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A frum Jew in New Jersey was involved in a car accident in which he killed an elderly non-Jewish fellow. The driver was exonerated and the court said it was not his fault.
Still, he was troubled by the fact that he had killed a person. He could not sleep at night because of it. He wanted to know what he could do. So he sent a letter to Rav Chaim Kanievsky describing the situation and asking what he could do.
Rav Kanievsky sent back a one word response: “Amalek”.
He had no idea what that meant, and he continued to be troubled by what had happened.
Eventually he decided to move. When looking for a new house, the seller of one told him that they wanted to get rid of it, because they were inheritors. their father had been killed in a car accident.
He then discovered that the father who had been killed was the one who had been involved in the accident with him. He then went through the house and discovered in the basement a box of pictures.
In the box were old pictures of this man as a young man in a Nazi SS uniform standing next to Adolph Hitler. He also found a list of names of people this person had killed when he was a Nazi officer.
He now understood what Rav Kanievsky had said. He had told him he could be calm, because he had killed a card-carrying member of Amalek!
A couple that had been married for fifteen years without being blessed by children, decided to divorce, despite their harmonious marriage. Shortly after the get was completed, the woman discovered she was pregnant. The joyous news had a very sad side; the husband was a Kohen and was forbidden to remarry his former wife. Their pain and heartbreak knew no bounds.
The husband poured out his pain to Rav Chaim Kanievesky, who told him that he couldn’t see any way that he could remarry his former wife, but he suggested that he should consult with his father in-law, Hagaon, Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv.
The man went to R’ Elyashiv and repeated his tale of woe. R’ Elyashiv told him with great pain that it’s definitely forbidden for a kohain to remarry his former wife. “The only thing I can tell you is that you should go to the Kosel Hamaravi, and daven to Hashem that he should save you.”
The kohain regarded R’ Elyashiv’s words as a direct instruction, and immediately upon leaving R’ Elyashiv’s house, went straight to the Kosel. When he reached the Kosel, he approached the stones and poured out his heart without restraint. After davening for a lengthy period of time, the kohein felt a hand on his back. He turned around and saw an avreich talmid chacham, who inquired what had happened to him. The kohen repeated his painful story, and the stranger asked him, “Do you have a father?” The kohen didn’t understand the point of the question, but he answered that of course he had a father. His father was very old and was living in a nursing home in America, and barely communicated with those around him.
“In my opinion, you should fly to America, and tell your father what happened to you,” said the man and he turned to leave. The kohein tried to explain to him again that his father’s condition made it almost impossible to communicate with him at all. There was no reason that he should make such a great effort to fly to the States to tell his elderly father the story. However, the stranger brushed off his words and turned to go.
The kohein eventually decided to heed this man’s words. He reasoned that if Rav Elyashiv told him to go to the Kosel to daven, and if this stranger approached him while he was davening and advised him to fly to America, maybe it was worthwhile for him to go. He arranged a flight, and a day and half later, he was already at his father’s side, in the nursing home.
The medical staff had informed the son when he first arrived that his father had not uttered a word for many months, and that he shouldn’t expect his father to speak to him. The kohein began his story, and his father didn’t respond, but he seemed to be listening to what his son was saying. As the son continued his story, he began crying, and couldn’t stop. The unbelievable then occurred; his father began speaking and said clearly that he was not his biological son, but was adopted after the Holocaust; he did not have the status of a kohen, and there was no reason that he couldn’t remarry his former wife
The story is told of a woman who was married for sixteen years and had not been blessed with children. Pain and loneliness were her daily companions. She begged her father, a great tzaddik, and her husband, an illustrioustalmid chochom, to daven along with her, but the wait continued.
The housewife was upset and burst into tears. She hurried into the privacy of her home and gave vent to her distress there, weeping in solitude. Then she went and engaged in the long process all over again, this time hanging her laundry to dry in a neighboring courtyard.
One year later, a son was born.
