I recently came across a story that has not left my mind.
In the days of the Ksav Sofer, a non-Jewish servant in the Governor’s mansion was caught stealing. Fearing for his life, he hid the stolen goods in the home of a poor, innocent Yid. The authorities searched every house and, of course, “found” the evidence exactly where he had planted it. The Jew was immediately arrested and sentenced to death.
The Ksav Sofer exhausted every connection he had — meeting with askanin, pleading with officials, and trying desperately to save this innocent Yid. But every door was shut. The night before the execution, he fell asleep broken-hearted.
That night, his father, the Chasam Sofer, appeared to him in a dream and said: “My son, why are you sleeping? An innocent Yid is about to die!”
The Ksav Sofer replied, “Tatte, I’ve done everything I can. Nothing worked.”
And the Chasam Sofer answered: “Did you gather the whole shtut (town) for Tehillim and Tefillah?”
He awoke with a start. Before dawn, the Ksav Sofer gathered everyone — men, women, and children — to cry out in tefillah and say Tehillim together. The next morning, the judge — without any apparent reason — decided to question the servant again. Caught off guard, the man broke down and confessed. The innocent Yid was freed.
That was one person, one yid, and one tzaddik who refused to give up — who understood that when all earthly avenues fail, there remains one path that never closes: the gate of Tefillah.
What about us?
Today, in New York, we face an existential threat to a city of over a million Yidden. The atmosphere grows darker by the day. We’ve seen candidates and ideologies that openly express disdain for Torah values, for Klal Yisroel, for Eretz Yisroel. We see the winds shifting, policies taking shape that could make life for our community harder, less secure, and less free.
And yet — where is our outcry? Are we gathering for Tehillim? Are we crying out to the Eibishter the way the Ksav Sofer’s kehillah did for one innocent Yid?
We talk politics. We discuss Cuomo versus Mamdani versus Sliwa. We analyze the polls, the endorsements, the numbers. But who among us has said, “Ribono Shel Olam — You run this city. You run this world. You decide what happens”?
Do we believe that a yeshuah comes from politicians? From strategists? From party machines? No. We have one Avinu Shebashamayim. Only one address. Only one power that decides who sits in City Hall, in the governor’s mansion, or in the White House.
It’s time we remembered who we are.
We need Yemei Tehillim and Tefillah in all five boroughs — in shuls, yeshivos, batei midrash, and homes. We need to remind the Eibishter that we know “Ein od milvado.” That we are His nation and we turn only to Him.
If the Ksav Sofer could move Heaven and Earth for one person, what could a million Yidden accomplish if we would unite in tefillah and bitachon?
Politics will run its course. But our destiny is not decided in polling booths — it is decided in Shamayim.
Let us show the Eibishter that we remember that truth. Let us cry out, together: “Shma koleinu Hashem Elokeinu, chus verachem aleinu!”
Now is the time.
Signed,
T.S.
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20 Responses
Thank you so much, what a great and special letter. An amazing story from the
חתם סופר זכר צדיק וקדוש לברכה
What did we cry out during the recent Yomim Noraim? ותשובה ותפילה וצדקה מעבירין את רוע הגזירה. What is #1? Teshuvah. First do teshuvah, and then you can do tefillah. Tefillah alone, without teshuvah, is limited.
There’s a great segula for yeshua to say every day after Shachris the daily tehillim.
The Lubavitcher Rebbe wrote on his Sefer Hayom Yom that every community should be saying it after Shachris.
It’s about time…. antisemitism is growing all over the world, NYC is the capital of the world, so yidden in NYC should be the ones to start with this minhag.
The letter writer is a great person and a Tzaddik.
Good point. It is so sad.
We say daily “Al tivtichu biNedivim”. Yet that’s what some seem to be doing, placing their hope in Antiochus of all people, rather than praying to G-d to save NYC from both of the candidates of concern in that election.
It is mind-boggling.
He is so right!!! Rav Avrohom Schorr has been asking the same question for weeks. How come we do not have Yemei Tzom…. Yenei tfillah….we are in great sakana…… even if we do not want to do it in a public manner……..every yeshiva, shule bais Knesses, bais Medrash filled with people simulataneously saying selichois and Tehillim. Tfillah has a Bris that it does not go unanswered…. Moetzes, Aguda, Ichud, Hisachdus…… all together…. PLEASE!!!
Nice story. I just don’t get the comparison. Are you really bother by what this shmutz can do to us? Does he have such power? Or maybe stam you’re bothered just because NYC is not gonna look like the same… We are deeply trapped in Golus. The average American Jew doesn’t even know what Shabbos means. In Israel they are dragging Bnei Torah to prison guilty of not drafting/shmad. I’m 100% sure that we can find more worthy causes for an Atzeres haTefilah.
Are you serious?? The average American Jew doesn’t even know what Shabbos really means. In Eretz Yisroel, they are dragging Bnei Torah to prison because they didn’t draft/shmad. We’re still in Galus. A long and bitter Golus. I’m 100% sure we can find better reasons for an Atzeres Tefilah than panic about this lunatic.
Thank you T. S.
אין עוד מלבדו
As I used to teach my students: The enemy is Apathy
God doesnt want your prayers and tehillim. He wants you all to leave the impure lands and come to Israel so the Geula can take its proper course…
NY State. Get out and protest against this horrible antisemite who will hate you more and more. Now is the time to come together, make shalom with one another and make sure he does not win. Until now you were safe in NY. Now you need to fight to keep it safe.
Gut gezukt!
TPANEACH; Stop with your blatant apikorsus.
Additionally, the deep state oligarchy in Israel is persecuting frum Jews there. I don’t see why we should move there now.
We can do teshuvah anywhere, that is the proper course of the geulah.
HOW ABOUT TEHILLIM AND!!! GETTING OUT THE VOTE!!!? Its Hishtadlus! With this candidate’s goals, its Shfichas Domim NOT to vote!
I am not convinced we need to worry about this Mamdani fellow as Satmar hasidim had him in their sukka 2 weeks ago and they are the largest and most frum group there is in NYC, in fact he might be more religion friendly than youd expect plus we know Cuomo hated frum Yidden.
All those Aliya snobs just remember the rabbanim who come and ask for help they need yiddishe communities here that earn and have the heart to help! None of them ever told us to move. We are a partner in the hishtadlus
Why do you have to resort to made-up stuff to prove your point? A person sentenced to death for a theft in Austro-Hungary in mid-19th century? Maybe you will also provide a case number, as it is almost certainly still available?
Dear Uncle Ben, clearly you havent learned any of the holy books regarding Geula and how it works… Check out maamar Hageula ramchal. There must be a physical geula before the spiritual one… and he says clearly it means that most jews must return to Israel first. But I guess its too easy to say otherwise with all the larger than life taavot in chutz…
Excellent letter. Tefillah b’ais tzoro in USA is nonexistent. Which yeshiva in USA sets aside a 15 minute Seder daily to recite tehillim brov am hardras melech? Which? The yeshiva system has become so narrow minded in many areas including the recital of tehillim, except when a rosh yeshiva is r״l holding at the end of life.
Yeshivas have shunned tefillah and its remarkable power big time.