Are We There Yet

Posted on Thursday, 8, October, 2015Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

The Jewish people prays, waits and hopes for the Messiah to come and redeem the world from fear and pain, from hunger and sickness, and the devastating conflicts between the wealthy and the poor. The long and difficult exile filled with pain and suffering will come to an end.

A young man was studying the end of the Book of Daniel tried to unravel the mysterious verses predicting the “end of days.” He came to the holy rabbi of the village with the age old question, “When is the Messiah going to come? Will it be soon?”

The holy rabbi sat in deep thought for some time. He was keenly aware that many of his colleagues were very critical of predicting a date, mentioning that the Talmud pronounces a curse on those who attempt to compute the day of the redemption.

The closed his eyes and seemed to drift between thoughts, took a deep breath and began:

“A merchant set out on a long journey with his young son to a market in the big city. In those days, the trip by horse and buggy took many days, and after a few hours, the child would ask, “Papa, how far is it to the big city?” The father looked at his son who quickly understood that his father was displeased with the question. His father changed the subject and they talked and learned together. The young boy soon understood he was not to ask about how long the trip was taking.”

“After several days travel the boy heard his father ask the driver, “Do we still have much to go until we get to the big city?” Puzzled, he then asked why he had been reprimanded when he had presented the same question.”

“The father responded, “Earlier in the trip, when I knew we were still very far from our destination, I did not wish to tell you how distant we were, because I knew you would become impatient and cause me problems. Now that I sense we are approaching the area, I feel free to ask just how close we are.’ ”

The holy rabbi took a deep breath and continued, “The Talmud was written two-thousand years ago, and the sages knew we were destined for a long stay in exile. Now that we are obviously so close to the redemption, however, it is permissible and even natural to ask, ‘How far is it to the big city? ‘ “

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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The Faithful Woman

Posted on Sunday, 6, September, 2015Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Once there were two brothers, one brother was very rich and the other brother was painfully poor. The wealthy brother had a fine house which he filled with beautiful things while the poor brother had a very beautiful wife and filled his house with faith and love.

One day the poor brother came to wealthy brother to ask him for a loan, but the rich man refused to help him. Even when neighbors tried to persuade the rich man to help his poor brother saying, “If one of your brethren becomes poor, and falls into poverty among you, then you shall help him, like a stranger or a sojourner, that he may live with you.” (Leviticus 25:35), he would say that he had no brother.

One day the rich man went out for a walk in the town, and in the course of his wanderings came to the poor quarter of the town. Through the window of one of the buildings he saw the face of a beautiful woman. “Whose wife is that?” he asked the people nearby.

“That is your brother’s wife,” he was told. He immediately fell in love with the woman and desired her greatly. His every thought was about the beautiful wife of his brother and soon he began to plan how he would capture her heart. After sometime he decided that if he could not convince her to come with him, he would take her by force.

One day the rich man sent for his poor brother. He gave him money and said to him: “Why do you not ask me for anything?” And he flattered his poor brother and invited him and his wife to his house, and did them many favours. After some time he gave his brother goods to trade in a faraway land, to earn some money. At first the poor man refused to leave his wife, but the rich brother promised him that she would remain under his protection. And so the poor brother set out on his journey with a quiet heart.

On the following day the rich man sent his sister-in-law vegetables, fruit and meat and told her that he would come to eat dinner .at her house. She could not tell him not to come, but while he was in the house she conducted herself in the most proper manner. Every day the rich man used to pester her and send her gifts but she remained unimpressed. One day the woman decided to end matters with the rich man. She invited him to her house, and tried to speak to him. She reminded him that she was his brother’s wife and his actions appeared improper. She asked him, “ You have established yourself as a leader but ‘What is the essence of leadership? To rule oneself well, and not be led astray by wealth or fame.’ ” (Apocrypha, Aristeas: 211) The wealthy man seemed not to hear her words and so she abruptly rose and left the house. The wealthy man was outraged and felt he was disrespected by this woman who he saw as beggar refusing his charity. In his anger, he nursed the insult in his heart and decided that he would revenge himself on the woman who had offended him.

One day, early in the morning, the rich man left his house and on his way met a poor man. He gave him money and said to him: “In return for the money that I have given you I want you to steal into the house I will show you.” Needless to say, this house was none other than the house of his sister-in-law. Then the rich man went to one of the synagogues in the city and invited the men he found there to a bris milah which, he said, was taking place in that same building. The men opened the door and there in the house they saw a man standing: “What are you doing here?” They asked him. “Since the departure of this woman’s husband I have always been here,” the poor man answered. The rich man had ordered the poor man to say, in return for the money that he had given him.

The men believed the poor man, and they beat the unfaithful woman and drove her out of the town. Sadly, no one spoke in favor of the poor woman.

