Modesty – The Key to a Solid Marriage
Modesty – The Key to a Solid Marriage I was once invited to the chanukat habayit of a wealthy Jew from France. His home was essentially a mansion, furnished with every type of materialistic pleasure imaginable. Each room bespoke opulence, beginning with the crystal chandeliers and expensive utensils, and ending with the outdoor private pool. […]
Modesty
“Your camp shall be holy, so that He will not see a shameful thing among you and turn away from behind you” (Devarim 23:15) The Ibn Ezra defines a shameful thing as something disgraceful in deed or word. The Sifri (Devarim, Ki Teitzei 258) says that from here we learn that immorality chases away the […]
A Happy Ending
A Happy Ending A certain young man was eons away from a life of Torah and mitzvot. Although his brother lived in Lyon, my hometown, this boy had never heard of me. That is, until his life took a 180-degree turn. This is how it happened: The young man was involved in a tragic car […]
Free to Do Mitzvot
Free to Do Mitzvot On a visit to Mexico, my companions and I arranged a Shabbat of inspiration for the local Jews. Bisiyata di’Shemaya, we merited a most uplifting Shabbat experience. During the course of the day, when I noticed that the people were especially joyous and their hearts open to inspiration, I removed a […]
Shield of Protection
Shield of Protection Mr. Siboni and Mr. Bitton are business partners. They have the custom of arranging a festive celebration commemorating the hilula of the tzaddik, Rabbi David Moshe, zy”a, an emissary of the holy city, Yerushalayim. After his death, he was buried in Morocco. This tzaddik was known as a holy Kabbalist, well-known for […]
Tzitzit
“Speak to the Children of Israel and say to them that they shall make themselves tzitzit on the corners of their garments, for all their generations. And they shall place upon the tzitzit of each corner a thread of techelet wool. It shall be tzitzit for you, that you may see it and remember all […]
Purchasing a Cure through Charity
Purchasing a Cure through Charity Mr. David Sitbon of Paris has a son, Yochanan, who was ill with leukemia. He lay in critical condition, hovering between life and death. During that time, a dinner was arranged in order to raise funds for the poor for their upcoming Pesach needs. Approximately four hundred people were invited. […]
Doubly Repaid
Doubly Repaid When I was young, I studied under the tutelage of Mori V’Rebbi, the Gaon, Rabbi Gershon Liebman, zt”l. In later years, his yeshiva was undergoing financial difficulties. The debts were unbearable, and the yeshiva was in serious jeopardy of closing its doors. Grave of Moreinu HaGaon Rabbi Gershon Liebman, zt”l The Roshei Yeshiva, […]
Double Delivery
Double Delivery Mr. Messika is a wealthy philanthropist who resides in Paris. He once came to me to ask for my blessing. He had not yet merited having children. He also asked that I pray for his complete recovery from liver complications, from which he suffered greatly. Just at the time that he came, I […]
What Goes Around, Comes Around
What Goes Around, Comes Around Mr. Ishua Deri, z”l, once attended the hilula of the tzaddik, Rabbi Chaim Pinto, together with his wife. He wanted to receive my blessing in the merit of my holy ancestors. He brought along a sum of money to offer for tzedakah, which left him with only enough money to […]
One Good Turn Deserves Another
One Good Turn Deserves Another I was once invited to participate at a fundraising dinner for the purpose of providing kimcha d’Pischa for the poor of France, as well as supporting the kollel of Mori v’Rebbi, Harav Binyomin Zev Kaufman, shlita, of England. This man is a tzaddik and a talmid chacham, whose mouth never […]
Joining Benefactor with Recipient
Joining Benefactor with Recipient When I was in Paris, a woman approached me with her daughter’s wedding invitation. She bewailed her difficult financial situation. She did not have a cent for wedding expenses. She could not even afford to provide her daughter with the basic necessities with which to begin married life. That day, I […]
