Parshat Vayeira

We see in this week's Parsha: "And Hashem appeared to him by the terebinths of Mamre" (Bereishit 18:1). Our Sages ask: What did Mamre merit that the Parsha should be named after him? And they answer: Because he gave Avraham Avinu advice regarding Brit Milah (circumcision). All the commentators ask a strong question: Did Avraham Avinu, who was the holiest of the holy, need to receive advice from a gentile regarding Brit Milah? Surely it is obvious that Avraham Avinu would perform Brit Milah! If so, what is the meaning of saying that Avraham Avinu took advice from Mamre regarding Brit Milah?

Rather, we can explain and state a great principle. There is a dispute between the Rambam and the Ramban as to why we perform Brit Milah. The Rambam says (Moreh Nevuchim 3:49) that through Brit Milah we diminish the power of the great physical desire that a person has, and when a person performs Brit Milah, he reduces and lowers the power of desire. The Ramban disagrees with the Rambam and says (Bereishit 17:9) that we do not diminish the power of desire; rather, when a person performs Brit Milah, holiness is added upon him.

According to this we can explain and say: we have two blessings that we recite at a Brit Milah. The first blessing is: "Who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us regarding circumcision (al hamilah)." And the second blessing is: "Who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to bring him into the covenant of Avraham Avinu." We can say that these two blessings correspond to the explanations of the Rambam and the Ramban: according to the Rambam, that Brit Milah reduces and lowers the power of the Evil Inclination (Yetzer Hara), this is the first blessing that we recite, "regarding circumcision." The second blessing, "to bring him into the covenant of Avraham Avinu," corresponds to the explanation of the Ramban, that Brit Milah adds holiness onto the person and brings him into the covenant of Avraham for holiness and purity.

And thus we can explain and say: Avraham Avinu knew that in Brit Milah there are two parts — the first part, as the Rambam says, to reduce the Evil Inclination, and the second part, as the Ramban says, to add holiness onto the person. In Brit Milah there are two actions: "Turn away from evil" (sur me'ra) is the part of cutting (milah), which corresponds to the first blessing; and "Do good" (va'aseh tov) is the uncovering of the membrane (peri'ah) and the second blessing.

Avraham Avinu was in great holiness at the time of Brit Milah and had no Evil Inclination at all. Avraham Avinu asked himself: "If I perform Brit Milah, is it in order to lower the Evil Inclination, or to elevate myself in holiness and purity?" Had Avraham Avinu performed Brit Milah and recited the blessing "to circumcise" (lamul), that would only have been to bring himself into holiness and make a covenant between himself and Hashem; however, if one says "regarding circumcision" (al hamilah), that is to lower the Evil Inclination. Avraham Avinu did not know which type of circumcision to perform, and Mamre gave Avraham Avinu advice to perform the covenant in a manner that would direct the intention for the entirety of the nation of Israel — "al hamilah" — to lower the Evil Inclination! And in the merit of this good advice that Mamre gave, he merited that the Parsha be called by his name.

"Let a Little Water Be Fetched": Teaching Torah to the Angels

We find in this week's Parsha that the three angels came to Avraham Avinu, and Avraham Avinu gave them to drink and to eat. What transpired at that meeting between Avraham Avinu and the angels, and what is the lesson from that meeting? It is written that in the future, when Mashiach comes, "For the earth shall be filled with knowledge of Hashem as water covers the sea" (Yeshayah 11:9) — all the nation of Israel will know the Holy Torah, will study the entire Holy Torah, and will be fluent in it. Yet we have a mitzvah in the Holy Torah to teach Torah! We may ask: as for studying Torah, they will study; but as for teaching Torah, how will they teach Torah to one another when everyone will already be Torah scholars? Whom will they teach when everyone is great in Torah?

Rather, Rabbeinu the Chatam Sofer states a great principle: When King Mashiach comes, the nation of Israel will sit and teach Torah to the angels! And the Chatam Sofer says that the very first time anyone taught Torah to the Ministering Angels was in this week's Parsha, when the angels came to the home of Avraham Avinu and he said to them: "Let a little water be fetched, and wash your feet, and recline under the tree" (18:4). And it is known that "water" refers to nothing other than Torah, as it says in the Prophet (Yeshayah 55:1), "Ho, everyone who is thirsty, go to the water!" And the Torah continues, "And I will fetch a morsel of bread" — and Torah is compared to bread, as it says (Mishlei 9:5), "Come, eat of my bread." Avraham Avinu sat with the angels and taught them Torah — and it is written in the books of Kabbalah that Avraham Avinu taught them lofty laws and mystical intentions (kavanot) for the time of eating. There the foundation was planted to teach the Ministering Angels.