All the woman’s pleadings were in vain. She wished to explain to the men and her rich brother-in-law that she was not guilty of what they suspected, but they refused to listen to her. Instead they slandered and shunned her so she had no choice but to leave the town. When she was some distance from the town, she fell, overcome with emotion and exhaustion. She cried silently prayed as she fell to the ground.

Just at that time, a rabbi and his wife were approaching the town. They were childless. They heard the sound of crying and set out to find out the cause. After a short time they found the poor woman lying on the ground with bleeding wounds.

They comforted her, bound her wounds and asked her to travel with them. In their hearts they thought: “Perhaps we have done a good deed today and in reward we would be blessed with a child.”

The prayers of the faithful woman and the childless couple were heard and after some time, the couple was blessed with a child and they asked the woman they had saved to be the child’s nurse. The woman, of course, was very grateful to the couple, for they had rescued her and she was a faithful nurse.

In the house of this rabbi there was a student who fell in love with the beautiful woman. He asked her to marry him but she refused, for she was married but did not wish to reveal her secret. The student decided to avenge himself on her. What did he do? He rose in the middle of the night, killed the infant in her care, and immediately afterwards he ran away.

In the morning the parents were very angry with the ungrateful woman, but the rabbi who was very wise decided, “she should not be punished, all that has happened is the will of G-d. We must let her go, taking with her the dead child.”

The woman herself was sad and hopeless. She had been driven from every place because of false accusations. Who knew better than she how false the accusations were?

She set out into the desert, hungry and thirsty, and in her arms she carried the dead child. Suddenly she saw an old man with a long beard and flowing robes who told her,

“We are taught ‘the Lord maintains the cause of the needy, and executes justice for the poor.’ (Psalm 140:12) You have nothing to fear, I bring you two gifts.” He offered her a potion to give to the child and, as the liquid passed his lips, his eyes fluttered and he began to breathe. The old man then gave a sack of golden coins and another potion to her and he explained that it could cure all ills. Before leaving, he gave her some advice: she must disguise herself as a man, establish a rest stop where she could cure all the sick who came to her. The woman took the advice of the old man, put on men’s clothes and opened an inn at the edge of the desert. The inn became very popular, for all sorts of conditions were cured there. The rabbi’s son, who had been restored to life, was educated and studied the Torah and wisdom.

All that the old man with the long beard and flowing robes had told her came to pass. Some of ‘the sick who came to the inn were well-known to the woman. Among them was her wicked brother-in-law who suffered greatly from leprosy, and her husband who became sick in the heart, body and soul after he had been told what his wife had been unfaithful. There was the poor man who had stood in the hall of the woman’s house and who had made the false accusations against her; and the rabbi and his wife also came. Then too, there was the student who had wanted to marry her and whom she had refused.

The woman placed these patients in different rooms so that they should not see each other but they could hear each other. One condition the woman laid down to all those who came to be treated by her was that before receiving treatment they must confess and reveal all their sins.

First among those who confessed was her rich brother-in-law who told what he had done to his brother’s wife. Then the poor man who was nearby told his story. The husband heard that was said and he was very angry with those who had slandered his wife, but, above all, he was angry with himself for having believed the terrible things that had been told to him. The couple who had driven out the woman after the death of their only child, and the student who had killed the child, all confessed their actions. The rabbi and his wife, when they heard the tale of the student, deeply regretted their hasty action in regard to their nurse.

When they had all confessed, the woman made herself known to them. She cured her husband who had returned to her, and to the old couple she restored their son who had in the meantime grown up and was a promising scholar. She did not cure her brother-in law because it is written, “Sinners are enemies to their own life” (Apocrypha, Tobit 12:10) and the poor man who so easily spoke falsely about the woman could not be healed as the teaching says, “Do not let the slanderer be established in the land’ (Psalm 140:11) and ‘There is no cure for a slanderer.’ ” (Derech Eretz 1:13) The Torah teaches, “And you shall not wrong one another” (Leviticus 25:17)and so the three who plotted, slandered and sinned remained sickly to the end of their days.

The rabbi blessed the woman and her husband, but could not bless them more that the old man with the long beard and flowing robes. For Eliyahu haNovi (Elijah the Prophet) only comes to the aid of the truly righteous.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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The Blessing of a Greeting

Posted on Sunday, 9, August, 2015Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

The act of saying shalom to another person can be interpreted in a couple of ways. Many believe that by simply saying shalom to another person. We are really asking, “are you at peace? Is everything okay?” By extending the greeting of shalom (peace), one shows empathy and offers the recipient of the greeting the opportunity to speak openly and at times, invent invite them to ask for help. Others believe that by extending the greeting of shalom. There is no question. They believe that we are bringing a blessing down from heaven bless the person with shalom (peace), and in this way, praying that everything should be well with the recipient of the greeting and all those close and dear to them.

Sadly, today most people do not have either of these intentions in mind when they greet one another. Their only intention is to acknowledge that they are aware of the other person’s presence, or to introduce a conversation.