When people rose out of respect for Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach and sang, “Yamim al yemai melech tosif,’ he would say, “I don’t know why I must suffer the bitter punishment of being honored in public.”
One time, as he entered a wedding hall, he was surrounded by scores of bnei Torah who began to sing “Yomim al yemai melech.” Quickly, he grabbed the chasan and the mechutanim and pulled them into the center of the circle, chanting all along, “Chasan domeh le’melech,” “A bridegroom is like a king.”)
Refuh Sheleima
Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel would often recount, in vivid detail, a story that occured when he slept in the room of Rav Leizer Yudel Finkel’s house where the sefarim were kept. One morning, Rav Leizer Yudel came into the room real early, thinking that Rav Nosson Tzvi was sleeping. He was really awake, but he pretended to be asleep so he could watch how Rav Leizer Yudel began his day.
What he saw remained for him the rest of his life: Rav Leizer Yudel stretched out his hand and embraced the entire shas, and then went from one volume to the next kissing each one individaully. Rav Nosson Tzvi would say that he learned how to love the Torah from this incident.
Taken from the book about Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel.
It’s not Rav Shmuel Auerbach who’s getting married, it’s Rav Ezreil Auerbach.
Once Rav Shach was trying to encourage a non religious heart surgeon, to become religious.
He asked the surgeon as follows. How often do you buy yourself a brand new car? The doctor answered, ” every 2 years I upgrade to a more luxurious car”. Rav Shach then asked, “would you ever change the heart that you you have now to a diffrent heart?
The surgeon answered, “of course not! Even the man made hearts don’t come close to the “natural” heart”.
Rav shach smiled and said, ” no matter how many cars are made, every 2 years a better car comes out. But whenever the top heart surgeon cant come close to hashems heart.
He heard the doctor telling the Rosh Yeshiva that he has a growth in his foot that must be operated on immediately. Although the surgery would take a few hours the anesthesia would knock him out for the rest of the day.
The second story:
Once, while Rav Schach was sitting in the Bais Medrash, a man came over and whispered in his ear. Rav Schach began to cry, heartrending sobs. Later the man told the talmidim that he informed Rav Schach about a helicopter accident involving Israeli soldiers who were all killed. Rav Schach had such depth of feeling for every Jewish soul that he cried bitter tears over these soldiers he never met.
He didn’t cry over his own pain yet he cried over his fellow jews pain.
I saw it on Z berman books website
When going on a fundraising trip to America, Rav Beinush Finkel, the father-in-law of the late Rosh Yeshivah of the Mir Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel would always pay for his airplane ticket, in addition any other expenses that was used for his own personal use. No one understood how he was able to afford this, because he never took a paycheck from the Yeshiva, not when he was a maggid shuir, not when he was Rosh Yeshiva, and he supported his sons-in-law to the fullest, in addition to the numerous unfortunate people who crossed his path. One time during his years as maggid shuir, his father who was the Rosh Yeshivah at the time, Hagoan Rav Lazer Yudel Finkel, son of Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel, the Alter of Slodbaka, approached Rav Beinush his son, and handed a plane ticket, he said, “this time the yeshiva, pay for it. A month later, Rav Lazer Yudel approached Rav Beinush and said, “you think I didn’t notice you replaced all the money for the plane ticket in the Yeshivah’s account”?
Thank you for the correction!
Do you have any other stories that you can please share?
One time a talmid came to Rav Nosson Tzvi For a Brocho, with his 6 year old. The 6 year old asked the Rosh Yeshiva for a brocha. The rosh yeshiva gave the child a bracha, The Rosh Yeshiva then turned to the child and said, now it your turn to give me a brocha. The boy was too embarassed, but after a while he agreed. The boy turned too the Rosh Yeshiva and said, “the Rosh Yeshiva should grow up to be a big talmid chacham. The rosh yeshiva had a smile on his face the rest of that day.
