Charity Saves from Death
The following story was publicized throughout the world for its strong message. It resulted in a tremendous kiddush Hashem. Two wealthy brothers pledged to give me the sum of nine thousand dollars for kimcha d’Pischa. Some time passed. Pesach was coming shortly, but there was no sign of the money. It seemed as though the brothers simply forgot about their pledge. I therefore sent a messenger to remind them in a respectable way, and get the much-needed funds from them. At first, the messenger refused to go. He was not used to doing this type of thing. Generally, those who wish to contribute to our institutions do so of their own volition, without reminders. It is very uncomfortable to approach a potential donor and ask him for charity. But the man finally agreed to my request, since Pesach was looming on the horizon, and the needy lacked the most basic provisions for the holiday.
The brothers met him with obvious pleasure. They even declared that they wanted to double their pledge, making their donation eighteen thousand dollars, the numerical equivalent of ח"י (chai – life). They handed him all of the money on the spot.
The very next day, the wife of my host in Israel called me up, shaken to the core. She excitedly reported that these brothers had been flying in their private plane and it crashed during landing. Both pilots were killed, but the brothers survived. They lay unconscious in the hospital.
- The ruins of the airplane
After they regained consciousness, I told them that they were living examples of the maxim “Tzedakah saves from death.” Hashem, in his infinite mercy, arranged that their donation on behalf of needy Jews take place one day before their flight, so that it could save them from certain death. Doubling their donation to the sum of chai granted them just that – life.