The word “shalom” is a reference to the Holy One, blessed be He and should be taken very seriously. By greeting someone with shalom, one is extending a sincere blessing of peace and also invites blessings from heaven. This is learned from Abraham. When G-d assured him, “I will bless those who bless you.” (Genesis 12:3)

Greeting people with shalom (peace) is an aspect of “love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18). The importance of this greeting is further in the words of King David “seek peace and pursue it” (Psalms 34:14).

Throughout Jewish teachings it is taught that one should do their best to initiate greeting others. The act of extending a friendly, sincere greeting is so important that the rabbis of old taught, “one should act in peace with one’s brothers, relatives, and all others, even non-Jewish people one meets along the way. In this way one will be beloved in Heaven and well liked on Earth.” (Berachos 17a)

The holy rabbi had a habit of taking long walks through the forests near Esztergom (Hungary) where he would study and pray. He was well known to the many people he met by his smile and kindly ways. Everyone he met along his walks he would give a warm greeting. Every morning on his way to the forest he would pass a farm and greet its owner “Jó reggelt kívánok László úr (Good morning Mr. Laszlo).” At first the farmer ignored the rabbi and even turned his back on him, but the rabbi greeted him always with a smile and in a friendly way. One day the farmer returned the rabbi’s greeting with a slight nod of his head. After a time, the farmer would smile and nod at the rabbi, one day Mr. Laszlo asked the rabbi why he always greeted him.

The rabbi explained that the Torah teaches that one is to love your neighbor as yourself. Mr. Laszlo looked at the rabbi quizzically and asked what is Torah. The rabbi answered, “Torah it is the Jewish Scriptures.” The farmer was more confused and responded, “I heard from the priest that Jewish people don’t read the Scriptures and that the Gospel Matthew said that. (Matthew 19:19)” The rabbi patiently explained, “The Torah is older than the Scriptures the priest teaches from, but the teaching can be found in the Book of Leviticus. (Leviticus 19:18)” Mr. Laszlo smiled and extended his hand to the rabbi and said, “I guess I have much to learn.”

Soon many refugees from Bohemia came to Esztergom in those dark days ahead of the Crusaders and the rabbi was not seen by the farmer for many days. The Crusaders were drunk on blood and fell upon any Jewish person they could find. They even attacked the people in Esztergom to rob them of their food and valuables.

The farmer, afraid they might storm the church itself, ran to the church in the center of the town. He met with the priest and asked him if it was a sin to like a Jewish person. The priest explained, “The Jewish people do not share our beliefs, but we are taught by our Holy Scriptures that one of the most important lessons we need to learn is to love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:39). Why do you ask me this at this time?”

Mr. Laszlo told the priest how the rabbi greeted him each time he walked to the forest. The priest smiled and said, “The rabbi is indeed a holy man and he is here in the church. Would you like me to take you to him?” The farmer was surprised and asked why was the rabbi in the church. The Priest said only two words, “Sicut Judæis” (A papal decree intended to protect the Jewish communities from the excesses of the Crusaders. The Pope emphasized that the Jewish people were entitled to “enjoy their lawful liberty.”) The priest continued, “We will protect them to the best of our ability. Now follow me into the catacombs”

The rabbi was teaching some children when he saw the grim faced priest approach. “Béke legyen veletek (Peace be unto you). Has the time come?” The priest smiled as Mr. Lazslo came from behind his red robes and said, “Good morning rabbi.”

Suddenly there was the sound of shouts and the attack began. The priest and the farmer ran to defend the church, the Jewish people and the holy rabbi hidden in the catacombs beneath the church. As far as the eye could see there were Crusaders who demanded that the priest surrender all the Jewish people within the church walls. “No, they are under my protection!” was the only answer given. The horde pushed forward to storm the church, when a blast from a war horn was heard. For a moment there was silence as the Crusaders believed that more had joined in their attack. A second blast of the war horn was followed by a hail of arrows towards the Crusaders, the army of King Coloman of Hungary had arrived.

The rabbi and the Jewish people of Esztergom were spared from the carnage of the day by a simple greeting, shalom.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Its Not Always What It Appears to Be

Posted on Saturday, 9, May, 2015Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

We rely so much on how we see and understand the world. We trust our senses to define the world and understand what is around us by our limited knowledge and wisdom. Therefore we often feel we know who other people are and what the events of our lives are about forgetting “If you wish to be pure in mind, guard your senses. (Apocrypha, Patriarchs, Reuben 6:1)

Sadly, the truth is, we can only understand a very little about the world and people around us. With our limited understanding can we really be aware of the depth, gifts and beauty of another person? Can we begin to fathom the Divine Wisdom and Purpose hidden in everything around us?

There once was a young man who studied Torah every day and with each new lesson he challenged himself farther. After a time he became known as a genius of the revealed and hidden Torah. When the time came, he married the daughter of a holy rabbi. There was much joy in the home of the young rabbi and his wife. Together they learned and built a home based on Torah.

