Volume 1
Issue 47

The Connections people
 

With many thanks to our generous sponsors:
  Chinuch Yaldei Hashluchim:
Rabbi & Mrs.
Mendel & Sara Shemtov  Rabbi & Mrs.
Kasriel & Chana E. Shemtov
  Connections:
Mr. & Mrs.
Yochanan & Peri Brook
 Mr.  Mrs.
Zalman & Raizy Cousin

 

Chinuch Yaldei Hashluchim:

Rabbi M. Shemtov
Rivky Lokshin
Dabrushy Pink
Aydla Vechter

Connections
Proof-Readers:

Rabbi A. Lipsey
Mrs. G. Junik
Rabbi L. Zirkind
 

Va’ad Hashluchim:

Rabbi Y. Deren
Rabbi O. Goldman
Rabbi Y. Greenberg
Rabbi B. Levertov
Rabbi Y. Shemtov

 

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a division of
THE SHLUCHIM OFFICE

 

PARSHAS EIKEV

"Hey, David! Come on in."

"NO-O-O! The water is too cold."

"Just jump in. You'll get used to it right away."

David was not convinced. He stood at the edge of the pool and watched his friends swim ming . Gingerly, he dipped his foot into the water and swished it about.

"See, David. It's not so bad after all."

David didn't think so. He shook his head and turned to Heshy, who was standing nearby. "No way!" he said. "I can feel how cold this water is even in the heel of my foot."

Do you do the same thing before jumping into a pool? Do you test the water with your feet first? Why is it easier to put our feet into cold water?

Simple. The bottoms of our feet are not as sensitive to the cold as the other parts of our body. They can bear the cold.

But that's only one way of explaining it. There's another way to understand why this happens.

Our brain tells us to move our hands, our feet, and the rest of our body. It sends out messages and instructions, and our body responds.

Now let's go back to David at the pool. His brain said: "Go ahead. Take a plunge. You'll soon get over the cold and have a lot of fun with your friends." Most of his body didn't want to listen, but he was able to put his foot in. The foot is farthest away from the brain, but it is the most ready to respond to its instructions. Of all the parts of our body, our feet do what we want most willingly.

Eikev, the name of our parshah, means "heel." The parshah tells us that Hashem will give us great blessings when we keep His mitzvos as eagerly as the heels of our feet follow our brain's instructions.

We are living in ikvesa diMeshicha, "the time when we can hear the footsteps of Moshiach approaching." The word ikvesa comes from the word eikev. Our generation was selected to greet Moshiach. Like the heels of our feet, we are eager to do everything Hashem wants.

(Adapted from Likkutei Sichos, Vol. IX)

 

 

 

Yisrolik Baumgarten, 5
Rockaway, NJ

Hi! My name is Yisrolik.  I live in Rockaway, NJ.  Every night before I go to bed my Tatty reads me Chassidic Stories for Children.  I love listening to the stories.  On Gimmel Tammuz I davened extra hard so Moshiach should come.  I love the Rebbe and I love Hashem. Once, at ‘show and share’ I told all my friends about the conference call we had for the Rebbe's birthday.  Every Shabbos we have a program for the boys and I always can't wait until they come.  We have nosh and tell stories.  On Festival Day we have tons of rides and my Tatty makes a kosher food booth so everyone could eat kosher food there.  I went early in the morning with my Tatty and helped set up and brought all the sodas to him from the truck.  So many people came by to eat kosher.  I am having a great time on shlichus. We want Moshiach now! 

וידעת עם לבבך כי כאשר ייסר איש את בנו ה ‘ אלקיך מיסרך

QUESTION: How is ה ‘ telling off the אידן similar to a father telling off his son?

ANSWER: If a father is not happy at how his son behaves and tells him off and hits him, he will still be very upset if suddenly a stranger would come and hit his son at the same time. The father would then protect his son.

Even though we אידן might be in גלות because ה ‘ is not happy with the way we behave, He still doesn’t like it when the גוים who rule over us don’t treat us well. Even many years before מתן תורה when we became ה ‘ ’s nation, ה ‘ promised אברהם that He would punish the גוים that would harm the אידן .

 

From all over Europe, thousands of אידן used to come to visit ר ‘ ישראל , the holy Rabbi of Ruzhin. For little פסח , the orphan who lived in the Rebbe’s house , it was an amazing sight which he never got used to .

"The Rebbe is a holy man," he was told. "All these people come to him for a ברכה . He can see what will happen to them many years from now."

One day the Rebbe called פסח aside and told him, "A time will come when you will have to go away. You will study medicine and become a doctor. Then you should go to ארץ ישראל . Your place is there and you will be able to save many lives." פסח burst into tears. "Must I leave, Rebbe?" he cried.

"Don't be upset," the Rebbe said. "My thoughts will always be with you."

And so it was that פסח grew up and became a doctor -- taking the family name of his beloved Rebbe, Friedman -- and settling in ארץ ישראל in the town of צפת .

One day a royal carriage stopped in front of his house, and an important looking man stepped out. "I am looking for Dr. Friedman," he announced.

When Dr. Friedman came to the door he was told, "The Princess of Prussia is visiting צפת and she is extremely ill. One minute she is burning with fever, the next moment she is shivering with cold. You must come at once. Her father, the King, is anxious that you come at once."

Dr. Friedman hurried to the princess's bedside. He checked her and saw that she had malaria. "Take this medicine for three days. If we are lucky, we will be able to cure the disease."

Three days later the princess's fever broke and it could be seen that she was slowly getting better. After three weeks Dr. Friedman was called again. "The Princess will be continuing her trip, however she still feels weak and has begged that you come with her."

Dr. Friedman explained, "Your Highness, it is difficult for me to fulfil your request. As a איד I must daven three times a day with ten men, and I may eat only kosher food. The trip to ירושלים is a long one."

The King replied, "Spare no expense. Bring along ten men and whatever food you need. Only come."

Dr. Friedman joined the traveling party for the long, hard journey. When he finally returned home, his wife asked, "Did they reward you for saving the life of the princess?"

"Not really, but they said the King would owe me. True, it was very difficult, but for me it is enough that I saved her life."

Many months passed and no more was heard from the princess or her father. ארץ ישראל had many problems and the interesting story of the princess was forgotten as everyone had a different worry -- the safety of their children. The government of Turkey, which then ruled ארץ ישראל , was demanding that young Jewish men serve in its army. Not only was it impossible to keep the תורה in the army, it was also very dangerous. The only alternative was prison. Then, out of the blue, came a telegram for Dr. Friedman from the King of Prussia.

The short letter stated that by the grace of His Royal Highness, the King of Prussia, Dr. Pesach Friedman had been appointed Consular Agent in צפת for the government of Prussia, with full authority to issue passports, visas, and any other such papers to citizens of Prussia.

Dr. Friedman was silent for a long while, as he read and reread the telegram. Then, he remembered the words of his Rebbe, as if they had just been spoken, "You will be able to save many lives."

Quickly, he called a meeting of the community leaders.

"Gentlemen," he announced, holding up the telegram, "here is the answer to our troubles. By this document I have been given the power to issue passports to citizens of Prussia. Do you realize what this means? No longer will the Turks have power over us. If any young men are threatened that they will have to go to the army, let them come to me. I'll issue them a Prussian passport that will save them! With these papers they'll become citizens of Prussia, and won't have to serve in the Turkish army!"

And so, the words of Reb Yisroel of Ruzhin came true over and over again!

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