There is a great principle that one must know: every time one studies Torah, or before one performs a mitzvah or a good deed, a person must entertain thoughts of repentance (hirhur teshuvah). For if a person does not entertain thoughts of repentance and performs the mitzvah or good deed, the power of the mitzvah or good deed goes, Heaven forbid, to the Sitra Achra (the Other Side).

In this week's Parsha, Avraham Avinu says to the angels — after thinking they were wayfarers and not G-d-fearing men — "Let a little water be fetched, and wash your feet": take water and entertain thoughts of repentance before you draw close to G-d! "And recline under the tree" — the "tree" is the Holy Torah ("It is a tree of life to those who grasp it"). Before you go to the tree, to the Holy Torah, wash your feet and entertain thoughts of repentance, and only then will you be able to recline under the tree and study Torah! Because whoever studies Torah without entertaining thoughts of repentance, or gives charity or performs a good deed without entertaining thoughts of repentance, the power of the Torah or the mitzvah goes, Heaven forbid, to the Sitra Achra.

And this is what our Sages say (Pesachim 50a): "Fortunate is the one who comes here with his learning in his hand" — fortunate is the one who arrives in Heaven with his Torah learning clean, without the Sitra Achra, because he entertained thoughts of repentance beforehand and cleansed himself beforehand from the Sitra Achra. A person must reflect on repentance before performing a mitzvah or praying, just as the Mishnah says (Berachot 5:1): "The early pious ones (Chassidim HaRishonim) used to wait one hour and then pray, in order to direct their hearts to the Omnipresent." An hour before prayer they would entertain thoughts of repentance so as not to give the power of the prayer to the Sitra Achra. Then the Torah or good deed ascends pure and clean before G-d.

"After I Have Worn Out, Shall I Have Youth, and My Husband Is Old?"

We find in this week's Parsha one of the great and important foundations in the Holy Torah. The angel comes to Avraham Avinu and Sarah and announces to them that they will be remembered with a male child: "And he said, 'I will surely return to you at this time next year, and behold, your wife Sarah will have a son'" (18:10). Sarah hears and laughs within herself, saying: "After I have worn out, shall I have youth, and my husband is old?" And G-d comes to Avraham and asks him: "Why did Sarah laugh, saying, 'Shall I indeed give birth, though I am old?'"

Perhaps we can explain, based on the words of Rabbeinu the "Bnei Yissachar," a great principle in the service of Hashem: When a son is born to a person, or a miracle is performed for a person so that he merits something, yet that person does not stand at the spiritual level or stature where he recognizes his miracle or deserves this miracle according to his merits — for example, a person who had no children and prayed much to G-d and miraculously was remembered with children — he has a great reward that he received a son, but that son is not yet considered spiritually his son and has no spiritual connection to the father! Why? Because this child was born through a miracle and not through the way of nature. If the father is not on a great and exalted level whereby the child can belong to him, the child is not yet called by or spiritually connected to his father until the father ascends and elevates himself to a high spiritual level, and only then will the son be spiritually connected to his father.

So too in every matter where a miracle is performed for a person: the person has no right to benefit from the miracle and has no ownership over the miracle until he ascends and elevates himself to a lofty stature where the miracle can be called by his name. If so, when G-d said that Sarah would have a son, Sarah — who was a great tzadeket who beheld with Ruach HaKodesh (Divine Spirit) — was in distress and said, "And my husband is old!" Sarah feared that because Avraham Avinu was old and might not have enough merits left for such an open miracle, if he had a son through a miracle, the son would not be called by his name, and that would be a great trouble! Therefore, a person must know that when a miracle is performed for him, he must elevate himself to a high spiritual stature so that he has the merit and permission to enjoy that miracle and have it called by his name.

The Mishnah says (Avot 5:10): "One who says, 'What is mine is mine, and what is yours is yours' — this is a median trait; and some say, this is the trait of Sodom." We must understand: what is the meaning of "the trait of Sodom"? If a person simply says that what belongs to him is his and what belongs to you is yours, why call that the trait of Sodom? In this week's Parsha we see that the people of Sodom were wicked, corrupt people, and G-d destroyed the entire city in the harshest way. What is so severe about a person wanting what is his to remain with him and what is his fellow's to remain with his fellow that it is called the trait of Sodom?