A year went by and everything seemed to go well when one day the young rabbi grew very sick. The best doctors were called, but sadly, not one of them could do anything to help him. So the father of the young rabbi went to the holy rabbi, (the young rabbi’s father-in-law) and begged him, “Rabbi, I’m afraid for my son he became sick and no one seems to be able to help him. Please pray for my son. You know how much he is learned, how devoted he is to Torah. Surely if someone as holy as you reminds heaven of his greatness, he will be found worthy, and he will live!”

The father was shocked. “Rabbi, what are you saying? My son is young, yet he already knows the revealed and hidden Torah by heart!”

The holy rabbi looked at the troubled father and shook his head, murmuring under his breath, “he’s done nothing. Nothing at all.” No matter how much the troubled father praised his son and tried to convince the rabbi how accomplished the young man was, the holy rabbi’s did nothing but to criticize him. The poor father just couldn’t understand what was going on.

The holy rabbi went into his study and locked the door. He placed two candles on his reading table, wrapped himself in his tallis (prayer shawl) and began to pray:

A few days later, the most wonderful thing happened. The young man got up out of bed, his appeared to be completely healed. His father was overjoyed, but he was still troubled about his meeting with the holy rabbi. He spoke to his son, “I know your father-in-law is a great rabbi in a very holy man, but to tell you the truth, I really don’t understand him. I went with him with so much respect for to ask him to pray for you. And I praised you so much I was sure that if he reminded the Heavenly Court of your learning and knowledge you would be found worthy of the greatest miracles. Yet he wouldn’t even listen to me. No matter what I said he just replied, “you call that learning? It’s nothing, nothing at all.”

The looked at his father and smiled, “Wonders of Wonders, father, is he not a truly holy rabbi. Such wisdom, you thought that by praising you would help me. But really the opposite was true. You see, every person comes into this world to accomplish one special task. To make one special fixing or change in the world, and once he has done this, there is no longer any need for him to stay here in olam hazeh – this world.

“My father-in-law knew that I had only come into this world to learn Torah, and that if Heaven thought that I already learned everything I needed to know, there was no way to save my life. So when he kept answering, ‘what, you call this learning? It’s nothing!’ he was actually saying to Heaven, This young man has only begun to accomplish his task. His work isn’t finished yet – there is no more he needs to learn. Heavenly court you have to give him more time

And this is what saved my life….

And so you see — what do we know? You never know….

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) If the stories are not shared they will be lost.

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“You Shall Remember that You Were a Slave in the Land of Egypt”

Posted on Wednesday, 8, April, 2015Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

(Deuteronomy 5:15)

The requirement to recall “that you were a slave in Egypt” enables an individual to avoid feelings of conceit and pride. For “when pride comes, then comes disgrace; but wisdom is with the humble. (Proverbs 11:2) To what can this be compared?

There once was a king who set out on a hunting trip. As he was exploring the fields in the hope of finding game, he came upon a shepherd in a meadow who was sitting next to his flock of sheep and playing a flute.

The king was delighted by the pleasant tunes that were coming from the flute, and he found himself unable to move from his place. After some time had passed, the shepherd finished his melody. The king approached the shepherd and began to speak with him and discovered that he was very wise.

The king was amazed by the shepherd’s complexity of thought, and he invited him to come with him to his palace. The shepherd agreed and went with the king.

From then on, the shepherd lived in the royal palace, and the king asked his advice regarding all matters. In time, the shepherd rose to become one of the king’s closest advisors.

Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming, but who is able to stand before jealousy (Proverbs 27:4) and the other advisors were jealous and filled with hatred towards the shepherd who was so beloved by the king. They decided to tell terrible stories about him, informing the king that his trusted advisor had stolen from the royal treasury.

The king summoned the shepherd and questioned him, but he managed to convince all those who were present that he was an honest and upright individual. However, the jealous advisors still managed to persuade the king to conduct a search of the shepherd’s quarters, in hopes of finding some evidence of theft.

They all went together to search the shepherd’s quarters, but found nothing more than a modestly furnished home, lacking any luxuriousness whatsoever. They went from room to room finding nothing suspicious, until they came to a room that was sealed by both lock and bolt.

“What is inside this room?” asked the king.

The shepherd fell to his knees and began to plead with the king:

The shepherd’s pleas only served to strengthen the king’s suspicions, and he demanded that the door be opened.

When the door was opened, they glanced around the room but saw nothing more than the old clothing of a shepherd and a flute. The king and his officers were confused.

“Your Highness,” explained the former shepherd. “from the day that I came to your palace, I have not grown the least bit proud or conceited over the importance that I have achieved. This is due to my daily visits to this room, when I sit here and play my flute, recalling my days as a simple shepherd.”

