked at the young man with a serious look, and responded: “have you not learned or understood the laws and customs of the holy Shabbos (Sabbath Day)? It is very clear as it is written: ‘And G-d blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it’ (Genesis 2:3), and are we not further commanded to ‘remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy. Six days shall you labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the L-rd your G-d, in it you shall not do any work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger that is within your gates.’ “(Exodus 20: 8 – 10)

The young man looked, an uneasiness in his eyes, and asked: “Is there more than just laws and customs? It seems so dry and without feeling.”

Chacham’s face began to turn red with frustration, but Tam turned to the young man and began: “He who delights in the Sabbath Day is granted his heart’s desire, as it is written: ‘delight yourself also in the L-rd, and he shall give you the desires of your heart. This delight refers to the Sabbath Day, as it is said ‘and you shall call the Sabbath a delight.’ ” (Isaiah 58:13) (Shabbos 118 a-b)

Chacham shook his head in agreement and added: “that is why it is important to ‘devote part of the Sabbath Day to learning Torah (Scriptures) and part to feasting.’ ” (Y. Shabbos 15:3)

Tam looked at the young man kindly and shared: “I know it’s hard and sometimes very difficult to understand many of the teachings. So let me explain it a little differently:

“A prince was taken captive from a field of battle and was brought to a place far away from his home. The people in the place were ignorant and gave him no respect. He remembered his father and his home and sent a message to his father.”

“One day, the prince received a letter from his father. He was overjoyed and wanted desperately to express his feelings. He felt like jumping up and dancing, but how could he when everyone around him would laugh and think him crazy. Then, he had an idea. He would purchase some fine food and some good wine, and invite his neighbors to a feast. They ate their fill of food and became drunk on wine until they began to sing and dance. The prince, too, danced, but for different reasons, the neighbors danced out of the drunkenness, he danced because of the joy from the letter he had received.”

Chacham interjected: “the one who violates Shabbos was put in the same category as a person betrays his faith and his people.” (Eruvin 69 b).

Tam continued: “it is sad, even maybe a little sinful to say that too many think of the Sabbath day is very boring, tedious and dreary. They think only in terms of ‘what can be done’ and ‘what cannot be done’, a long list of restrictions.”

“People scrimp and save to take a vacation to get away from telephones, computers and other annoyances. They go for fancy food and relaxation.” Everything a person could want is in Shabbos, and it comes once a week. It is indeed a beautiful day to refresh, renew and recharge.”

The young man looked at Tam and Chacham and smiled. He took a deep cleansing breath and asked: “can you give me a blessing that I can understand the beauty of Shabbos?”

Chacham smiled and began:

“Heavenly Father, in Your great love help us to welcome the Holy Shabbos with tremendous joy, happiness, and understanding.

Watch over us and protect us so that on the Holy Shabbos, no sadness enters into our hearts.

May we know no sorrow or sighing or any worry at all.

Bless us and all we meet so that all can rejoice on the Sabbath Day, with all their heart and with all their soul with all of their might.”

Tam continued:

“let us all be happy throughout the Sabbath Day, from the time it arrives until it leaves.

Allow us to draw the joy of Shabbos into the other days of the week. So that happiness can be found during the week.

Help us to obtain the true calm and happiness of Shabbos.

May we all find rest filled with love, truth and faith, wholesomeness, peace and security. The complete rest, which we know You desire.”

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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Laughter and Love for Shabbos

Posted on Monday, 3, February, 2014Friday, 6, October, 2023 by Rabbi

If you refrain from violating the Sabbath, from pursuing your own interests on My holy day; if you call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the L-rd honorable, (Isaiah 58:13)

Once, the students of a holy rabbi decided to prepare him a special Shabbos meal. They worked for days to make sure that everything would be just as it should be, so that the spirit of the Shabbos would descend as it never had before.

The students and the rabbi came in from shul (synagogue) and began to sing Shalom Aleichem and an atmosphere of holiness surrounded the holy rabbi and his students. As they sang, the Holy rabbi began to laugh and laugh, as though he could not contain himself.

All was silent as the holy rabbi stood to make Kiddush, a student lifted the Kiddush cup and placed it in his holy teacher’s hand. Suddenly the holy rabbi began to laugh loudly, and all the students looked around to see what had made their teacher laugh — if there was something out of sorts — but everything was as it should be.

