The Story Of Chanukah (Continued from last week)
Yehudis understood that her only hope lay in her willingness to risk her very life.
The Greatness Of Charity
Our sages teach us: “Great is charity and great is its reward.” He who gives charity to the poor, his prayers will be answered; a measure for a measure - midda k’neged midda. He heard the cries of the poor so will G-d hear his prayers when he cries.
The Wicked Herod
Herod or Hordos — as he is known in the Talmud — was a usurper who seized the throne of the Chashmonaim and caused a terrible tragedy to befall the Jewish people.
Poverty Tests The Man
He found a non-Jew who had a mule to sell and a bargain was quickly struck. Happily, Shimon Ben Shetach rode home thinking: “Now I can do my work quickly and have all the extra time to devote to teaching my students Torah.”
The Shofar Signal To G-d
Dug out beneath his bunk was a little chest which he guarded with his very life. It contained a small Sefer Torah, miniature size, but kosher, and a shofar.
Rav Yosef Shmuel Of Cracow
Rav Yosef Shmuel looked at the guests and said, “I am very sorry, but I am hired to do the holy work of teaching children Torah. I am not allowed to waste even a moment from this work. This evening, when I have finished, I will be glad to see you and talk with you.”
Rav Chaim Tzanzer
From the remarkable beis midrash in the town of Brodi came forth a dazzling number of Talmudic chachamim, many of whom went forth to greatness. The most famous was the great Nodah B’Yehuda, Rav Yechezkel Landau, who was the rav of the Diaspora during his lifetime. But there were other towering scholars who were members of the famous beis midrash. One of them, a giant in his time, was Rav Chaim Tzanzer.
Willing To Be Insulted
Not only did Rav Avraham give tzedakah himself, but he also sought to get others to give as well.
A Jester Saved The Jews
When Catherine annexed the city of Shklob, she appointed a general to govern as a reward for the many heroic campaigns he fought on her behalf.
The Life Of Privation
Reb David kept quiet and paid no attention to her requests, for he didn’t have a penny in his pocket.
Daniel In The Lion’s Den
He loved Daniel very much, but was helpless to do anything in the face of all of his ministers and soldiers.
Rav Avraham Abush Of Frankfurt
Even on the coldest and snowiest days one could see Rav Avraham Abush standing at someone’s front door, asking for help for a needy person.
A Jester Saved The Jews
Chazal thought very highly of a jester, a person who makes people laugh. They say that a special high place is waiting for him in Gan Eden.
The Long Sleep
Choni was astounded at what he had heard. “Apparently, I must have been sleeping for 70 years,” he thought to himself.
The Writing On The Wall
In the midst of his merrymaking, the king ordered his servants to bring out the golden vessels that were taken from the Beit HaMikdash by his father Nevuchadnezzar. The king and his men drank from them and praised the gods of gold and silver.
The Downtrodden People
The great sage Don Yitzchak Abarbanel (1437-1508) would never stop lauding the brilliance and sagacity of his fellow Jews to King Alfonso V of Portugal. Abarbanel was the King’s treasurer and he was respected and loved by the monarch.
G-d Raises The Lowly
Chazal tell the story of a very rich man, who as he grew old began to worry about his future.
"What good is all my wealth?" he asked, "if I may soon have to leave it behind me."
Complains To The King (Continued From Last Week)
Realizing that he couldn’t fulfill Avram’s request, Nimrod then decided upon another line of reasoning.
The Greatest Treasure Of All
“Wisdom is better than rubies, and all things desirable are not to be compared unto her” (Proverbs 8:2). Rabi Aha explained in the name of Rabi Tanchuma ben Rabi Chiya: “My desirable things and your desirable things are not to be compared to her.”
Rav Avraham Abush (Conclusion)
I ask myself how I dared to accept the lofty position of rav in this community when I know that I am not worthy of it.
On Rosh Hashanah It Is Written
Chazal say that on the New Year, the entire amount of a man’s sustenance is fixed, except for what he spends on Shabbos, Yomim Tovim, Rosh Chodesh and sichar limud. In these cases, if one spends more one receives more; if one spends less, one receives less.
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