Told by Howard Shultz the founder of Starbucks :
When I was in Israel, I went to Mea Shearim, the ultra-Orthodox area within Jerusalem. Along with a group of businessmen I was with. I had the opportunity to have an audience with Rabbi Finkel, the head of a yeshiva there. I had never heard of him and didn’t know anything about him. We went into his study and waited ten to 15 minutes for him. Finally, the doors opened.
What we did not know was that Rabbi Finkel was severely afflicted with Parkinson’s disease. He sat down at the head of the table, and, naturally, our inclination was to look away. We didn’t want to embarrass him.
We were all looking away, and we heard this big bang on the table: “Gentlemen, look at me, and look at me right now.” Now his speech affliction was worse than his physical shaking. It was really hard to listen to him and watch him. He said, “I have only a few minutes for you because I know you’re all busy American businessmen.” You know, just a little dig there.
Then he asked, “Who can tell me what the lesson of the Holocaust is?” He called on one guy, who didn’t know what to do-it was like being called on in the fifth grade without the answer. And the guy says something benign like, “We will never, ever forget?” And the rabbi completely dismisses him. I felt terrible for the guy until I realized the rabbi was getting ready to call on someone else. All of us were sort of under the table, looking away-you know, please, not me. He did not call me. I was sweating. He called on another guy, who had such a fantastic answer: “We will never, ever again be a victim or bystander.”
The rabbi said, “You guys just don’t get it. Okay, gentlemen, let me tell you the essence of the human spirit.
“As you know, during the Holocaust, the people were transported in the worst possible, inhumane way by railcar. They thought they were going to a work camp. We all know they were going to a death camp.
“After hours and hours in this inhumane corral with no light, no bathroom, cold, they arrived at the camps. The doors were swung wide open, and they were blinded by the light. Men were separated from women, mothers from daughters, fathers from sons. They went off to the bunkers to sleep.
“As they went into the area to sleep, only one person was given a blanket for every six. The person who received the blanket, when he went to bed, had to decide, ‘Am I going to push the blanket to the five other people who did not get one, or am I going to pull it toward myself to stay warm?'”
And Rabbi Finkel says, “It was during this defining moment that we learned the power of the human spirit, because we pushed the blanket to five others.”
And with that, he stood up and said, “Take your blanket. Take it back to America and push it to five other people.”
Howard Schultz is chairman and chief global strategist of Starbucks. Schultz received the Columbia Business School’s Botwinick Prize in Business Ethics last September. This article is excerpted from his acceptance speech. Reprinted from Hermes magazine, Columbia Business School, Spring 2001. Reprinted with permission from the Yated Ne’eman.
Years ago I learned in the Mir. So I remember when Rosh Hashana was around the corner, the gabboim were always busy and oisek in the tremendous project of making charts with set seats for all the 100’s and 100’s of Bnei Hayeshiva, for the the Yomim Nora’im davening. And it was a project that took sometimes weeks, filled with many suggestions, requests, and somtimes even many complaints. Sometimes it was a very heated topic that easily led to loud discussions and debates. When the R”Y addressed the bochurim once by a va’ad, he brought up this subject and remarked one simple remark. Yet, it aptly discribed who he was all about.
He said, “the only advantage I have sitting up front by the ‘Mizrach Vant’ is that I have the pleasure of looking out and seeing all your
A bochur learning in Beth Medrash Gevoha was once in the library, and overheard someone saying the following story (about himself). After many years trying unsuccessfully to have a child he went to Rav Scheinberg for a Brocha. Rav Scheinberg asked him to give his maaser money (I don’t remember if he said some or all) to his kollel, which this person agreed to do. Very shortly thereafter, as he put it, “the yeshua cam”e. He had a child
There was once a bachur who came to R’ Scheinberg and said to him that since R’ Scheinberg had so many pairs of tzitzis,could he have just have one of the ravs pair! R’ Scheinberg told him to come back in another year. He came back a year later and asked him again for a pair of tzitzis. And the bachur pulled out a bag for him to put the tzitzis into. R’ Scheinberg took off a pair of tzitzis and asked the bachur, “what are you going to do with this pair??”The bachur answered, ” I will wear it on Yom Kippur!”R’ Scheinberg took off another pair of tzitzis and said, ” what are you going to do with this pair?” The bachur answered, ” I will wear it on Rosh Hashana!”R’ Scheinberg took off one more pair and said, ” and what will you do with this pair??”The bachur answered, ” I”ll take off the tzitzis I’m wearing now, and wear this pair a whole year round!