They began the Shabbos meal, hoping everything would meet their teacher’s approval. They served the holy rabbi the first bowl of the soup that they had worked so long over….He tasted it, and then he laughed so hard he almost spilled the soup.

The students were shocked. They rushed to taste the soup, but there was nothing in it that tasted…funny.

Still later, they were singing the Shabbos songs, listening to the holy rabbi’s lessons on the weekly Torah portion and stories. The holy rabbi smiled several times and was in a very joyful mood.

It was the custom of the students that as soon as the stars came out after the spirit of the Shabbos had departed, they would choose one question between them, and present it to the Holy rabbi. This Saturday night, there was no debate as to what question they would ask. “Holy master, why did you laugh three times during the Shabbos?”

In answer, the holy rabbi said, “Come with me,” and with that the students crowded into the holy rabbi’s carriage. Several hours later, the carriage stopped in a small village. The holy rabbi was greeted by the village leaders and he asked about Anschel the bookbinder.

Anschel the bookbinder lived on the edge of town, and several students went to bring him to the holy rabbi. When Anschel the bookbinder entered the old wooden village shul (Synagogue) and saw the holy rabbi he began to cry. “Oh, Holy Master, I know I have committed a great sin. Please tell me what I must do to be forgiven.”

“Anschel, tell us how you spent your Shabbos.”

“Do I have to? I’m so ashamed.”

“Yes, tell us everything and leave nothing out.”

“Rabbi, holy rabbi, I’ll never do it again. Please don’t make me confess my sins in public.”

The holy rabbi softly comforted: “Anschel, do not fear and have no shame, but please tell us how you spent your Shabbos.”

Fearfully, the Anschel glanced around the room and began his account: “I am an old bookbinder. In my youth, I could earn enough that my wife and I had what we needed during the week, and always had something special to greet the Shabbos. But as I have grown older, my hands can no longer work fast and we have suffered terribly.”

“Sadly, this Shabbos — for the first time — we had no Shabbos candles — and nothing for a Shabbos meal. So I went to shul and stayed late as there was nothing to go home to, but as I walked down the road I saw light shining from my house. I became very angry at my wife for taking charity, but for the sake of Shalom Bayis (peace in the home) I decided to hold my anger.”

“I entered the house and saw the table set with everything fine, there were golden challahs and wine. My wife was determined that we would observe the Shabbos as well as we were able. I could hold my anger no longer and asked my wife why she accepted charity. She answered me:

“Anschel, my beloved husband do you remember the black dress with the fancy buttons you bought me when we were first married?”

“Yes, but what does that have to do with now?”

“Well, I was cleaning for Shabbos and was very sad. I found that black dress and tried it on and my heart skipped a beat as I remembered you told me when I wore that dress I looked like the Shabbos Malka (Sabbath Queen) and that I’d always be your Shabbos Kallah (Sabbath Bride). Then I had an idea. I took the buttons off my dress and took them to the jeweler and he gave me 5 gold coins for them. So I bought all we needed for Shabbos.”

“As she finished telling me this, I saw a wonderful light. I sang Shalom Aleichem, and I understood for the first time that the light that I had thought came only from the candles was also coming from her. I grabbed my wife and we danced around the table and with tears in my eyes I knew I loved more today than any other time.”

“I got control of myself, and went back to observing the Shabbos with due respect.”

“I stood at the head of the table and raised the Kiddush cup to make the blessing, when my wife smiled at me and my heart melted. I felted twenty years younger and rushed through the blessing and then danced around the Shabbos table with my wife.

“We finally sat down to eat and my wife served me chicken soup. At that moment, I realized that the nourishment — which all these years I had thought came only from the soup — actually came also from her, from our being together through so many Shabboses. (Sabbaths)

“And before I realized what I was doing, I jumped up, pulled her to me and kissed her. We danced as though we were teenagers.”

“Shocked at my own behavior, I sat back down. I stayed in my seat properly until later, when we sang the Shabbos songs and shared stories. Throughout Shabbos I kept looking at my wife lovingly”

“Suddenly, I knew that, in spite of our great poverty, while I had her in my life, I lacked for nothing.

