Nice Story

Shabbos Table Story

Shared by Rabbi Levi Wolf,

The story is of a young boy in the Hungarian city of Szeged, home to a large Jewish community that followed the paths of wisdom and Torah. 

The boy received religious education but following the Nazi invasion in 1944 was uprooted from his family and his studies and thrown to the fire with the other residents of the city. 

He managed to survive, and upon returning to his hometown, rebelled against G-d’s divine ruling of the world and turned against his original beliefs. 

He migrated to Israel, studied philosophy and became a professor—first in Australia and later on back in the Holy Land. Throughout these years, he was vocal about his anti-religion and particularly anti-Jewish opinion. 

Since he was well versed in Jewish texts, he relied on selected Jewish sources to demonstrate that Judaism is a faulty faith, with no truth to it. He even wrote a book, published in Hebrew and English, arguing that Judaism is a ‘theocracy’—the rule of religious elites, opposed to moral values, to the ideas of social equality and to the spirit of free people.

In old age, the professor became ill with cancer. I visited him at his home, with a few other friends. At one moment he pulled me aside, close to his library and told me, that several years earlier he had written the Rabbi of Lubavitch a severe letter, in sharp tongue, expressing harsh arguments towards G-d and his believers. 

He told me that, to his surprise, he received a reply from the Rabbi, written in his own handwriting! 

He took a certain book from a shelf, from which he pulled a piece of handwritten paper, signed by Menachem Mendel Schneerson. 

With great excitement, he asked me to read the letter. I do not recall the exact words, but the structure and contents I clearly remember: first the rabbi thanked the writer for his letter, addressing him in the plural form. 

Then, the Rabbi asked his permission to inquire after his origin: does your surname not indicate that you are of some Lithuanian origin, of this and that family? Or does it rather imply that you are among the Vizhnitz followers from Hungary? Then he finished with some congratulations and signed his name. 

The professor looked at me with hands slightly trembling. I remember his question very well and quote it from memory: “Do you get what he did to me? Do you see how he reproached me"? 

With these subtle questions, the Rabbi reminded him that he comes from a royal background and a glorious past, and although he has difficult questions etc., he shouldn't allow himself to turn his back on his roots and the people he comes from. 

After he read the letter to me he carefully put the letter back inside the book. I think I may have been the only person to whom he has ever shown the letter, and I do not know where that letter is today. 

The professor passed away several months later. 

I do not believe it is a coincidence that I received this story just before this Shabbat, Parashat תולדות. It truly speaks to the essence of the very first verse in our Parasha where we find words that seem somewhat repetitive:

    ואלה תולדת יצחק בן אברהם  (and these are the descendants of Isaac the son of Abreham) and than the verse continues אברהם הוליד את יצחק (Abreham gave birth to Isaac).

I have a strong sense that these two statements, speak to us about very different issues.  

One speaks to the Jewish genealogist, the one interested in knowing what Abreham's family tree looked like, Abreham the verse tells us, is the one who had a child named Yitzchak.

However, the words  יצחק בן אברהם engages the Jewish parent. Many parents have had experience with a child struggling with questions, often existential, highlighting doubts concerning beliefs and values pertaining to their Jewish family and heritage. 

So how should a parent respond to his or her questioning child?

I think the Rebbe’s letter in the above story demonstrates that arguing with a person who is genuinely struggling by listing the ‘right’ answers, might win us the debate, but will not win us back what is most precious - their Soul! 

The Rebbe gently reminded the professor who he really is.You are a prince! You are יצחק the son of the great אברהם! 

And with reminding our children of their glories past, hopefully we can empower them with the opportunity to treasure their Yiddishkeit, even at times when there may be an internal dialogue that is conflicted and exhausting!

Within these moments, they will be mindful of their rich ancestry and the palpable and direct link to their loving father in heaven who has and will continue to look after each of us, now and always! 

With warm regards and blessings, 

Levi

Rebbe's Dollar!!

Nov 12, 2015

It All Started With A Dollar

Chaya M. Klein tells of her family's experience with a family from Israel after giving them a "Rebbe Dollar" just when they needed it.

Written by Chaya M. Klein as told to her by her husband Moshe Klein, owner of Little People's Clothing Store on Kingston Avenue

It was early summer 5775 (2015) when a young woman, in t-shirt and leggings walked into my store. Not sure who she was, I looked at her face expectantly.