Rather, let us explain a great principle: the greatest danger in every person's life is when a person views his life purely through cold intellect (sechel). Everything he sees in life, he demands that it make sense to his intellect; if it fits his intellect, he is happy and calm, and if it does not fit his intellect, he rejects it and becomes bitter in his heart. That exact path was in Sodom! A person who says, "Mine is mine and yours is yours," is operating by cold logic — and whoever wishes to walk in the way of Hashem is forbidden to look at life only intellectually; he must look at life with emotion and heart (regesh) as well!

The Gemara says (Sanhedrin 109a) that the people of Sodom said: "Our land is the most fertile in the world; why should strangers come live in our city and take our livelihood?" So they enacted laws using cold logic: in Sodom they allowed rich people to give coins to a poor beggar, but they passed a law forbidding anyone from selling food or drink to that beggar, so he would starve to death with coins in his pocket! The moment a person removes all emotion and compassion from his intellect, it brings destruction to the world — just as the Gemara says (Bava Metzia 30b): "Jerusalem was destroyed only because they judged strictly according to Torah law and did not go beyond the letter of the law (lifnim mishurat hadin)." Intellect must always be blended with emotion and compassion.

"And Avraham Rose Early in the Morning": No Prayer Returns Empty

In this week's Parsha, when Avraham heard that Sodom was going to be destroyed, he prayed at length to G-d to sweeten the judgments and spare Sodom. Yet G-d did not accept his prayer, and destroyed Sodom. The Torah relates that the next morning, Avraham went back to the exact place where he had stood in prayer the day before, and there he instituted the morning prayer of Shacharit (Bereishit 19:27; Berachot 26b). We must ask a powerful question: Why did Avraham Avinu have to pray such long prayers for Sodom if in the end G-d did not listen to him?

Rather, it is written in the holy books that from that day onward, a new reality began in the world: every prayer that a person prays, even if it is not answered immediately, never disappears! Instead, it goes and is stored in a treasury on High, and a day comes when G-d takes all those stored prayers — whether for livelihood, health, or children — and answers them for the person or his children. No prayer ever ascends in vain! And this reality — that every unanswered prayer is preserved until the proper time — began on the day after Sodom was destroyed, when Avraham returned to the place of his unanswered prayer and established Shacharit.

Therefore, one must know a tremendous secret: every morning during the Shacharit Amidah, specifically when reciting the blessing of "Magen Avraham" (Shield of Avraham), a person has the power to awaken all the stored prayers of the past — the prayers that his parents, grandparents, and righteous sages prayed for him, and all the prayers he himself prayed that were not yet answered! Every morning at "Magen Avraham," a person should direct his mind to ask G-d that all the stored prayers of the past awaken right now and descend upon him in an outpouring of grace, kindness, and great salvation.

A story is brought in the name of the Baal Shem Tov: his disciples once asked him, "Rabbeinu, how should we serve Hashem?" The Baal Shem Tov answered them with a parable: There was once a king who had two beloved friends who sinned against the laws of the state, and they were sentenced to death. Even the king, despite his great love for them, could not annul their sentence on his own.

The king devised a plan to which the judges of his kingdom agreed: a long rope would be stretched high across a chasm between two cities, and the king's friends would have to walk across the tightrope. Whoever fell would die, and whoever crossed safely would have his life spared. The first friend of the king walked across and was saved. His second friend, standing on the other side, shouted across to him: "My beloved friend, how did you cross and survive? What secret did you use?" The friend who was saved answered him: "I have no special secret! I never stood in such a situation before, except for one thing: every moment that I felt I was about to fall to one side, I leaned and tilted myself toward the opposite side, until I crossed from one end to the other!"

Thus the Baal Shem Tov answered his disciples: When you see the Evil Inclination pulling you to one side, tilt yourself to the other side, and thus, step by step, you will be saved and cross this entire world, which is a very narrow bridge. Moreover, we see here two types of people when facing trials: the first person, like Nachshon ben Aminadav, does not overthink — he sacrifices himself and walks forward with faith to cross from end to end; while the second person is always fearful and tries to lean on others. Similarly, it is told that one of the sons of the Chatam Sofer was married to a very difficult wife who embittered his life, and he came to his father asking to divorce her. The Chatam Sofer told him: It is written (Iyov 5:7), "Man is born for toil" — every person must pass through trials in life to complete his rectification (tikkun), and through enduring trials, a person sweetens harsh decrees at their root.