“Rabbi, holy rabbi, I know I have defiled the Shabbos. Please, tell me what I must do to be forgiven.”

“The Holy rabbi looked at his students. ”When Anschel and his wife spent their Shabbos in such deep and holy love, I was there with them, and I shared in their joy.”

“When he spoke his love for his wife, not only I but the angels in heaven heard — and they smiled. And when he got up and kissed his wife, acting on that deep love — the angels in heaven saw them, and they laughed.

“And when the two of them joined their hands and sang and danced their joy, the angels themselves began to sing and to dance. And the Eternal Heart itself heard them, and it was warmed.

“On a Shabbos of such perfect joy, who wouldn’t laugh?”

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

Rachmiel Tobesman is a motivational speaker and Maggid (spiritual Storyteller). He is available for speaking engagements or storytelling, Click here to contact us

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What Happened to Yossele L’Koved Shabbos

Posted on Saturday, 25, January, 2014Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

The holy rabbi’s eyes filled with tears. He held Yossele his hand and looked him in the eye and gently said to him: “Yossele, I really, really envy you, to have such an exalted name – l’Koved Shabbos – and for such a holy reason. What an honor to meet such a Jewish person that lives what he believes. Please tell me a little about yourself.”

“Holy rabbi, the truth is, there is not much to tell. I never knew my parents, because they left this world when I was only five years old. I don’t have any other family, so I lived on the streets, making money for food anyway I could. Sometimes, late at night, I go to the old wooden shul, and some people out of kindness would teach me how to pray a little, and how to recite the Psalms. I never learned anything else. I’m big and I’m strong and so I make a living as a porter. I have a wife and children, and that’s all there is to say about me.”

The holy rabbi squeezed Yossele his hand again and said: “Yossele, sweet Yossele, there’s one more thing I want to know. This is very important to me. Why do you always sing? What are you thinking about when you carry all those heavy bundles and packages singing l’Koved Shabbos?”

Yossele looked at the holy rabbi is tears welled up in his eyes. He began to cry: “rabbi, holy rabbi, I know the beginning, but I don’t know how it will end. I know that in the beginning the Ribbono Shel Olam (the Master of the Universe) created the heavens and the earth. I learned about our fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our four holy mothers, about the twelve tribes of Israel, I know the Master of the Universe took us out from the land of Egypt and brought us to a holy land where we built the Holy Temple, the place of G-d’s glory in Jerusalem.”

“I also know what happened next. We were driven out of our land, the Holy Temple was destroyed, and ever since, the Jewish people have been wandering around the world, in exile, without a home.”

“So you see, holy rabbi, I do know the beginning, and a little bit of the middle, but I don’t know the end. When will the bitter exile finally be over? When will the Holy One, blessed be He, take us back to the holy city, to Jerusalem? When will be able to gather again in the Holy Temple l’Koved Shabbos, in honor of the holy Shabbos?”

“So that’s why I sing, holy rabbi. My song is really my cry, my prayer to the Holy One, blessed be He. You ask, what am I thinking? Well I will tell you. I am thinking, Ribbono Shel Olam, l’Koved Shabbos, for the honor Shabbos, but the end of the long exile should come soon, l’Koved Shabbos, for the sake of the Holy Sabbath, the Holy Temple be rebuilt today, l’Koved Shabbos.”

The holy rabbi was silent for a moment and he could not hold back his tears. He began crying from the deepest parts of his soul, and he said: “Yossele you know the holiest secret of all, that everything we carry, everything we do, everything that happens to us in our lives, everything is all l’Koved Shabbos, for the sake of the Great Shabbos to come. If all of the Jewish people only knew this exalted truth, then the end of the terrible exile, the great day, the coming of the Messiah, would literally be so close, so near.”

That Shabbos Yossele was at every meal at the holy rabbi’s house. As the stars rose in the sky and the holy rabbi made Havdalah, Yossele looked into the flame and smiled. The next day Yossele disappeared. No one knew when he left or where he went.

