Parking One’s Faith with Hashem
On one of my visits to New York, I stayed at the home of Mr. Yitzchak Rachmani, a precious Jew with a generous heart, who hosted me with great honor.
While I was there, I received a call from Dr. Speigler, of the community Yad Avraham in New York. Dr. Speigler has a reputation as a top heart surgeon.
Dr. Speigler and I go back a long way. I knew him as a Jew with simple faith in Hashem and His servants. He recognized the power of prayer of the tzaddikim of old, who could bring salvation to the world. Whenever Dr. Speigler was scheduled to perform a complicated or dangerous operation, he would first send the patient to me for a blessing for a successful surgery. He would say, “The Rav will provide his blessing, and I will do the operation. Together, we will, bisiyata di’Shemaya, bring healing to the sick.”
Additionally, Dr. Speigler had once asked me for advice regarding the purchase of a specific apartment in Manhattan. The asking price was quite steep, and he did not know if he would be able to resell it. I encouraged him to buy it against his hesitations. He did so. Within a year, the section of town where this apartment was located was transformed into the most upper-class area of Manhattan. He made a nice profit selling it. This was in the merit of accepting the Torah’s opinion without questions.
Back to the phone call. In a worried tone of voice, Dr. Speigler asked for my advice. His elderly uncle, who was almost ninety years old, had left his home a few days earlier and had not been heard from since. The police were notified and they sent out a search party. But until now, they still did not have a clue as to his whereabouts.
At first, I wanted to tell Dr. Speigler that I, too, had no solution to this mystery. But through years of friendship with the good doctor, and knowing his firm faith in Hashem, I very much wanted to offer him some sort of help. I asked for Hashem to put the right words in my mouth.
I asked Dr. Speigler where his uncle was headed the day he went missing. He replied that, to the best of his knowledge, he was headed toward the city’s hotel section.
“Is there a park nearby?” I pressed.
Dr. Speigler understood my question differently. “Yes,” he replied, “there is the Park Hotel which contains a lovely garden near it.”
I continued, “Does the hotel have any type of stream running beside it?” Dr. Speigler replied in the affirmative. I recommended that he tell the police to search in the area of this hotel and B’ezrat Hashem, his elderly uncle would be found. He would either be found in good health in the hotel itself, or dead in the nearby stream. But the fact that their doubts would be laid to rest was a major factor in allaying his fears.
With the help of the police, the search parties concentrated their efforts on the premises of the Park Hotel. Indeed, Dr. Speigler’s uncle was found, safe and sound, inside the hotel.
I am certain that the simple faith of Dr. Speigler in Hashem’s unlimited powers stood him once more in good stead, meriting the safe recovery of his uncle.
