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.”

“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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