What You Do Imperfectly Remains With You as a Problem

A person must know that he is obligated to do everything with perfection (shleimut), because whatever he does imperfectly is ultimately what remains in his own hands! Let us explain this with a parable: There was once a master craftsman whose job was to finish and arrange the interiors of newly built houses — the windows, doors, frames, and woodwork. He worked for a major construction company for over thirty years with unmatched perfection, integrity, and skill.

When he grew older, he decided to retire to be with his family. The owner of the company begged him to finish just two more important houses before retiring. Out of respect, the craftsman agreed and completed both houses with his usual perfection. Then the owner begged him for just one final house. The craftsman did not want to do it, and during this third house, his heart and mind were no longer in his work. He built the windows crookedly, cut the doors too short leaving wide gaps above the floor, and did everything half-heartedly, crookedly, and carelessly just to finish and leave.

When he finished and handed the keys to the owner, the owner brought him into his office and said: "We are so proud of the thirty-plus years you worked here with such faithfulness and perfection! As a retirement gift and pension for all your labor, we have decided to give you this final house that you just built as a gift!" Only then did the craftsman realize: for thirty years he built perfect, beautiful houses for others, and the one final house he built without heart, crooked and broken, was the very house he received for himself!

A person must know: the good deeds you do continue onward, while the things you do imperfectly, the problems you create, and the harm or harsh judgment you inflict on your fellow even in a moment of anger when you feel completely justified — in the end, that crooked house remains yours! As we accepted upon ourselves on Erev Rosh Chodesh to practice a "Fast from Judging" (Ta'anit Shefitah) — never to judge any person, and only to see the virtues of our fellow — let us do everything in completeness, purity, and fairness, and thus merit a good and whole house.

The Power of a Tzaddik on His Hilula

Moreinu v’Rabbeinu, shlita, often talks about the extraordinary powers granted to a tzaddik on the day of his hilula. Rabbi Yehuda Leib Raskin, zt”l, who served as a Rabbi in Morocco, would constantly emphasize this point when seeing the tremendous crowd gathered to pray at the grave of the tzaddik on the twenty-sixth of Elul each year. On the hilula, one perceives the simple faith of all the participants. Educated, rich, and respectable people, whose lives are filled with materialism, attend the hilula. Yet, when they stand at the gravesite they become entirely spiritual. They are totally humbled when praying by the tomb and somehow turn into different people. This proves that they are truly worthy individuals.

When a person stands facing the tomb and sees the grave, he realizes the ultimate destiny of every person. Consequently, he lessens the importance he attaches to the physical and concentrates on the spiritual. Following the event, when the hilula is over and everyone returns home, he aspires to achieve greater levels of spirituality. However, the Yetzer Hara quickly sets to work, trying to get him to forget all the spiritual achievements he attained at the hilula. It is man's task to defeat the Yetzer Hara, as it says, “When you will go out to war against your enemies, and Hashem, your G-d, will deliver him into your hand, and you will capture its captives.” This indicates that one should try to capture the enemy before the enemy captures you. It is possible to defeat the Yetzer Hara only with Torah. The Yetzer Hara knows this and therefore constantly attempts to sway the person.

This is what is hinted in the words “And you will capture its captives.” One must continue to battle the Yetzer Hara continuously, not only for a limited time. The Yetzer Hara knows that after a while the inspiration will wear off, and then the spiritual elevation will diminish. Then, at an opportune moment, the Yetzer Hara will strike. Therefore, one should always strive to achieve higher levels and reinforce the inspiration that one experiences at the hilula of the tzaddik. One must maintain this lofty level attained by spending time at the gravesite, particularly after several days of growing in Torah and mitzvot and hearing stories of tzaddikim. This holiness must become a permanent presence and we should constantly progress, as it says, “A fire, continually, shall remain aflame on the Altar; you shall not extinguish it.” However, this is very difficult. One needs much Divine assistance to succeed since otherwise, it is impossible to overcome the Yetzer Hara who attempts to trap a person in its snare. This is why it says, “And Hashem, your G-d, will deliver him into your hand,” since only with Divine assistance can one retain his spiritual attainments and continue advancing spiritually.