The years went by and Yossele was forgotten. The young man continued his studies and became a teacher too many and became known as a holy rabbi. The holy rabbi was traveling through a distant village when he saw an old man sitting on a rocking chair in the marketplace. He heard a haunting melody, a song that was very close to his heart:

“L’K-o-oved Shabbos, oy, L’K-o-oved Shabbos, oy, L’K-o-oved Shabbos!”

It then became clear what had happened to Yossele. He left his home and went into the forest and there met the holiest of holy teachers who made him into lamed vov tzaddik. Yossele had become one of the 36 hidden holy people who keep the whole world going, l’Koved Shabbos, until the Messiah comes and everyone comes together l’Koved Shabbos, for the honor of Shabbos.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Yossele l’Koved Shabbos

Posted on Tuesday, 21, January, 2014Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

There once was a young man who wanted to study Torah with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all of his strength. He was honored to study with some very holy rabbis. Sadly with all of his learning, something was missing. The young man felt empty, it was as though the fire was not burning very brightly in his studies. He decided that he would search to find a holy teacher. Not someone to give him more information, more details on the finer points of Jewish law and ritual, but a teacher who could show him how to see the beauty in the world around him and could touch him to his very core – his soul. So the young man set out on his journey to find a holy teacher who would show him how to reach the highest places in the heavens, yet still embrace the world around him.

The young man was so hungry to find the right teacher, that he traveled from town to town speaking to every rabbi he could find. Many were very learned, had beautiful rituals and were holy. They taught him much Torah, but not any of them were able to touch the deepest parts of his soul.

One day, he traveled to a small village in there he saw the newly arrived village rabbi, a veil of holiness surrounded him and the young man knew that this was the holy teacher he was looking for. Still, the young man wanted to make sure that this holy rabbi was indeed the teacher he was hoping for and so he decided he would wait for a sign.

Now in the small village, every Jewish person was on a very high level. Everyone observed Shabbos, ate only kosher food, and prayed from their hearts. Yet there was one person, Yossele Trayger who most people felt was just a simple person. He could barely read or write, he knew how to pray a little and could recite a few Psalms. When the young man saw him, he knew that he was special.

Yossele Trayger was a giant of a man with bulging muscles. Because of his size and strength he was a porter. All day long he would stand in the marketplace and help people carry their bundles, but he did so much more than merely carrying packages and heavy boxes.

He would meet a woman shopping for provisions for her household, on Sunday, and she would ask him to carry all of her purchases to her home. Yossele Trayger would lift up the heavy bags and put them on his shoulder effortlessly, as he began to carry them he would ask: “please forgive me for asking, but do you think there’ll be some of this food left for Shabbos, l’Koved Shabbos, for the honor of the Holy Shabbos?”

The woman would look at him and think for a moment and then, maybe just to make Yossele feel good or maybe because it was the truth, the woman would answer kindly: “you know, I’ve bought a lot of food, even for my large family. I’m sure there will be plenty left for Shabbos.”

Yossele would start to smile and then, it seemed like he was filled with a holy light. He would lift the packages and bundles higher onto his shoulder, almost as though he wanted to lift them to the heavens. Then he would begin to hum a tune and very soon he would burst out singing as loud as he could on the way to the woman’s house:

“L’K-o-oved Shabbos, oy, L’K-o-oved Shabbos, oy, L’K-o-oved Shabbos!”

People along the way would just look and sometimes smile as they watched Yossele Trayger pass them.

On Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, Yossele never carried anything without first asking about Shabbos. By Wednesday and Thursday, he didn’t even bother to ask, that late in the week. People were already thinking about Shabbos. On Friday, he would dart around the marketplace carrying anything and everything to all the Jewish homes. The whole city seemed to echo with his singing:

“L’K-o-oved Shabbos, oy, L’K-o-oved Shabbos, oy, L’K-o-oved Shabbos!”

Yossele Trayger’s heart was filled with warmth and joy, but sadly people can be very cruel and mean-spirited. Many people in the small village made fun of Yossele’s singing and even began to consider him nothing more than a joke. They called him crazy and even made up a nickname to tease him: “Yossele l’Koved Shabbos”

The young man watched Yossele all week, and even though people laughed at him, the young man felt that Yossele was one of the holiest and truest of people in the small village.