She spoke in Hebrew and explained that she was visiting New York from Eretz Yisroel on the occasion of her son’s Bar Mitzvah. She had come with her husband, son and young daughter to visit the Rebbe at this auspicious time.

She concluded her business in my store with a sigh and a solemn expression, and then, in a voice filled with desperate emotion, she asked if I knew where she could buy a “Rebbe Dollar.”

“I really need to have a Rebbe Dollar,” she said anxiously, “I have been here for the past two weeks and can find no one willing to sell me one, my husband has been asking in 770 and cannot find one either!”

I looked at her face, felt her emotion, and somehow, she touched something deep inside of me. I told her, “Just a moment”, and ran down to take out a pile of personal “Rebbe Dollars” that I had received over the years.

The one on the top of the pile looked a bit stained, from the metal clip holding them together, so I reached into the pile and slipped out a dollar from the middle.

Looking at it, I noticed that I had written Chanukah 5735 in small letters across the top edge of the dollar, indicating when I had received it.

Running back upstairs, I presented the dollar to her, telling her it was a gift. She reverently took the dollar, gazing at it in awe. Tears fell onto her cheeks as she softly said, “This is the year of my birth! 5735! Thank you! Thank you! You cannot know what this means to me!!” She explained that her daughter has some health issues, and she felt that having a Rebbe dollar for her would bring her blessings. She wanted to pay for the precious dollar. I reassured her that it was a gift. I could not take money for this dollar for I deeply felt that I had been holding this dollar, which the Rebbe had put directly into my hand, for forty years, expressly so I could give it to this young woman, at this time! I had merely been keeping it safe for her!

She left my store, thanking me over and over again. A few minutes later, she ran back in to tell me that she wanted to make a new resolution. She would begin lighting the Shabbos candles, and she would cover her hair while doing so! I gently suggested that prior to making the bracho, she could put a few coins into the pushka for Tzedaka. She smiled, gratefully, “Certainly”!

The next day, a man, who had been in my store before to purchase some things because the airlines had lost his families’ luggage, walks into my store, gives me a warm hug and introduces himself as her husband! He shakes my hand warmly and says: “You cannot imagine what you have done for my wife!! For our family!! Please let me tell you a bit about myself.”

He told me that he works as a driver for Egged Bus Service in Eretz Yisroel. He has his specific route and one day, fourteen years ago, while driving his route, a suicide bomber drove into his bus and exploded! Body parts, mingled with car parts, were flying all around. Miraculously, not one person on his bus was killed! Some injuries were sustained, but nothing more, Boruch Hashem.

Shaken up, he decided to evaluate his life and his connection to Torah and Yiddishkeit. He began to touch base with a shliach, and began to learn a bit about who he was, as a Yid.

His resolve to come even closer to Yiddishkeit was strengthened, when one year later, to the day of the bombing, his son, his first child was born, in the seventh month – premature, but healthy and strong, Boruch Hashem.

He decided to write into the Igros Kodesh to find guidance on his path and the letter he opened to said: “Mikvah and Taharas Hamishpacha”!

He spoke to his wife, who said, no book was going to tell her how to conduct her personal life!

He wrote into the Igros again and received the exact same message, “Mikvah and Taharas Hamishpacha.”

Still unable to convince his wife, he suggested that she, too, write into the Igros, in her own words, selecting her own volume of letters. So she did. She too received “Mikvah and Taharas Hamishpacha” as a reply! She still did not want to accept what she was seeing. So her husband told her write again, to a different volume of the Igros Kodesh. The second letter she submitted yielded the same response: “Mikvah and Taharas Hamishpacha”!

He decided to take this all a step further and build a mikvah in his own home! He wrote into the Igros Kodesh and received the following answer (loose translation):

“…it is a good idea…and the proof is that when it will be completed, you will have rain water…”

He went on to build the mikvah and completed it in the month of Tammuz, in Eretz Yisroel. It is common knowledge that it rarely rains during the summer in Eretz Yisroel, yet rain it did! Filling the bor geshomim with precious rain water, preparing it for use!

He continued his story, telling me that his wife remained resistant to further observance, but when she received the Rebbe Dollar, her whole attitude made an abrupt turnaround! She now wanted to light Shabbos candles, and more!

As he continued speaking, he mentioned that he was going home and would be visiting his grandparents’ kevorim as there was a yartzheit coming up. Asking him where they are resting, I was astounded to discover they are buried a block away from my own parents, a”h, in the same Bais HaChaim, in a nearby section!