Thank Only the Master of the World

Torah scholars in every generation, whose fear of Hashem is even greater than their wisdom and who are meticulous in performing His will, resemble Kohanim, who were the guardians of the Sanctuary. Since they are so beloved by Hashem, He protects them and shields them in every perilous situation. They can cancel harsh and terrible decrees that endanger Bnei Yisrael, as it says, “A tzaddik decrees and Hashem fulfills his wish.” Rabbi Chaim HaKatan’s door was open to everyone, without exception. During all hours of the day and night, people would come to his house pleading for assistance, requesting advice, blessings, and deliverance. Many people would visit Rabbi Chaim’s house so that he would pray for them and bless them. Those who merited salvation following his blessings returned to his house to thank him. But he would immediately set the record straight by stating simply, “Thank only the Master of the World.”

Restoring Sensation

One night, when Rabbi Chaim HaKatan arrived at the Beit HaKeneset to recite the tikkun chatzot as usual, he stumbled over a man sitting on the steps of the entrance in the dark. “What are you doing here at this hour?” Rabbi Chaim asked him. “All my limbs are paralyzed!” the man answered. Tearfully, he pleaded before the tzaddik, “I came here especially for the Rav to notice me and take pity. I beg the honorable Rav to pray for me and beseech that in the merit of his holy forefathers, I should be healed from the terrible illness that has stricken me.” Rabbi Chaim helped him into a prone position, and while holding him, brought him into the Beit HaKeneset to join him in reciting the tikkun chatzot. Afterward, Rabbi Chaim called to a few of the congregants and asked them to take the paralyzed man to the old cemetery where his grandfather, the holy tzaddik and mekubal, Rabbi Chaim HaGadol, was buried.

When they came to the cemetery, Rabbi Chaim approached the grave of his holy grandfather and cried out, “Grandfather, Grandfather, pray to Hashem that He should have mercy upon this man. Neither I nor he will budge from this place until he is healed from his illness.” An unbelievable miracle occurred. The moment that Rabbi Chaim concluded his prayers, the paralyzed man began to experience sensation in all his limbs. A few minutes later, he was able to stand on his feet normally. Eventually, the man married a righteous wife and they had many children. He made sure to relate to all his descendants the story of Rabbi Chaim HaKatan’s greatness and the extraordinary merits of his holy grandfather, Rabbi Chaim HaGadol. (Heard from Rav Hillel Ben Chaim, who lives in Be’er Sheva and was the shamash of the Beit HaKeneset of Rabbi Chaim Pinto HaKatan.)

Running on Beer

Mr. Avraham Ali’s son told Moreinu v’Rabbeinu that once his father was traveling with Rabbi Chaim HaKatan on a bus. Suddenly, in the middle of the way, the engine stalled. After two hours of waiting, Rabbi Chaim asked, “Why are we standing still and not moving?” “By mistake, the gas tank was filled with beer instead of fuel. That is why the engine is not functioning,” the passengers explained. Rabbi Chaim did not seem troubled by the turn of events. He handed his cane to Avraham Ali and told him, “Tap the engine with my cane, and everything will be in order.” Avraham fulfilled the tzaddik’s request with unquestioning faith. He tapped the engine of the bus with Rabbi Chaim’s cane and to the amazement of all the passengers, the engine immediately sputtered back to life.

The Chase & The Fisherman's Blessing

One of the members of the Ochana family hid a large sum of money in his car under a layer of wax since it was illegal to possess large sums of money. His envious non-Jewish neighbors reported him to the government officials. When the police stopped him and demanded to search his car, Mr. Ochana quickly grabbed the money and began to run on foot, weighed down with gold and silver coins, while the police chased him in top-of-the-line French cars speeding at 110 km/h. Nevertheless, he managed to escape! The next day, when the mystified police met him (without the money on him), they asked, “Tell us, how did you succeed in escaping us? Which Rabbi did you call on to assist you?” “I prayed in the merit of Rabbi Chaim Pinto to be saved!” he answered simply. Hearing this, the police dropped all charges against him.

Similarly, Amram Zenou’s mother relates that her father worked as a fisherman and went through a period when he could not catch any fish, falling ill from grief. Imbued with faith, his wife went to Rabbi Chaim, who asked, “What does your husband do?” Hearing he was a fisherman, Rabbi Chaim blessed her that within the week, her husband would catch more fish than he had ever caught in his life. Precisely in the place where he began to fish, he caught a massive haul while his fellow fishermen caught nothing, becoming considerably wealthy.

