“STAM TORAH”
PARSHAS BEREISHIS
“THE SOURCE OF BLESSING”
The Lutzka Rav once met the Chofetz Chaim in a train station in the city of Crackow. The Rav greeted the Chofetz Chaim with an outstretched arm and proclaimed, “Sholom Aleichim Rebbe, I am the Rav of Lutzk.” The Chofetz Chaim grabbed the lapels of the Rav’s jacket and said, “Do you think that it’s easy to be the Rabbi of a city? Do you understand that you have a share of responsibility for the actions of your congregants?” The Rav was surprised by the strong words of the Chofetz Chaim.
As the Rav continued walking through the train station, he recognized one of his congregants rushing through the station. The Rav asked him why he looked so apprehensive, and the man explained that he had been in the hospital for the last few days because of a terrible disease that affected his entire foot. The doctors had given up on the foot and were planning on amputating. The previous night his mother had come to him in a dream and told him that he had to receive a blessing from a great sage otherwise his health would continue to fail him. That morning he snuck out of the hospital and was trying to find a train to Radin to visit the Chofetz Chaim. The Rav replied excitedly, “You’re in luck. The Chofetz Chaim is currently in this very train station. Come with me and I’ll arrange an audience for you.”
When they came to where the Chofetz Chaim was he was davening Mincha. The Rav figured that as soon as the Chofetz Chaim finished, he would approach him and explain the situation of his congregant. But as soon as the Chofetz Chaim finished, the congregant himself ran over to him and began pouring out his tale of woe to him, tears streaming down his cheek. Without having ever met the man before the Chofetz Chaim replied, “Why are you coming to me for a blessing? We say in the Friday night prayers, “Likras Shabbos lechu v’naylcha ki hi m’kor hab’racha– Come let us go welcome Shabbos, for it is the source of blessing”. Shabbos is the greatest source of blessing. Why do you permit your daughter to comb her hair on Shabbos and your son to go to work on Shabbos?” The man was stunned by the Chofetz Chaim’s ruach hakodesh. It was indeed true that his son and daughter were not meticulous in their observance of Shabbos. He went home, admonished them and his disease faded.
There are people who are Shabbos observant but are busy until the last possible moment before Shabbos and then are in a hurry to end Shabbos as soon as possible.
The Chofetz Chaim compared those who keep their businesses open until the last moment before Shabbos and reopen them immediately after Shabbos to the peasant farmer who owned sold a lot of bundles of produce to a merchant from a nearby town. For each bundle the merchant took, the farmer made a scratch on his wall. At the end of each month the farmer counted the scratches and charged the merchant based on the number of scratches.
Over time however, the farmer grew suspicious that the merchant was rubbing out some of the scratch marks. Instead, he decided that for every bundle the merchant took, the merchant would place a penny in a bowl. At the end of the month the merchant would count the pennies to calculate the total bundles he took and would pay accordingly.
As the pile of pennies grew the farmer began to admire them excitedly. At one point he could not control himself. When the merchant turned his head for a moment the farmer dug his hand deep into the bowl and quickly pocketed a handful of pennies. The farmer was excited that he had successfully stolen those pennies and laughed to himself. But the joke was on himself. He had gained a few shiny pennies, but in doing so forfeited a far greater amount than he would have received in the future.
The Chofetz Chaim explained that those who keep their businesses open until the last moment and reopen them immediately after Shabbos, think they are being smart and making a few more dollars. They fail to realize that the ultimate blessing comes from observing Shabbos to the greatest level that one is able.
Rabbi Sholom Shwadron noted that the prayer, “Yismichu b’malchuscha” recited on Shabbos, we allude to three levels of those who observe Shabbos: “Yismichu b’malchuscha,” they rejoice in Your Monarchy, “Shomrei Shabbos,” those who keep Shabbos to the utmost and guard its sanctity. Then there are those who observe Shabbos on a less spiritual level, “V’korei oneg,” those who appeal to the physical enjoyments of Shabbos but do so with spiritual motives. Although they enjoy the ameneties of Shabbos, they enhance their meals with divrei Torah and zemiros. Then there are those who are simply in the category of, “Am mikadshei shvi’i,” those who sanctify the seventh day. They abstain from any forbidden activities but there is not much focus on the spirituality of the day.
The prayer continues, “Kulam yisbi’u v’yisangu mituvecha– They will all will be satisfied and delighted from Your goodness.” Even if they know nothing of the inner sanctity of Shabbos, at least they will recognize, “And the seventh day – You found favor in it and sanctified it. ‘Most desired of days,’ You called it, a remembrance of creation.”
However, the reward for one who sees Shabbos as a day of spiritual ecstasy, to bind himself to his Creator, and draw forth from the holiness that is ever-present in the essence of Shabbos cannot compare to the blessing and reward that awaits the ‘Shabbos couch potato.’
The more one prepares for Shabbos, physically and mentally, the more he will be able to tap into its blessing.
Until I was 8 years old my family lived at 550G Grand Street, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Our wonderful neighbors were Mr. Itchie and Mrs. Pauline Hagler. At Itchie’s funeral, one of his sons related that Itchie related that in his youth his parents expected him to be ready for Shabbos a half hour before Shabbos. He would then sit on his bed waiting for the holy day to begin.
Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetsky once quipped that in America we were able to preserve Shabbos. But we were unable to preserve Erev Shabbos. There is something to be said for the worthy person who excitedly anticipates and awaits the onset of Shabbos. Such a person is far more likely to taste the bliss of Shabbos and be able to bask in its holiness.
“They will all will be satisfied and delighted from Your goodness.”
“Come let us go welcome Shabbos, for it is the source of blessing”