So it is that remembering “that you were a slave in Egypt” will prevent a Jewish person from becoming arrogant. For whenever he feels himself swelling with pride, he will recall his days as a lowly slave in Egypt and the haughtiness will thus be banished from his heart. “A person’s pride will bring humiliation, but one who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.” (Proverbs 29:23)

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Two Merchants, Silver and the Witness of the Tree

Posted on Sunday, 22, February, 2015Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

There were once two merchants whose names were Tam and Chacham. Now Tam was a very simple and hard-working man who was always saying Psalms and greeted everyone with a good word and a smile. Chacham was very knowledgeable in the ways of buying and selling and was always trying to get more wealth. Tam and Chacham were friends and frequently traveled together and often shared space at the markets.

One day, after the market closed, the two merchants took to the road. When they stopped for the night they counted their profits and discovered they had between them over 1000 silver coins. When they arrived at the next market Tam suggested they divide the profits equally. Chacham thought for a moment and answered his friend, “there are many in the market who would try to take our money and then we will have nothing. Let us hide the money under a tree and if we need money we can get it and divide it equally.”

The two merchants found a large oak tree, dug a hole and buried their bag of silver coins. The very next day, while Tam was in the marketplace Chacham came and took the money from the hiding place.

A few days past and Tam decided that it was time to divide the money. He found Chacham the two of them went to the oak tree in the forest. They dug beneath the tree and found nothing.

Chacham became very angry and said, “is this the way friends treat one another? Return the money and we will go our separate ways and never speak of this again.”

Tam was shocked and confused. “I have not been to this place since we buried our profits.”

Chacham became even angrier and demanded they go to the holy rabbi of the village for justice. The holy rabbi listened to Chacham as he presented his account of the situation and asked, “are there any witnesses to the truth of what you are saying?”

Chacham thought for a moment and entered the holy rabbi, “the oak tree under which we buried the silver shall be the witness.” Chacham looking very serious continued, “let us ask the old oak tree who stole the silver.”

The holy rabbi was surprised that the words of Chacham, but agreed to go with the two merchants to the old oak tree in the forest.

That night Chacham went to see one of his close friends and persuaded him to hide in a hollow of the oak tree. “When the rabbi asks, who stole the money?” He told his friend to respond, “you must say that Tam took it.”

The next day the two merchants in the holy rabbi went into the forest. They went to the old oak tree where they had hidden the money. The rabbi walked around the tree three times then asked, “tell us if you can, who stole the bag of silver coins?”

A voice came from inside the tree, “Tam came in the night and took the money.”

The holy rabbi was wise and asked Chacham if there were any other witnesses. Chacham thought for a moment and answered the moon is also a witness for no case can be determined without two witnesses let us ask the moon when it had seen. The holy rabbi was again surprised by Chacham’s answer.

The holy rabbi lifted his arms toward the moon and said, It is written, “The heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment” (Isa. 51:6). I remind you that before asking for justice from you, we should ask for justice for ourselves, for it is said, “The moon shall be confounded and the sun ashamed” (Isa. 24:23). Tell us if you can, who stole the bag of silver coins.”

The holy rabbi and the two merchants waited quietly for the moon to bear witness of what happened that night to the silver coins hidden beneath the old oak tree. The wind whispered, but the moon remained silent.

The rabbi saw some men who were working in the forest and ask them to set the tree on fire. The flames began to climb up the trunk of the tree when a voice cried out, “let me out! Let me out! I don’t want to burn to death!”

They dragged a man out of the hollow of the old oak tree. He was singed and very afraid, but he confessed that it was his friend Chacham who had stolen the money.

Tam was given all of the money and Chacham was punished by his own words, his own trickery and the judgment of the holy rabbi.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Please share this story with family and friends and let us know what you think or feel about the stories in a comment or two. Like us on Facebook or tweet us on Twitter

Please share this story with others

The Story Tour Blog has grown to over 250 short stories about faith. Many visitors to the Story Tour Blog have requested that the stories be gathered together into a book. 72 of these special tales are now available in the new book

Story Tour: The Journey Begins

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

for more information about this special book, please see the Story Tour: The Journey Begins page

Different Kinds of Prayer

Posted on Sunday, 30, November, 2014Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

In a village there lived a very wealthy man who thought that he should be chosen to lead the congregation in prayer because of his importance to everyone in the village. No one in the village was pleased with the idea, but on the other hand they were afraid of what might happen to them if they were to challenge the powerful wealthy man. So they put their troubled heads together and decided to send a delegation to ask the holy rabbi who lived in a nearby town for some advice. The holy rabbi suggested that the wealthy man, the self-appointed prayer leader should come to him for a blessing.

When in due course the self-appointed baal tefillah (prayer leader) of the village came to the holy rabbi to receive his blessing before undertaking the weighty responsibility of leading his community in prayer, the holy rabbi asked him’ “why should you lead the community in prayer?” The wealthy man took a deep breath and began to explain how he gave a lot of tzedakah (charity), he had built many homes in the village and that he employed most of the villagers.

