Armfuls of Admiration
Two friends came to listen to a speech that I was scheduled to deliver in the Beit Hakeneset Hagadol in Paris. A few minutes beforehand, one of them became thirsty. He told his friend he was going out to buy a drink in the nearby store. His friend tried to talk him out of this, since the speech was to begin any minute, and he was likely to lose his seat. He suggested that he just take a drink of water from the fountain on the premises.
But the thirsty man stood his ground and insisted on going out to purchase a drink. His friend acquiesced, and they exited together.
Suddenly, they heard loud shouts from above. Turning their heads to see what was happening, they were shocked to see an infant falling from one of the upper floors. One of the men had the presence of mind to spread out his arms in order to catch the falling baby. Due to his quick thinking, the baby’s life was saved.
A large group formed around him, and even the police made an appearance. When the crowds heard the details of how the men left the synagogue in order to buy a drink just as the infant was falling, they were visibly moved. The element of hashgachah pratit was not lost on them.
It turned out that the baby was an Arab child. It is well-known that relations between the Arabs and the Jews in Paris are delicate. But after this incident, things changed. The Arabs became avid admirers of their Jewish neighbors.