Sometime after that, the boy was driving with 4 of his friends, and the car rolled over a cliff. The other 3 boys were killed, and he was the only one living, but he was very badly injured.The paramedics came, and they started taking care of him, and they noticed, that all the the parts of his body were bleeding and very badly wounded, except for one part. The entire part where he was wearing his tzitzis (he was wearing R’ Scheinberg’s tzitzis at the time) was not even touched at all from the accident!!! AMAZING!!!
There was once a bachur who was going to America, and R’ Scheinberg asked him to get him a certain type of soap for the shower. So the bachur looked for that type of soap, and he couldn’t find it, so he decided that R’ Scheinberg probably wanted to get the soap because he had a skin condition, so he got him all types of creams for the skin. He came back to Eretz isroel and told R’ Scheinberg that he got him the creams because he assumed he had a skin condition. So R’ Scheinberg replied,”No, B”H my skin is fine! But the reason why I wanted this type of soap is because I realized that this type of soap washes off a little quicker than regular soap, and the faster the soap washes off, the faster I can get back to learning!!”You see how R’ Scheinberg zt”l was machshiv even one minute of learning Torah!!
My younger brother is good friends with R’ Scheinberg’s great grandson. When he put on tefillin for the first time, R’ Scheinberg came to the US for it. That Shabbos, I was out walking, and I happened to see R’ Scheinberg walking out of a shul with some people. They were walking in the same direction as me, so I decided to walk near them and listen to what he was saying. One of the men noticed me, and asked me if I was waiting to wish the Rosh Yeshiva a good Shabbos. I wished him a good Shabbos, and also added a mazal tov. The man asked me what the mazal tov was for, and I told him about the great-grandson putting on tefillin earlier that week.
R’ Scheinberg replied to me, “Good Shabbos, and thank you. One day you should be zoche to see the same thing!”
I got home, all excited. I told my mother, “I met R’ Scheinberg, and got a bracha for long life – he said I should see my great-grandson put on tefillin!”
She replied, “Even better, your great-grandson will be frum!”
-At Rav yaakov Kaminetzky’s levaya there was a Nun.The family members asked her in a polite way how come she came to Rav Yaakov Zatzal’s levaya.She answered that everybody ignored her because she was a nun.However, ever morning Rav Yaakov would pass the nunnery on his way to somewhere and would say good morning to her.She said I just had to come to the funeral of such a great man!
-Once at Rav Gifter Zatal’s house they had a choshuva guest over Chanukah.The guest told Rav Gifter that they have to light because it was way passed shkiya.Rav Gifter answered that they will wait for Rebbitzen Gifter to come home to light because Shalom Bayis is more important!
My brother was in line to a brocha from Rav Kanievsky.There was a man there who was pouring out his heart to Rav Kanievsky.My brother said that he saw tears pour down Rav Kanievsky’s face in front of everyone!
R’ Moshe Feinstein was in his home with one of his talmidim, when an almana of a few weeks came to speak with R’ Moshe. The talmid went to the back of the room to watch quietly, as the woman poured her heart out to R’ Moshe. As the woman finished, the talmid observed R’ Moshe with tears streaming down his face. He sat there and cried for a few minutes, said a couple of words, and the woman left, visibly comforted, and lifted to more positive spirits.