The holy rabbi listened and then explained, “As you know, the Torah speaks of three kinds of prayer.

There is

‘the prayer of Moshe Rabbeinu’ (Moses our Teacher);

There is

‘the prayer of King David’; and

There is

‘the prayer of a poor man.’

Now Moshe Rabbeinu was indeed ‘slow of speech and slow of tongue.’ (Exodus 4: 10) — but he was the father of the prophets and the teacher of all Israel. King David — why, he is called ‘the sweet singer of Israel.’ (2 Samuel 23:1) And as for the poor man, his heart is humble, and we know from Psalms that ‘a broken and contrite heart, O G-d, You will not despise.’ (Psalm 51:17)

“Now the baalei tefillah of our days who lead their congregations in prayer likewise fall into these same three categories. There are those who are not very musical, but they are righteous — so their prayers are accepted like ‘the prayer of Moshe.’ Then there are those who are perhaps not quite so righteous, but in their melodiousness they ‘exalt God with their throats’ — so their prayers are accepted like ‘the prayer of David.’ Finally, there are those who are neither righteous nor musical, but since they are poor and their hearts are humble, their prayers are accepted like ‘the prayer of a poor man.’

“Now as for you,” concluded the tzaddik, “we cannot say that you are especially righteous; nor can we say that you are musical; and neither (thank G-d) are you a poor man. So if you want to lead your community in prayer. I will have to pray that you now merit to fit into one of these three levels. There is no need for me to explain to you that to ask heaven to make you a tzaddik a sweet singer all of a sudden would be a vain prayer. The only way I can help you, therefore, is by asking heaven to make you poor, and then at least your prayer ‘the prayer of a poor man’…”

No, sir!” exclaimed the wealthy man in alarm. “I definitely don’t want to lead the prayers anymore!”

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Cast Your Bread upon the Waters – The Father’s Will

Posted on Sunday, 2, November, 2014Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

A certain man used to teach his son every day the words of Ecclesiastes (11:1): “Cast your bread upon the waters, for you shall find it after many days.” In due course the man died, and the young man remembered his father’s words. He used to take bread every day and fling it into the sea.

On one occasion Elijah, whom it is good to mention, met him in the form of an old man and asked him what he was doing. He answered: “My father ordered me to cast my bread into the water.” “Yet surely you have learned,” said Elijah, “when you cast your bread upon the water, that bread is like salt. Just as bread cannot be eaten without salt, so the world cannot exist without bread.” So from that time on he used to take only a piece of bread every day and went to the river and threw it into the water.

There was a certain fish at that place which used to eat the bread, and it did so every day until it grew very big and distressed the other fishes in that place. At last all the fish in the sea gathered and went to Leviathan and said to him: “Your majesty, there is a certain fish which has grown very big so that we cannot live together with him, and he is so strong that he eats twenty or more of us every day.” When he heard this, Leviathan sent for him, saying: “These live out at sea and have not grown so much, yet you have grown so large at the sea’s edge. How is that?” “Indeed,” answered the fish, “it is because a certain man fetches me a piece of bread every day and I eat it morning and noon; and in the morning I eat twenty fish and in the evening thirty.”

“Why do you eat your companions?” asked Leviathan, and he answered: “Because they come to me and I consume them; and the words of the Prophet Isaiah (58:7) apply to them: ‘And do not disregard your own flesh.’ ” “Go,” said Leviathan, “and fetch that man to me.” And he said, “Tomorrow. (Exodus 8:10).

He went at once and dug beneath the spot where the young man used to come, and he made a tunnel there, and placed his mouth in that tunnel. Next day the young man came as usual and wished to stand in that spot, but fell into the water. The fish opened its mouth and swallowed him up and carried him away through the sea to Leviathan, who said: “Spit him out.” He spat him out of his mouth, and the man fell into the mouth of Leviathan, who said to him: “My son, why have you cast your bread into the water?” and he answered: “Because my father taught me from childhood that I should cast my bread upon the waters.”

And what did Leviathan do then? He released him from his mouth, kissed him and taught him seventy languages and the whole Torah, and flung him a distance of three hundred leagues onto the dry land. He fell in a spot where no human foot had ever walked. Lying there exhausted, he raised his eyes and saw two ravens flying above him. One of them said to the other: “My father, is that man is alive or dead.” The father replied: “My son, I do not know.” “I shall go down,” said the son, “and eat his eyes because I enjoy picking out the eyes of human beings.” But his father said: “My son, do not go down in case he is alive and listened to his father.” The son insisted: “I shall go down and pick out his eyes,” and down he flew.