Shabbos was approaching the young man determined that he would watch the holy rabbi at the end of Friday night services. The rabbi had a custom of greeting everyone by saying: “Gut Shabbos.” The young man wanted to see if the rabbi really greeted everyone in the shul. If the holy rabbi could see how special Yossele was and paid attention to him, gave him honor, the young man would know that he was the holy teacher he was looking for. If instead, the rabbi ignored Yossele like everyone else usually did, and didn’t bother to say anything to him, the young man would know for sure that this rabbi was not the teacher he was looking for and he would have to journey further to find his holy teacher.

After the Friday night prayers were over, everyone rushed up greet the rabbi by saying “Gut Shabbos.” The young man noticed that Yossele did not join in the crowd around the rabbi, but instead stood in the corner of the old wooden shul and just watched. He looked so sad, so alone and totally broken. The young man watched him as a tear formed in his eye as he realized that Yossele was probably so used to being insulted and abused as the butt of jokes that he could not believe that a holy rabbi would want to speak to him. Slowly the young man walked across the shul and stood by Yossele.

The holy rabbi finished greeting all of the people who crowded around him. He looked around the shul and noticed two people who were standing in the corner whom he had not spoken to yet, Yossele and the young student. The rabbi walked across the shul to the corner and extended his hand to give a Shabbos greeting.

Yossele was so shocked he couldn’t move, but the young man pushed him towards the village’s new rabbi. The young man watched carefully to see what the rabbi would do. Very slowly, Yossele eased toward the rabbi and watched as the rabbi took the holy hand that carried everything l’Koved Shabbos.

The holy rabbi closed his eyes stood very still. He squeezed Yossele’s hand tightly and said, very softly: “my holy friend, would you please tell me your name?”

Yossele was so shy and so uncertain, he couldn’t even look at the rabbi. He just hung his head and mumbled, “um my name… um my name, is Yossele.”

“Is that your whole name, or do you maybe have another name also?”

Yossele was so ashamed, he bowed his head even more. “I ah well um sometimes people call me… I mean, they’re only joking, but they call me…. Yossele l’Koved Shabbos.”

“Why do they call you that?”

Yossele was so upset he could hardly speak. His voice dropped to a whisper: “because… because… because when I carry their bundles and packages. I always sing l’Koved Shabbos.”

The holy rabbi’s eyes filled with tears. He held Yossele’s hand and looked him in the eye and gently said to him: “Yossele, I really, really envy you. To have such an exalted name – l’Koved Shabbos – and for such a holy reason. What an honor. To meet such a Jewish person that lives what he believes.

The young man found his teacher.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

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New Year’s Day – Rosh haShanah and Blessings

Posted on Tuesday, 17, December, 2013Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

The snow and wind blew while sounds of celebration were heard from outside the wooden synagogue. It was the eve of the secular New Year’s. Many men were gathered around tables studying the holy words of Torah.

Suddenly the door to the holy rabbi’s private room opened and the holy rabbi himself came out and greeted everyone:

“L’Shana Tovah Tikasevu v’Techasemu!” (May you all be inscribed and sealed for a good year!)

With that the holy rabbi went back into his room and closed the door. Everyone who was studying the holy words of Torah were very surprised. Surely the holy rabbi knew that this was not Rosh haShanah, but the secular New Year? Why then did he extend such a greeting.

Some time later, the door opened and the holy rabbi again greeted the men studying the holy words of Torah. Hours passed and the holy rabbi offered the greeting a third time.

Puzzled by the holy rabbi’s behavior, the men went to one of the holy rabbi’s students and asked him to go to his master’s room and ask about the meaning of his strange actions through the night.

The student went and knocked on the door of his teacher, the holy rabbi and entered. The holy rabbi looked up from his studies and greeted his student: “Shalom Aleichem” the student answered: “Aleichem Shalom.” The Rabbi continued: “what brings you to my study at such a late hour?”

The student looked at his teacher, cleared his throat and asked: “many have been studying Torah tonight and you greeted them as though it was Rosh haShanah. This seems a little out of the ordinary. What is the holy reason for your greetings, this night of all times?”