The talmid then asked R’ Moshe, “Rebbe, did you know this womans husband well? Was he a talmid of yours?” “No” replied R’ Moshe, “I did not know her husband, and I don’t know her either.” “So, Rebbe” the talmid replied, “why all the tears?” R’ Moshe said, “she is part of klal yisroel, and I must also carry her burden”. (A lesson in nosei b’ol im chaveiro)
I dont know what kind of story this qualifies as but anyway,
A rav (possibly R’ Aryeh Levin -maybe someone could confirm it) once went to a doctor with his wife, who hurt her foot. When the doctor asked what the trouble was he replied, “Doctor, my wifes foot is hurting us.”
I think this is the way this story goes:
A man walked into a store and saw the owner working and his two sons learning with much enthusiasm. he asked the owner why he was zoche to sons like that and he answered with a story. he was known as a popular philanthropist and many years earlier he went to a certain rav and said he would like to do something to merit sons who would learn torah. the rav told him there were two boys, both learning in a local yeshiva who had “outgrown” the learning at a very young age and needed to be sent somewhere else. unfortunately due to lack of funding they were unable to go, but if this philanthropist would put up the money then he would merit sons as he wanted. the man put up the money and his sons were learning torah, just as he wanted. the listener asked who the boys who received the money were. oh it was, (R’)Moshe Feinstein and (R’)Ahron Kotler (I have also heard a variation with R’ Yaakov Kamanetzky)
I heard this story second hand. A guy who was becoming frum decided to visit R’ Chaim Kanievski. Right before he went, he called up his mother who didn’t believe in Yidishkeit and asked her if she needed a brocho for anything. She said that she’ll doubt it’s going to work, but her back has been hurting her for the past few days and she can’t get out of bed. He asked R’ Chaim for a brocho for her, called up his mother the next day, and she said her back stopped hurting at a certain time, which happened to be within a few minutes of when R’ Chaim gave the brocho!
av Chatzkel Levenstein was summonsed to court to give testimony in a certain case. The judge turned to him in the middle of his testimony and said “is it true that you are considered one of the greatest most revered Rabbi’s in your community?” R’ Chatzkel answered yes it is true. The judge said, “but Rabbi, doesn’t your faith teach you to be humble?” yes R’ Chatzkel replied, but I’m under oath, and our faith says we must tell the truth.”
When Reb Yaakov Kaminetzky ZT”L came to America, he was a meshulach for the Kovna kollel. He stopped in to visit a certain businessman, and told him that the businessman gave a certain amount of dollars last year. The businessman challenged the number, and showed Reb Yaakov ZT”L a receipt with a lower number. Reb Yaakov ZT”L quit on the spot. The guy wanted to give Reb Yaakov ZT”L a check anyway. Reb Yaakov ZT”L told him he no longer works for the kollel, and is unable to take money for them.
When Reb Moshe ZT”L came out with his psak on AI Donor, a certain kanoi went out of his way to make Reb Moshe’s life miserable. One day, this kanoi is arrested by the government for fraud. Before sentencing, this kanoi asked Reb Moshe ZT”L to write a letter to the judge in order to get a more lenient sentence. Reb Moshe ZT”L wrote the letter without hesitation. After all, a Jew needs his help.
Someone was engaged to the daughter of Reb Baruch Ber ZT”L. The guy later broke it off. Sometime after that, the guy asked Reb Baruch Ber for a recommendation letter. Reb Baruch Ber wrote the latter, and asked several people their opinion of it to make sure there was no mashehu of a violation of “lo sitor”.
Many people like to say they’re totally leshem shomayim, with no desire for personal kavod. The saintly Reb Chaim Shmuelevitz, who worked on himself his entire life, still admitted later in life that it feels good when he gets a bracha at a wedding titled “Der Rosh Yeshiva fun Der Mirrer Yeshiva”.