This man understood what they had been saying to one another, and when the raven settled on his forehead he seized him by the legs. At once the raven cawed to his father: “Father, father, the L-rd has delivered me into his hands and I cannot rise.” When his father heard this, he croaked and wept and said: “Alas for my son he listened not to my counsel and forgot my teaching: ” The eye that mocks a father and scorns to obey a mother will be pecked out by the ravens. (Proverbs 30:17). The father raven cried: “You, human being, let my son go! May it be His will that you understand my language! Rise and dig down where you are standing, and you will find treasures of Solomon, king of Israel.”

He let the raven go at once and dug down and found treasures of Solomon, with many jewels and pearls, so that he and his sons after him remained wealthy. It was of him that King Solomon the Wise said: “Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their bread with the poor.” (Proverbs 22:9)

May the lessons we learn each day and the counsel of the tales we share bring peace and understanding to our children and our children’s children and to all of the children.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Computers, Pride and the Twice Sewn Coat

Posted on Friday, 5, September, 2014Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Rosh haShanah is quickly approaching and the preparation for the review by the Holy One, blessed be He for us to be inscribed in the Book of Life can be overwhelming. In this time before this holiday of deep retrospection and review of our actions for the past year, we pledge ourselves to improve ourselves and the greater community.

In a world so filled with science and technology where one depends on computers, cell phones and other electronics it is easy to get lost in the constant streaming and instant resources. Some feel that we are much better than those of past generations. A student recently was assigned to write a three paragraph essay about the world without computers and other electronics. He was bewildered and could not imagine such a world.

In our pride we have forgotten how to talk, be personable, or simply be courteous. Today’s society, in its pride, has become less human. In this time leading up to Rosh haShanah, let’s try to touch and interact with the world around us and not be proud of our electronic prowess and its effects upon our society.

We learn from the Holy Writings:

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are My ways your ways” (Isa. 55:8). When a man has a vessel, he rejoices in it as long as it is whole and useful; when it is broken, he has no use for it. Now, what is the Holy One’s precious vessel? Man’s heart. When the Holy One sees a man proud in heart, He has no use for him, as is said, “Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the L-rd” (Prov. 16:5). But when the heart is broken, He says, “This one is Mine,” as is said, “The L-rd is near to them that are of a broken heart” (Ps. 34:19).

There once lived a master Jewish tailor. Even the nobility, for miles around, came to have their clothing fashioned by his talented hand.

Once, a nobleman came to the tailor bring with him a bolt of cloth. Handing it to the tailor, he said, “This is very fine and expensive material; it comes all the way from the East. I want you to sew me a suit of clothes, but I want it to be well cut and tailored, to do justice to the fabric.”

“Am I not a master tailor?” laughed the tailor, as he received the material.

A few days later, when the tailor brought the suit for its first fitting, the nobleman was displeased with the result. “You’ve ruined the fine cloth!” he ranted. In a fit of anger, he threw the cloth at him and chased him out of his house.

After this incident, the tailor lost his good name. The other noblemen stopped patronizing him and he was soon starving. When his wife saw how poor they had become, she urged her husband to visit the holy rabbi of the town. “Many people are helped by him. Go to him; he will tell you what to do.”

The tailor followed his wife’s advice and went to the rabbi.

After the holy rabbi heard the tailor pour out his sad tale, he said to him, “This is what you must do. Take the very suit that you sewed for the nobleman. Rip out the seams, but sew them back in the same place. Then take the suit to him again.”

The tailor laughed inwardly at this suggestion, but followed it nevertheless. He had nothing to lose. When the suit was completed for the second time, he took it back to the poritz for his approval. This time, the nobleman was very pleased with the result. He praised the tailor highly and even gave him a gift of appeasement.

The tailor returned to the holy rabbi and told him what had happened.

“I realized,” said the holy rabbi, “that when you first sewed the garment, you felt a sense of exaggerated pride, as if your skill was beyond question. A thing done from pride lacks grace. That is why it failed to please the count. When you came to me, bowed and meek, no longer so self-confident in your skill, I told you to rip out the stitches and begin all over again. The second time you sewed it with humility and submission. And then the same garment suddenly became appealing!”

Listen to a video of this story at The Twice Sewn Coat

May we all be blessed with a coming year of hope and goodness

Me we all be inscribed and sealed in the Book of Life.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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A Woman of Valour Saves From Death

Posted on Sunday, 31, August, 2014Wednesday, 21, September, 2022 by Rabbi

Eishes chayil mi yimtza, A Woman of Valor, who can find? (Proverbs 31:10)

There was a holy rabbi who had a beautiful daughter and many wanted to marry her. The rabbi had raised his daughter in all the ways of holiness and wanted her marry a student of holiness. He wished to know who would be his future son-in-law, so he fasted for three days and then went to the mikvah and on the night of rosh chodesh, Elul, he prayed and asked the Holy One, blessed be He to reveal the young man to him. Eliyahu haNovi (Elijah the Prophet) appeared to him and told him that his son-in-law would be a student of holiness who was destined to die on the first anniversary of his wedding. His wife would remain a widow, and she would have no children, for such was the decree of Heaven.

