Segula R’ Chaim Palagi and sheker

I noticed it and gave them $1.04 + .33 (for processing) = 1.37 per week.

It’s not a lie. It’s a segula for the organization. The same with the “kabbalistic knife” some organization once advertised.

For the sake of people being able to judge for themselves, I’ll quote the loshon of Rav Chaim Palagi zatza”l here:

מועד לכל חי סימן ח’ אות ו:
ערב שבועות יפריש צ”ש פרוטות וישלים עד שיעור שני פעמים ב”ן, ויתנם לתלמיד חכם עני ועניו, והיוא תיקון לעון אדם הראשון ועון העגל ולפגם הברית והוא סגולה לחשוכי בנים ומקרב הגאולה

Erev Shavuos separate 91 prutos and complete the quantity until 2 times “ben” (son) [which is 104], and give them to a poor and modest talmid chacham. This is a tikum of Adam HaRishon, Chet haegel, pgam habris (immorality), and it’s a segular for those who are struggling to have children, and to bring the geulah.

In halacha 7, he goes on to praise two people who gave significant quantities of money towards talmidei chachomim erev Shavuous, and then he writes that he’s mentioning this in order that other people should imitate them.
He mentions that he wrote in a different sefer about the obligation to support the learners of Torah on Shavuos even more than other chagim.

It’s very possible that the tzedaka who sent you the email wrote “and for all yeshuos” instead of listing all of the amazing things rav Palagi actually says.

If according to him, this can bring the geulah, help women who are struggling to have children, fix up the “pgam habris”, atone for chet haegel and for that of Adam Harishon… it’s not such a stretch to say that it will help for any yeshua!

regarding the $104-
he definitely says that you should start with 91 perutos and them complete up to 104. The numbers are definitely correct.

It seems like the OP is simply bothered that the tzedaka switched to dollars instead of perutos.

But in light of the concept which he explains- how it’s important to give lots of tzedakah on this day- perhaps they are understanding that “perutos” means the smallest used currency?

Here in Israel, all of the tzedakos are collecting 104NIS- not aguros.

It seems funny to assume that Rav Palagi meant “peruta” in the gemara sense, since who uses that nowadays (except in dinim based on the gemara terms, like pidyon maaser sheini etc.)?

We also find that by the machzit hashekel, it’s brought down to use 3 halfs of the local currency.
So there is some precedent to say that the “peruta” mentioned by Rav Palagi really means the smallest based currency.

(cents are not really the currency; it’s a percentage of a dollar. likewise Agurot are mere percentages of the shekel).

Even if you disagree with this interpretation of Rav Palagi’s writings, I don’t think that justifies calling it a “bald-face lie.”

Did we get the knee-jerk reaction to hearing the word Segula, yet? Y’know that the Satmar Rebbe said …