Hashgacha protis again reveals itself! I asked if I might ask him a small favor? Would he be able, when he visits his own relatives, to stop a moment by my parents and say a kapitel Tehillim?

He solemnly took my hand in his and said: “As long as I am alive, when I visit my family, I will visit your parents as well. I will say Tehillim and light a candle too!”
Deeply touched, I thanked him, and after a bit, we said good-bye.

Not long after all of this, we received a What’s App video of them visiting my parents!

Late one Motzoei Shabbos in Tishrei, we received a call from them informing us that they had visited my parents kevorim again, where they lit a candle and said Tehillim. As an aside, they told us that they have decided to take on more observance of Shabbos. Not just lighting the Shabbos candles, but actually keeping Shabbos!

We continue to keep in touch…May the mitzvos keep on coming and growing for each of us…and it all started with a dollar!

Dating Your Spouse! How To Do It Right!

Date Night

I try to do our date night on a Moitzay shabbos it is a great time since we are still in happy relaxed mode and haven't 

Started the week yet with all those commitments!

Make sure you're getting the most out of spending quality time together

Date night: how to do it right

Date nights are really important for every romantic relationship, no matter what stage: new, familiar, strained or decades old. They're great for being able to reconnect you as a romantic couple and become focused on being together. This comes very naturally in the beginning of a relationship, as you strive to discover one another and work out your common interests and passions. As time goes on, though, the temptation becomes to use time alone to have heavy discussions, or some couples get in the pattern of skipping date night altogether.

So to make the most of date nights, and really do them right so they are something you both look forward to, make sure you're doing at least the following key things:

1. Make it regular 

That may be once a week or once a month, but if it's regular and not just a "special occasion" then there won't be so much pressure each time to "do it up big" (expensive and fancy) or be ultra super duper romantic. Regular date nights should be a staple of your relationship. And the fancier romantic outings are your more special occasions. Don't let pressure creep into your time alone together.

2. Take turns planning 

Maybe one of you really does like to do something fancy each time, or get dressed in your best, while the other prefers a more casual, relaxed evening together, or even in! If you take turns and balance what each of you enjoys you'll both have your needs met. Also there won't be resentment by one person who does all the planning and booking. Share the responsibility equally for carving connected time out together.

3. Make your dates a phone-free zone 

No electronics, no smartphones, no distractions. Stop for a couple of hours and simply focus on one another. if you feel you need to check on a babysitter, do so once an hour. There's no need to keep your phone at the table. If there's an emergency, you'll hear the phone ring in your purse or pocket. Do not answer business or unimportant calls. Ask yourself: can this wait 60 minutes? The answer is in all likelihood, yes. Your partner is your priority on date nights, period.

4. Keep conversation upbeat and light

You know you can do this, because you did it in the courtship phase of your relationship. Maybe that was last year, or maybe it was more than ten years ago. Either way, we gravitate towards people who make us feel good, with whom we have a great time, who make us laugh, who stimulate our minds, and with whom we have common interests. Don't allow your alone time to be dominated by stressful talk of children's development, finances, work burdens or domestic issues. Instead talk about where you'd like to go for your next holiday, current events, interesting things happening in your neighborhood or with your friends and family. You can even talk about each other and what you enjoy about being in the moment of a date night, then and there. Reinforce how enjoyable it is and how nice it feels to just spend time together.

5. Break patterns and learn new things about each other

Think speed dating is just for singles? Play a game with each other. This is especially good for couples who tend to fall into the trap of talking about negative stressors when alone together, or who can't help but tell endless stories about people the other partner either doesn't like, has never met or doesn't know well. Make the most of this time getting to know each other better. Daydream about the future together. Ask each other where they'd like to be in five years. Brainstorm other great date nights to share together. Play conversation games where you ask each other the most random question you can think of: what was your favourite song in high school and why? What's your greatest fear? Who would you invite to dinner, living or dead? What would be the best place in the world to live? If you had to get up right now and sing a song or dance or make a speech, which would you choose and why? Make a bet on something. Dare each other to do something that night. Be silly. Be thoughtful. Spark together. Often we reserve these kinds of conversations for dinner parties or pub chat. But your time alone deserves lighthearted talk just as much as you each deserve to have fun and always learn more about one another.