In the morning the holy rabbi’s heart was full of grief but he kept what had been revealed to him a secret and decided that he would journey to the Holy Land, to the resting places of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai and Rachel, to have the decree annulled.

The rabbi with his wife and daughter set out on their long journey. They traveled for a long time and at twilight on the third day, they came to a great forest. They sat down by a shady tree, next to which a spring bubbled forth. After they had eaten they lay down to rest from their strenuous journey.

The holy rabbi rose at midnight to say tikun chatzos, he heard the sound of a weak voice, coming from some distance away. He decided to follow the sound and soon a small light shining through the trees about a bowshot away. The rabbi walked towards the light and found a hut made of woven branches and leaves, lit up within by two lights. The rabbi peered through the branches and saw two men -one a blind old man who lived in eternal darkness, and the other a young man of about twenty, who was very handsome to look at. Both of them were saying the tikun chatzos.

The rabbi stood and watched in awe the two hermits for a short time, before he gathered up his courage and entered the hut.

“Shalom Aleichem (Peace be unto you), my masters,’’ he said.

“Aleichem Shalom (Upon you be peace), our master and teacher,” they answered.

The three of them joined together saying tikun chatzos, and then studied the torah until the morning star rose.

Then the old man asked the rabbi: “How did you come to be in this forest?”

The rabbi told him that he was traveling to the Holy Land, with his wife and daughter.

The rabbi returned to his wife and daughter and brought them to the hut, and the three of them remained there. The rabbi and the old man studied the torah, the woman cooked and baked, the daughter drew water, and the young man cut wood. Each day the heart and soul of the young man melted as he looked at the holy rabbi’s daughter.

One day the old blind man asked the holy rabbi: “Let your daughter be the bride of my son and it shall be guaranteed that both of us will see our grandchildren after us.”

The rabbi did not wish to reveal his secret to the old man, and a few days later the young couple were married according to the laws of Moses and Israel.

For a whole year the young couple lived happily in the lonely hut in the forest. A few days before the year was out the rabbi revealed to his daughter the dream he had had. He told her that the death of her husband was about to happen and made her swear that she would not reveal the secret to any man.

After she had heard about her father’s dream, the young woman fasted and prayed for three days. “Ribono shel olam, Master of the Universe” she said. “If you have decreed that my husband must die take my life too, for I would rather have death than a life without him.”

On the first anniversary of his marriage the husband went out to the forest, as was his way, to cut wood, but this time his wife followed him. On that day the sun was dark in the heavens and no living thing was to be seen. The winds did not whisper and the birds were silent. At noon, the Angel of Death appeared with a large slaughterer’s knife in his hand. He wielded the knife over the head of the husband who sank dead to the ground.

When the woman saw that her husband was dead, she turned to the Angel and said: “Angel! I insist in the name of the one who sent you that you tell me why you have robbed me of my husband. ‘The days of our years are three score and ten’ (Psalm 90:10), and my husband is only twenty-one.’ “

The Angel of Death replied: “Poor foolish woman! It is the decree of the Creator, and I cannot disobey it. Be it known that ‘he that goes down to the grave shall come up no more’ (Job 7:9)”

“If that is so,” said the woman, “then I will ask you to fulfil my only wish.”

“Whatever you ask me to do, I will do,” said the Angel. “But I cannot restore your husband to life.”

“I do not ask you to restore my husband to life,” said the woman. “But I will ask you to restore the sight of the eyes of my father-in-law.”

“It sall be so,” promised the Angel of Death.

Then she addressed the Angel of Death again: “Promise me, I beg you, that it shall be granted my father-in-law to see a grandson or great-grandson playing by his side.

“It shall be so!” the Angel of Death promised again

Then said the woman: “I am the wife of the son of my father in-law. I am the only one who is capable of giving birth to sons and daughters who will carry on his seed. If you indeed wish to honour your promise then you must restore my husband to life, for my husband had no children, and without his children my father-in-law will have no grandchildren or great-grandchildren. ‘Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if he destroyed an entire world. And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world’ (Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:9). If you rob me of my husband, you rob me and my husband of my children, and my father-in-law of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. You will break your promise and in one stroke you will destroy whole worlds.’ “

The Angel of Death was at a loss as to what he should do. He had no choice but to restore the woman’s husband to life. “Let it be know to all the you are indeed an Eishes Chayil, a woman of noble character and wisdom” as he prepared to leave. The moment the Angel of Death rose into the heavens the woman’s husband stood once again on his feet.

The woman and her husband returned to their hut and found the old man reciting the benediction: “Blessed be he who opens the eyes of the blind.” They all rejoiced at the miracles that had been wrought for them and recited the blessing: “Baruch atah Adoshem, m’chaiyay hameisim. (Blessed are You G-d who revives the dead.)”

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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