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a certain Rav, who shall remain nameless, after a friend of mines wife had a miscarriage, gave them a bracha, that they should have another child, and since the day He gave the bracha, they had 3 children.$
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I just read this in a parenting book about the Alter of Slobodka. There were 2 talmidim who were friends, one did very well in learning and the other struggled. The one who trouble was constantly getting praised and attnetion from the Rebbe and the other one was ignored in a way. Much later, the better student was sitting shiva and the rebbe came. The student asked why he was there since the Rebbe seemingly never noticed him. The Rebbe replied that he was doing well in learning. Praise and attention would only benefit the yetzer hara. The student who struggled had a place outside of the yeshiva too and needed encouragement and from the Rebbe for his yetzer tov.
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One of my favorite stories is of a man who went to his rebbe and complained that no matter what, his wife was never ready for Shabbos on time. There were always things left undone. The rebbe looked at him and asked “Have you picked up a broom?”
qwertyuiop: that’s bautifull!!
ames: when i get a chance [it’s 2am now], i’ll add my stories here!!!!
I believe this story happened with the Chidushei HaRim. He was reknowned for his brilliance even at a very young age. A chossid was in his town and visited his home and wanted to see if his reputation was valid. He said to the young boy “I will give you three ruble if you can tell me where Hashem is”. The young boys eyes lit up, and immediately responded “I will give you 6 ruble if you can tell me where Hashem isn’t”.
(I’m not sure if the visitor gave the boy the rubles, but he was surely impressed!)
Rav Pam said about his mother that he had never heard her speak loshan hara. She had such ahavas yisroel that no-one seemed negative in any way in her eyes
Anonymouse, #2 is my favorite 🙂
irwgm, I guess thats why she merited to be the mother of Rav Pam!
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”.
Rav 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.”
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!
Someone asked a certain Gadol whether to take a Masmid whose not so clever or an extremely clever boy whose not such a Masmid as his son-in-law. The Gadol answered, to be a Masmid is also a great cleverness!!! Love the answer…it’s so deep!
noitallmr – if we didn’t know you were from the UK beforehand, that would have been a dead giveaway… clever??
yes- quite! clever, naughty, witty…
areivim, i take that back. i meant cleva
The kotzker and the chidushei harim were warking and they saw priests making avoda zora out of ice, theKotzker asked the Chidushei Harim what he sees and he answered he sees priests carving a”z the kotzker answered i see that when there is a kaltkeit then tumah can creep in
asdfghjkl: thanx.$
ames, kaltkeit = coldness
ames: i just finished reading the new book, Vision of Greatness-it sounds so up your alley!! it have mind blowing stories in it!!!
noitallmr: ha i like that one a lot!!!
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)
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)
A sign of total gadlus!
kapusta-yes-R Aryeh Levin
kapusta,
I heard your second story from a very reliable source (Rav Hershel Wachsman from Monsey) with just slight variations. The man was not a philanthropist but a butcher in Europe. He had consistantly set aside money for tzedaka and after that money had accumulated to a sizable amount he asked the rav of the town what to do with it. The rav told him that there were 2 gifted boys who could become big talmidei chachamim if only there was money available for them to go to yeshiva but their parents couln’t afford it. At that time most bochurim stopped yeshiva around bar mitzvah age and went to work. The few who continued learning beyond that age had to traveling to a yeshiva somewhere else. The butcher used the money to send them off to yeshiva. He remember that one of the bochurim was named kotler but couldn’t remember the name of the second bochur.
Rabbi Wachsman said that he repeated the story to Rav Yaakov Kamenetzky ZTL and Rav Yaakov responded that the story is 100% true. He added that he was the second bochur!
Why Moish01? What should I have written?
i don’t know, but clever is not used all that frequently in the US. smart, genius, brilliant (depends how that one’s used) – use a thesaurus i’m sure there are a million synonyms for “clever”
-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!
kiruvwife and charlie thanx
Well moish01, never having been there- I just wouldn’t know!!!
no stories today? keep em comin
Beautiful stories, all.
Joseph(f), just for the record we can usually tell which “Joseph” it is by what he’s saying.
ames, great stories (typical Rabbi Miller, they’re all so good!) thanx for sharing!
ames: thanx for sharing that story! i really enjoyed it!
not really a rabbi story, but an inspiring story so its worth posting. (I realize that there are some parts that dont sound very realistic, but this is the way I heard it.)
I heard this several years ago from Rabbi Jung. I heard this as a true story that took place in Israel.
For years, the A family and the B family were fighting. It was not the “first generation” fighting anymore, and the families no longer remembered what the original fight was about. None of them wanted to break the chain that their fathers had started so for years they didnt have any connection. One day, the the daughter of the B family got engaged. They set the wedding for some time in March, in a popular wedding hall. Some time during the engagement period, Mr. B met Mr. A in shul and just “stam” decided to approach him and try and make up after so many years. “Mr. A, you know, its been so long since the fight, and I dont remember what it was about even, why are we still ignoring each other?”
“True, I too, dont remember what the argument was about, there is no reason to continue this machlokes unnecessarily.”
They made up and all was happy, but Mr. B wanted to take it a step further.
“My daughter is getting married in the middle of March in ____ Hall, we would love to have you and your family join us.”
“I’d love to come, but I’m having a procedure done that same week, and I’ve been waiting months and months to do it, I couldn’t possibly forfeit my chance for a wedding, no matter how important.”
Mr. B, determined to have the Mr. A, join him at the wedding, went to work out a few details, and the next time they met, he greeted Mr. B with news.
“The wedding date was not final, I asked my daughter and we asked the other side, and they are willing to push up the date to the beginning of March, but now the wedding will be out of town. It is so important to us that you join, now will you come?”
The wedding took place as planned, with Mr. A in attendance.
On the original date the wedding was planned, in that same hall, the ceiling caved in, with much damage resulting and a ruined wedding. This is the power of shalom.
kapusta: wow that was some story! thanx!
i liked it thanxx
Kapusta- a totally true story…
mi kamicha yisroel…
This is how far we have to go to not only prevent machlokes, but to foster Sholom!
If there are any inaccuracies, tell the person who told it to me. Maybe someone else would know who it happened with.
A (not sure which) Bobover Rebbe, when leaving the hospital was in terrible pain to the point where each breath was a big effort. Once he left, he needed something put together (maybe something he could stay in while he was being transported to his home). A Chassid was trying to put it together but for whatever reason, it was taking much longer than expected. The weather was very hot and humid, and the Chassid was working without letup. After a bit, the Rebbe started rubbing his hands together. The gabbai saw and he thought the Rebbe wanted to wash his hands. He went into the hospital and brought water. The Rebbe shook his head, and continued repeating the motion. Finally someone realized the Rebbe wanted a towel, so he went into the building and brought out a paper towel. The Rebbe, barely able to move at all, leaned over and wiped the sweat off the Chassids forehead.
A close friend of mine has been married for 4.5 years – without kids. They went to R’Chaim Kanievsky, he told them to check their Mezuzes. They changed all, and she is PREGNANT!! may it all go well for them, and may they be zoche to many healthy children.
Kapusta – I think it was R’ Yoel, and the thing being put together was a wheelchair. At least that’s the Olameinu’s version of it.
Kiruvwife: Rav Chatskyl Abromsky in England not Rav Chatskyl Levenstein.
Rabbi EFRAIM Wachsman.
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