The holy rabbi thought for a moment, smiled and explained:

“Last Rosh Hashanah, the Day of Judgment for all the Jewish people and the world, the Jewish people prayed with intensity in their synagogues. Their prayers and the sounds of the shofar ascended to the heavens. Moved by the waves of heartfelt pleas, the Holy One, blessed be He, left his Throne of Justice to ascend the Throne of Mercy. There he wrote a decree which stated that the coming year would be a year of health and happiness for all Jewish people and peoples of the world.

When Yom Kippur, the fearful Day of Atonement, came and He saw how all of the Jewish people fasted and wept and poured out their hearts in prayer as “all are judged on Rosh haShanah and the verdicts is sealed on the Day of Atonement.” (Rosh haShanah 16a) The Holy One, blessed be He lifted the pen to sign the decree of blessings for all of the people in the world.

At that moment, the Dark Accusing One approached to protest: “yes, O L-rd, on Yom Kippur they fast and have remorse, dressed in white as the angels in heaven. What of all the rest of the year when they are filled with sins and wickedness?”

The decree was not signed.

When the Jewish people gathered together boards and scraps of wood to build succas for the holiday of Succos (the Feast of Tabernacles), prepared to eat and sleep in the succas, the defending angel appealed:

“Ribbono Shel Olam, Master of the Universe, You see these succas which even the poorest of Your children are building with so much joy, according to Your command “You shall dwell in booths for seven days” (Leviticus 23:42) and in the days of old “on the Festival of Tabernacles Israel would offer up seventy bullocks, one for each of the seventy nations of the world, and prayed that they might live in peace.” (Pisikta Kahana 175b). Have You heard them pray, ufros aleinu succas sh’lomecha (spread over us the shelter of Your peace). Please sign the decree now.

And so it would have been, had not the Dark Accusing One not objected: “yes, for the boards, which are here today and gone tomorrow. But for themselves – for their homes, their businesses, their entertainment – they erect strong buildings of brick and stone and glass that last forever!”

Then came Simchas Torah, the Jewish people embraced the Torah and danced with it in their synagogues in boundless joy. Again, the Defending Angel argued that the Holy One, blessed be He, should sign the decree: “See, oh G-d, how your children are happy with Your Holy Word, the Torah!”

The Dark Accusing One intervened: “yes, for one night they dance merrily with your Torah, their heads turned and their spirits lifted by a drop of schnapps. But in a more sober mood when their minds are clear, do they fulfill the mitzvahs, which are written in the Torah?”

The decree was not signed.

Every window was filled with light during Chanukah. It seemed as though the light of the first day touched every soul. The words of the morning prayer, “v’chol ayin lecha tetzapeh” (every eye longs for you) were realized.

The Defending Angel argued that the Holy One, blessed be He, should sign the decree:

“Look, and see how Your children are bringing Your holy light into the world. For indeed ‘the spirit of man is the candle of the L-rd.’ ” (Proverbs 20:27)

The dark accusing one interjected: “true, they kindle lights and may touch the soul with holiness, but are they honest and holy in the marketplace or with other people?”

The decree was not signed.

And so it is that the judgment written in favor of the Jewish people and all the peoples of the world on Rosh haShanah has remained unsigned all these many weeks until tonight. For when the New Year began and with it started all of the drunkenness, the shouting and brawls that usually occur on that night, the Defending Angel approached G-d and said: “O Lord, see how they begin the New Year tonight. Listen to the screams and noise as well as the sounds of discord, look at the shamelessness and the corruption – and remember how Your children began the New Year on Rosh haShanah, with prayer, with repentance, and with holiness.”

To this, the Dark Accusing One could not say single word.

And so it was that, after some four months of delay, the Holy One, blessed be He, at last signed the good decree for the Jewish people and the world.

“Therefore,” the holy rabbi concluded, “I greet you tonight with L’Shana Tovah Tikasevu v’Techasemu!,” (May you all be inscribed and sealed for a good year!)

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Chanukah Lights and the Blessings of Sight

Posted on Saturday, 23, November, 2013Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Chanukah is the Festival of Lights and it hold a lot of power. When one sees somebody else’s light we see hope and promise and this leads to Berachos (blessings), and this leads to hope that people will see blessings over each other lights. About Chanukah, it says “mitzvahs ner Chanukah ish u’beiso” (Succah 46a) — the mitzvah of the light of Hanukkah is for a man in his whole household.

