This photo was published on a well-known local Facebook Page in Sullivan County on Sunday. Seen in the photo is a Hasidic man, changing the tire of a man he never met before.
The photo was published on this particular Facebook page – which has a long history of the most vile comments about Jews – to highlight that all Jews are “not so bad”.
As was expected, despite this being pointed out, many people on this page refused to acknowledged this mans good deed. But YWN will. He made a Kiddush Hashem!
YWN has learned that he is a member of Rockland Chaveirim and this is on the Palisades Parkway near Exit 8.
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20 Responses
When one Yid fixes another Yid’s tire, that is a much much bigger Kiddush Hashem than this example.
Honestly i think it’s ridiculous when such a big deal is made when a frum person helps another person, like “woah, can you believe it?” i believe or maybe i am wrong, but isn’t this what we’re supposed to be doing? I don’t mean to take away his zechusim for heloing to change someone’s tire but to scream KIDDUSH HASHEM!! seems to be a bit much.
L’moed and tifelah are important to a Jewish person’s character. Acts of gimmilut chassidim are what we are building our Jewish character to perform.
If this happened today, it is indeed a Kiddish Hashem as it is a fast day and its really hot out.
Pokin would you do it?
I think what is cool is that some frum guy knows how to change a tire and is not afraid of getting his hands dirty.
Jospeh, with our logic hat would be challenging to accomplish. You have proven yourself to label various types of Jews in categories, with xyz Jews being more Jewish than abc Jews. Although I am halachically Jewish, because you haven’t gotten along with my comments in the past, and for your shocking divisive responses, I highly doubt you’d see value in helping “another yid” out. There should be no price on a kiddush Hashem towards other Jews, perhaps one day you’ll see that.
pokin, I agree with you. I never understood this either.
What I think the point is, is that when non-Jews drive by and see a frum person helping out a stranger, the non-Jew identifies the act of kindness with a Jew. If it was not someone with the Kippa, they might also think that the helper is a wonderful person, but not make the Jewish connection.
When the kiddush hashem bar is set low enough, we see these sorts of articles.
Nothing wrong with balancing things out
To Laughing Did you ever hear of chavarim. They do this all the time.
By calling this and similar acts a “Kiddush Hashem” are we not playing into the hands of the sonei Yisroel who claim that Yidden only look after themselves?
Just asking …
Richard,
Exactly the opposite!
This article shows a yid helping, and that is what we’re supposed to do
This makes a kiddush Hashem
When I put Tefillin on this morning that was also a “Kiddush Hashem” but it didn’t get my picture on YWN!
Maybe the question isn’t: “is this a Kiddush Hashem?”, but rather: “is this news?”
Joseph, that’s just a regular day.
You can see that the sina’as Yisrael is still so prevalent: both in the tweets this guy still sent out and the comments above! Why is it so hard to see the good in others? I’m sure I am derelict in thos too to some degree! But why, oh why should it be so hard?
@laughing
He is clearly afraid to get his hands dirty… he is wearing gloves!
In all seriousness bravo for helping another person and all the more so in the hot weather we have had lately.
@laughing – I am not laughing. Have you never used the services of Chaveirim? Have you never called your local (frum) plumber or electrician. My HVAC crew, my plumber, electrician, contractor, handyman, landscaper, and sprinkler service provider are ALL frum Yidden (with dirty hands). I used to have a couple of frum mechanics.
Putting aside for now the Torah commandment of using Jewish laborers when possible and even if they are more costly, I am going to assume that perhaps you were raised in community or non-Jewish area your entire life and were never exposed to Jewish craftsmen and professionals. The alternative would be that your comment was meant as a leitzanus, a derogatory comment about Yidden. Is the only worthy job one in which your hands get dirty? So we should not become doctors and lawyers? We should not get licensed as an actuary or, l’havdil, a CPA (an inside joke for the actuaries among us)? And what about those who are learning?
While I applaud this individual for bring a decent human being and performing a “Kiddush Hashem”, it is more important to focus on doing KH among Jews ESPECIALLY during the three weeks.
Not that I am belittling his Chesed , (Kol Hakavod to him) but for every one chesded , there are 10 Chiluls. I guess that makes us human , not special by any means. Chesed starts with family, ie Klal Israel. Let’s embrace our differences.
ah yid & shuali – never heard of Chaveirim. As far as “frum” tradesman only see them is Israel. But then I don’t live in any of the Jewish enclaves.
In the frum community we know that such acts of kindness are the norm. Unfortunately, the very fact that this is a news story is testament to the harm that these vicious hateful Facebook pages have done.
But we will continue to grow and thrive despite those who hate us until the coming of Moshiach when there will be no more hate!