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Weekly Chasidic Story #630 (s5770-15 / 5 Tevet 5770) The Rebbe that Banged on the Table On Thursday, the townspeople asked Rabbi Yechezkel of Shinova whether he planned to stay with them over Shabbat, but he avoided answering. Connection: 110th Yartzeit
The Rebbe that Banged on the Table
"What difference does it make whether I am here for Shabbat or not? What sort of preparations do you have to make for me?" And he would not add another word. The townspeople did not know whether or not the Rebbe was planning to stay for Shabbat. But when Friday morning came and he showed no sign of traveling on, they understood that he meant to stay and they made preparations in his honor. On Shabbat morning, before davening, Rabbi Yechezkel asked, "Where does the tailor live -- the one whose son is about to be married, and who is being called up to the Torah today?" Surprised at this question, they pointed out the tailor's home to the Rebbe. He went there together with enough men to complete a minyan and a Torah scroll, to hold Shabbat morning services in the tailor's home. (Like most small villages, this one had an eruv that allowed carrying on Shabbat.) When the reading of the Torah portion was concluded and the chatan was called up to the Torah for maftir, the Rebbe began to bang on the table with his hand. He kept up this noise until the chatan had finished reading the haftorah and its concluding blessings. The people did not understand the meaning of all this. They assumed that the Rebbe had his reasons. As, indeed, he had. Before Shabbat, the tailor's son had come to see him. "I never formally studied in my life," he said, "and I don't know how to read the haftorah properly. I'm terrified about getting up in front of the whole congregation to read. Please, Rebbe, what shall I do?" "I'll give you my advice on Shabbat," the Rebbe had answered. And what Rabbi Yechezkel did had been his "advice" -- to remain in town for Shabbat for the sake of that young chatan, to bring a minyan to pray in the chatan's own home, and to bang on the table as the young man read, in order to save him from the others' possible mockery and laughter. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Connection: 110th Yartzeit Biographic Note: Rabbi Yechezkel Shraga Halberstam, (1813- 5 Tevet 1899), was the eldest
son of the Divrei Chaim, Rabbi Chaim Halberstam of Sanz. As an emissary of his
father, he founded the Sanzer synagogue in Tzefat. He served as the rabbi of
Shinova from 1855 till1868, and then again from 1881 till his passing. Many
of his Torah insights into Scripture, Law and Kabbalah are collected in Divrei
Yechezkel.
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Yerachmiel
Tilles is co-founder and associate director of Ascent-of-Safed, and chief editor
of this website (and of KabbalaOnline.org). He has hundreds of published stories
to his credit, and many have been translated into other languages. He tells
them live at Ascent nearly every Saturday night.