Stories Of Greatness

On May 3, 1982, Prime Minister Menachem Begin hobbled into a crowded Knesset chamber, tense with expectancy. He was in pain, recovering from a severe hip injury, and it was with heavy, purposeful steps that he arrived to deliver his El Al speech. He began quietly, factually, declaring that the government had finally decided to halt all El Al flights on Shabbos and festivals – a revelation that sent leftist eyes glaring and hatred flashing in the public gallery where the El Al union men sat.

On the first day of Rosh HaShanah 5696 (1936), Rav Yitzchak Meir Heschel zt”l, the previous Kapischnitzer Rebbe, passed away and was succeeded by his son, Rav Avraham Yehoshua Heschel zt”l. For the next 31 years, Rav Avraham Yehoshua served his flock faithfully and devotedly as the Kapischnitzer Rebbe, both in Europe and, after the Holocaust, in the United States.

The following story is related by Rabbi Dovid Goldwasser shlita, and it illustrates how a Jew can merit unique Divine intervention, if he or she stands up for what is right. The story took place in Eretz Yisrael and is about a poor bride named Rena who could not afford her own wedding gown and needed to resort to procuring one from a free-loan gemach organization. She did her research and found such an organization that had just what she was looking for. The problem was that it was in a distant city and she would have to travel there if she wanted the gown.

In the town of Halberstadt, Germany, over 100 years ago, lived the gaon, Rav Binyamin Tzvi Auerbach zt”l. He grew up in France and served as a rabbi in Darmstadt for ten years after earning s’michah as well as a PhD in philosophy and Semitic languages. While living in Frankfurt, Rav Auerbach wrote the sefer Bris Avraham in memory of his father, and also spent much of his time editing Sefer HaEshkol, written by the Raavad of Norvona in the 13^th century. Years later, when he became the Rav of Halberstadt, he published his work as a commentary named Nachal Eshkol.

Mrs. Liba Eckstein survived the horrors of the Holocaust as a prisoner in Auschwitz. Eventually, she married and settled in Manchester, England. During her ordeal, Liba begged Hashem for three things. First, that she should survive Auschwitz and tell her story to the world. Second, that she should marry a ben Torah. Finally, she prayed that if she ever merits having children, all her offspring should remain shomer Shabbos and marry before her death.

One of the first and most successful kiruv organizations in the US is Hineni, founded by the dynamic Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis a”h in the 1970s. The organization was an instant success, and the Rebbetzin was asked to speak and engage with people at many events all over the world. She recalls one very special event that she was asked to speak at.