There’s a picture from when R’ Shteinman and the Gerrer Rebbe came to the US about 12-13 years ago, of R’ Shteinman and R’ Shmuel standing over an open sefer with the Gerrer Rebbe a few feet behind them. My roommate from yeshiva was there at the time, and this is the story of that picture:
R’ Shmuel Berenbaum had a question on the Ayeles HaShachar. When R’ Shteinman and the Gerrer Rebbe came to the Mir Yeshiva, R’ Shmuel wanted to ask R’ Shteinman his question. The Gerrer Rebbe was a few minutes behind R’ Shteinman in getting into the beis medrash, and was standing a few feet behind them (among the Mirrer bochurim), listening to their discussion – and R’ Shmuel did not know he was there.
After a few minutes of listening, the Gerrer Rebbe leaned over a bit and tried to offer a solution to R’ Shmuel’s question. R’ Shmuel, without turning around, said (and please pardon my Yiddish!), “Yunger man, ich hub g’fregt fun der Rosh Yeshiva – nisht fun dir!
R’ Shmuel Berembaum had a heart attack on shabbos and walked to Maomonidies , a good 1 to 2 hour walk.
I learned in South Fallsburg years ago, and R’ Elya Svei came for shabbos bc his it was his grandchilds simcha. Anyways, he stayed up the whole Friday night learning and giving chizuk to the bochrim. It was truly amazing. In both stories, they were not young men.
Read the book Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel by Artscroll. It helped me.
Nice story!
Do you have any others?
(im partically intrested in stories about rav shmuel berenbaum.)
Rav Aharon Kotler
Dean of Lakewood and kletz
Rav Yissacher Meir
Former position: Dean of Yeshivat Hanegav
Rav Yosef Shalom Elyahiv
Former Position: Mahanig Hadar
Died: 2012
Age: 102
A grandsone relates that when he was bring his grandfather a cup of tea, he accidentally spilled it. Rav Elyahiv was learning then and did not even flinch, he just kept on learning.
romney
Name: Rav Moshe Feinstein
Former position: Dean of MTJ
One time a person offered Rav Moshe a ride home from a wedding. Rav Moshe got in the car, and the driver without realizing, closed the door on rav Moshe’s finger. The whole ride Rav Moshe pretended that nothing hurt him. After, someone asked Rav moshe why he didn’d tell the driver in the begining of the ride. Rav Moshe said to him he did me a favor why should i make him feel bad
Name: Rav Elchonon Wasserman
Former position: Dean of Yeshivas Ohel Tora Of Baranavitch
On a fundraising trip in America, Rav Elchonon was being brought to a generous philantrophist. In order to get to this philantrophist he had to pass through Time square. Rav Elchonon never open his eyes in the street in order to ovoid forbidden sites. A couple of feet into Times Square, Rav Elchonon Screames STOP! get me out of here. This place has an awful smell. A smell of Tumah.
Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel:
Every year Rav Nosson Tzvi would give a Shmuez on rosh hashana in each of the three places where the Mir had a minyan.
On the last year of his life the Rosh Yeshiva Got up and asked, “What shoould a person think about during Tekiyos”? The Rosh answered, “you should about somebody else”.
A yungerman came to Rav Shmuel Berenbaum withand a complaint. The man told rav Shmuel, that he tries to follow in Rav Shmuels ways, but sometimes it’s too hard because he doesn’t have money. R’Shmuel said to him, whenever it’s hard come too me. R’Shmmuel took out his own personal Check book and Wrote out a check for the yungerman. The whole time the yungerman assume that it was the yeshiva check book. After four times that the yungerman recieved a check, he finally looked at the check, and he read Shmuel Berenbaum.
One Time a man came to the minyan of Rav Aharon Leib Shteiman. Rav Shteiman minhag is that only one person is allowed to say kaddish. This Man did not know that Rav Shteiman followed this minagag. Hence, he started saying kaddish along with Rav Shteiman. The people at the minyan were outraged, and were about to admonish this man for his mistake. Rav Shteiman quickly gestures to everyone not to say anything, and instead let the man be the one to say Kaddish.
hi