Chanukah is all about the eyes. When you want to visualize someone you are thinking about, you don’t think of their back or their arms or legs. You visualize their face, because their face is the most important thing. In today’s society with all of the distractions people’s faces become lost in the crowd. Many times the essence of a person becomes lost.

It was a cold wintery night and the winds were blowing the snow about when a someone came to see the very holy rabbi. This person looked so crude, his clothes was tattered and he smelled. He didn’t even have a human face. The holy rabbi’s young son answered the knock at the door. He didn’t even want to let the man into the house, but he did, and he decided, “I’ll keep the door a little bit open to hear what my father says.”

So this unkempt man spoke to the holy rabbi, who quickly realizes that this person is the one of the crudest people in the world. So he says to the crude man: “My dear friend, your soul needs a lot of fixing. I’ll tell you something very simple. Everyday slowly say the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9) and I want you to promise me that every day for a few minutes you’ll forget the whole world and just think about what you can do for another person. Think if you can do one favor for another person and please come back next year.”

One year to the day later, there was a knock on the door of the holy rabbi’s house. The holy rabbi’s young son answered the knock at the door. The man at the door was shining from the top of his hat to the bottoms of his shoes. He really had changed and had a different face.

What part of a person shines, or stands apart from everything else? It’s not the arms or legs, it’s the face. In the small light of the Chanukah candle we see each person’s face and the beauty within.

May we all be blessed to see the beauty of the world around us and may the small lights of Chanukah shine bright with blessings for all.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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The Mystery of the Dreidel

Posted on Thursday, 21, November, 2013Thursday, 22, September, 2022 by Rabbi

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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The Mother’s Prayer Book and a Boy’s Prayer

Posted on Tuesday, 10, September, 2013Monday, 19, September, 2022 by Rabbi

In a far away village there once lived a Jewish merchant who was held in high affection by the lord of the village. This Jewish merchant passed away and his wife followed him, leaving a little boy behind them. The lord of the village took pity on him and brought him up, treating him like a son. The lord always enjoyed the company of the child, and on one occasion he told him that his father and mother had been Jewish, but he had adopted him as his son and all his property and wealth would be the child’s. Meanwhile, he gave him the few belongings which his parents had left. Among them was the prayer book from which his mother had always prayed.

Now the Elul month came around, when it is the practice of the Jewish community in the village to gather together in order to say their prayers during the Days of Awe together with the congregation, since the splendor of the King is found in the multitude of the people. The boy asked some Jewish travelers where they were going, and they told him that they were going to the place where they could pray to G-d since their fate for the year would be decided on Rosh haShanah (New Year’s Day), which is a great and awesome occasion indeed. There they would pray with the whole community and G-d certainly would not reject their prayer. From that moment the spirit of the L-rd began to work within the boy.

That night the boy saw his father and mother in a dream, and they urged him to return to the faith of the Jewish people. This dream returned night after night. During the entire ten days of penitence he could not sleep and saw them both awake and in dreams, and they would not let him rest. The boy told all this to the lord, who tried to persuade him that dreams are meaningless.

When the eve of the holy Day of Atonement came, the boy saw wagon after wagon full of Jewish travelers proceeding to town and asked them what it was for. They told him this is the day we wait for, the day of pardon and forgiveness when our transgressions are atoned. The boy was very upset aria set out on foot to go to the old wooden shul (synagogue) in the village. He took his mother’s prayer book and came to synagogue while the Kol Nidre prayer was being sung. He saw all the people dressed in white garments, their prayer books in their hands, praying and asking for forgiveness for deeds of the past year, but he could not pray and began to cry aloud very bitterly; and there was a great commotion in heaven on high.

The boy, seeing that he could not pray, placed his mother’s prayer book on the shtender (bookstand) and cried: “Ribbono shel Olam, Master of the Universe, I do not know how to pray, I do not know what to say, here is the whole prayer book. Pick the right prayers and put them together so that I may grow to understand You.” The boy wept and his heart was broken, his prayer made an impact on the heavenly host and was accepted among the prayers of the upright and innocent; and his prayer opened the Gates of Mercy and blessings of life, peace and goodness showered down on the world.

May all be remembered and inscribed for a year of life, goodness and blessings

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3)

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