Surrendering for Salvation
On the day of the passing of the Baba Laziz, zy”a, grandson of the tzaddik, Rabbi David Ben Baruch, I was scheduled to travel to Toulouse in France, to deliver a speech before a large audience. The residents of the city heard about my arrival and prepared extensively for it. The Ben-Chamou family arranged other gatherings and speeches in various venues, as well as my lodgings in Toulouse.
Just as I was making my way to Toulouse, I heard the sad news that this tzaddik, the Baba Laziz, had passed away in Morocco. I stood still as stone, unsure of what to do. On the one hand, I wanted to attend the funeral of this great man in Morocco. But on the other hand, I had a line-up of speaking engagements, as the people of Toulouse were expecting my arrival. How could I disappoint them like this?
I was still wavering, when I received a call from Morocco, asking whether I intended to attend the funeral. I saw this as a Divine sign that I should. I replied yes. When the Ben-Chamou family heard about my change of plans, they were deeply disappointed. They had toiled tremendously in arranging my speeches and various meetings in their city, as well as other events revolving around my visit. I felt very bad about letting them down. But I promised them that if they would accept my decision willingly and allow me to postpone my visit to a future date, Hashem would surely perform miracles for them in the merit of the tzaddikim, Rabbi David Ben Baruch and Rabbi Chaim Pinto, zy”a. The Ben-Chamou family had great faith in the merit of tzaddikim. Despite the difficulties involved, they blessed my decision, even foregoing the expenses involved, for the honor of the tzaddikim.
That night, I traveled from Lyon to Paris, and from there, on the first plane out to Casablanca. There, the tzaddik’s family welcomed me with open arms and brought me directly to his home. I managed to offer a few words of eulogy and inspiration over his open plot. The thousands of attendees were moved to tears at my words.
After he was buried with due honor, we returned to his house for Ma’ariv. I had the merit to say a few more words of condolence as a merit for his neshamah. At a late hour, I boarded the plane that would take me back to France.
A different date was delegated for my speaking trip in Toulouse. The day I was scheduled to fly, the Ben-Chamou family experienced a great miracle. Their son, who had experienced a frightening car accident in which his seat-mate was killed, emerged with hardly a scratch. Whoever saw the smashed car could not but wonder at his amazing rescue.
The young man reported that, at the time of the accident, he saw before his eyes the names of the tzaddikim. There is no doubt that this miracle was done for him on account of the honor which his family accorded the tzaddikim.
