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Tag: pirke avot

The Third Leg

Posted on Friday, 16, November, 2018Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

When the new rabbi came to Prague, he spoke to the every Shabbos on the same subject: the severe distress of the city’s needy. Everyone expected to hear well reasoned lessons of Torah (Scriptures) and wonderful stories of faith, but he spoke each Shabbos to remind them of the plight of the poverty-stricken. The numbers of poor and needy grew each week, spreading rapidly throughout the city, even in their own neighborhood; on this very street where they were attending services. “Help them!” he cried again and again. “Help! This very night go out and help!” But the people regarded his appeal as merely a sermon and they grew annoyed at constantly hearing the rabbi talk about the poor and needy.

Something strange happened one week in the market on the busiest day. In the center thickest crowds of the market the rabbi appeared and stood motionless as if he had merchandise for sale and was waiting for customers. To those who knew him his conduct became more and more confusing, while from everywhere merchants and shoppers gathered around him and stared at him. Nobody, however, dared to question him. After some time an onlooker broke the silence:

“What is the holy rabbi of Prague doing here ?”

The rabbi took a deep breath and answered:

“When a table has three legs and a piece of one of them is broken off, what does one do ? One props up the leg as well as one can and the table stands again. When, however, a second leg breaks, another support will not make the table stand. What does one do in that case? One shortens the third leg and the table stands again.”

Pirke Avos

“Our sages say, ‘The world stands on three things: Torah, on the service and on acts of lovingkindness.’ (Pirke Avos 1:2) When a school is destroyed, then the leg of Torah is broken. Our sages provide a support for it in the dictum: ‘By prayer is meant service of the heart.’ (Ta’anis 2a) When, however, Acts of Loving Kindness vanish and the second leg is impaired, how shall the world continue? That is why I left my study and came to the market. We must shorten the leg of Learning so that the table of the world will stand firmly.”

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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Posted in Faith, Rabbi's thoughts and teaching, Religious Education, Stories, UncategorizedTagged charity, Gemilos Chasadim, Gemilut Chasadim, Gemilut Hasadim, pirke avos, pirke avot, Rabbi Rock, Rachmiel TobesmanLeave a Comment on The Third Leg

Wisdom, Knowledge and the Blind

Posted on Thursday, 21, January, 2010Tuesday, 18, October, 2011 by Rabbi

In today’s society many become trapped in their respective ways of life. Habits and ways of thinking become rigid preventing many from experiencing the various gifts and wonders that surround them. So often one become lost in the popular pursuit of science and philosophy of today, while other become trapped and immoveable in the rituals of yesterday, that neither can gain knowledge. Mibhar haPeninim reminds us that “Man is only wise while in search of wisdom, when he imagines he has attained it, he is a fool.” (#21  c.1050 ce)

It is like the unseeing, who become accustomed to their plight, not ever realizing that their lives can be improved.

The Blind Men

A number of blind men were brought to a house that had been prepared for them in all respects. In it everything had been placed in its most suitable position and arranged as best suited their requirements and needs. In it had been prepared beneficial ointments and a wise physician to treat them and improve their sight. But they disregarded the treatment of their eyes and paid no attention to the physician who was engaged in treating them, but went about the house doing harmful things because of their blindness.

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Wherever they went they stumbled over those objects that had been prepared for their benefit and fell on their faces. Some of them were injured and some sustained fractures, and they suffered greatly and were in a very bad way. Then they complained about the house owner and the builder, and complained about his deeds, for to them he seemed to have done everything badly and wrongly, supposing that he had no good and kind intentions for them but had only wished to cause them injury and suffering. Indeed, this led them to lose faith in the goodness and kindness of the owner of the house.

Let us follow the teaching in Avos: “Who is wise? He who learns from everybody.” (4.1)

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Posted in Faith, Rabbi's thoughts and teaching, StoriesTagged Jewish Faith, Jewish Stories, Jewish Storytelling, Jewish thought, pirke avos, pirke avot, Rabbi Rock, Rachmiel Tobesman, Spiritual Storytelling, Spirituality, Storytelling2 Comments on Wisdom, Knowledge and the Blind

Is Knowledge, Wisdom?

Posted on Monday, 4, January, 2010Tuesday, 18, October, 2011 by Rabbi

In a time when science and technology are touted as knowledge, there is a true lack of wisdom. The ancients defined the world in the terms of mathematics and their five senses. Times have not changed since it was taught in Pirke Avos: “Who is wise? He who learns from everybody.” (4:1) One must take the time to see and understand what is around them, for knowledge is not wisdom.

Woe to them that see and know not what they see, that stand and know not where they stand.  (Chagigah 12a )

The stories told by the maggid (storytelling rabbi) touched many to the heart, mind and soul in the community. People began to see hope and return to the ways of Torah (Scriptures). Suddenly the maggid was confronted by a leader of the community, a clean-shaven man who not only refused to show the maggid any respect, but also sharply criticized him for the stories he told the people.The maggid now realized that his sermon had been on target and that this man’s disrespect was defensive.

The maggid answered the man’s biting words, “As I came into this village, I was greeted by an ox. ‘What reason do you have to greet me?’ I asked. ‘I have no reason to relate to you.’ The ox answered, ‘Yes, you do, you eat of my meat.’

“I was then greeted by a cow, and when I asked what relationship she had to me, the cow said, ‘You drink my milk.’ I was then greeted by a goat, who said, ‘We share a common feature, because you have a beard and I too have a beard.’

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“But then I was greeted by a hog. ‘This is too much,’ I said. ‘You give me nothing. I don’t eat your meat and I don’t drink your milk. You don’t have a beard like I do. Why should I relate to you?’ “

Let us all hope we can rise above the science and popular philosophies of society to gain true knowledge and wisdom.

“All the streams run into the sea” (Eccles. 1:7). All of man’s wisdom is nowhere other than in the heart. “Yet the sea is not full” (ibid.)–the heart is never filled to capacity. You might suppose that when a man lets his wisdom go forth from his heart, it will never flow back to him. For this reason Scripture says, “Yet the streams flow back again” (Eccles. R. 1:7)

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Posted in Faith, Stories, UncategorizedTagged Faith, Jewish Stories, Jewish thought, pirke avos, pirke avot, Spiritual Storytelling, Spirituality, Stories of faith, Torah, wisdom1 Comment on Is Knowledge, Wisdom?

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