The challenging period that we have faced in light of the coronavirus pandemic has shaken every single one of us. The clear Divine Intervention has proved to all that the hand of G-d rules over mankind and has demonstrated the extent to which man can plan, but Hashem's counsel is what will prevail. We received a letter from a precious individual who merited coming closer to his Creator and feeling Hashem's closeness in these confusing times when financial security was torn asunder. When he called out to Hashem from the straits, in the merit of the lofty tzaddikim, he merited experiencing salvation, as it says, "G-d answered me with expansiveness." This is his story:

When we began observing a religious lifestyle in the merit of Moreinu v'Rabbeinu, the Admor Rabbi David Pinto, may Hashem bless him, every morning we would listen to his shiur by video, through which we strengthened our emunah. One story impressed us greatly. It is printed in the sefer 'Walking in Their Ways', and we will quote it here word for word. This is what the Rav shlita related:

When I was a young boy, my parents sent me to yeshiva in England to learn under the guidance of the esteemed Rabbi Chaim Shmuel Lopian, zt”l, Rabbi Shammai Zahn, zy”a, Rabbi Binyomin Zev Kaufman, shlita, and Rabbi Yisrael Melul, shlita. In Elul 1966 I was about sixteen years old when a longing for my father and mother and homesickness for my family overwhelmed me. It had been six years since I last saw them. Those were the years that Father, zy”a, was secluded in his house, by order of his father, Rabbi Chaim Pinto, zy”a. I found out that Father had suddenly ceased this practice and traveled to the graves of the tzaddikim in Eretz Yisrael. On his way home to Morocco, he had scheduled a one-day stopover in France.

I decided to ask permission from the Rosh Yeshiva to travel to France and spend some time with my beloved father whom I sorely missed. There was only one hitch in this plan: my Moroccan passport would expire within the next few days, meaning I would have to spend time in France renewing it at the Moroccan embassy. With the wisdom of hindsight, I now realize that it was the Satan who lured me to travel to France, convincing me that I was fulfilling the mitzvah of honoring my father. Seeing my great homesickness, the Roshei Yeshiva allowed me to go. Before I knew it, I was in my father’s warm embrace for one day before he returned to Morocco, while I stayed in France for the Yamim Nora’im to renew my passport, hosted by Rabbi David Busseau, shlita, son-in-law of the Baba Sali, zy”a.

Father had given me some money for my needs, but I foolishly squandered it all on nonsense. On the day before Rosh Hashanah, when I went to pick up my luggage at the train station, I suddenly realized that I had not one franc left to my name! Everything I needed for the holiday was packed in my suitcase which I had no way of redeeming. Too ashamed to ask my host, I walked down Rue des Rosiers in Paris, lifted my eyes heavenward, and poured my heart out to Hashem, arousing the merit of my fathers so that I should feel no shame on the holiday. Deep remorse overtook me as I remembered the moving prayers of Rabbi Shammai Zahn back in the yeshiva. I spoke to Hashem from a broken heart and keenly felt the verse (Tehillim 27:10), “Though my father and mother have forsaken me, Hashem will gather me in.”

I decided to enter a clothing store and gather what I needed for the holiday: a suit, shirts, shoes, etc. The salesman added up the bill, which amounted to five hundred francs. Quaking inside, I told him, “If it’s okay with you, give me half an hour to bring you the money. Don’t close the shop – I’ll be back!” The man saw my sincerity and said, “If you return earlier, I’ll give you a reduction of fifty francs.”

Make a Miracle for Me

Half an hour was almost up and I was dreadfully tense. I turned to Hashem once again and said, “Ribbono Shel Olam, is it difficult for You to give me five hundred francs for expenses for Yom Tov? I want them to honor Your holy days, Hashem! I have sinned before You. Please forgive me, and make a miracle for me which I will never forget.” Suddenly, I heard someone calling, “David! David!” I looked around and found a short man wearing a green shirt and sporting a kippah. He gave me a big smile and said, “Aren’t you David Pinto, son of the tzaddik, Rabbi Moshe Aharon?” I affirmed his assumption, and told him the name of my host in Paris.

He gave me a huge smile and confided, “Listen, I have an envelope with five hundred francs which your host lent me a number of years ago when I was in Eretz Yisrael. If it’s not too hard for you, would you pass it on to him, with my warm regards?” The man gave me the envelope with my host’s name written on it, wished me a good new year, kissed me on the forehead, and vanished! I rushed back to the store, paid for my purchases, and murmured praises to Hashem.

After the holiday, when a messenger from Morocco arrived with money from my parents, I placed five hundred francs in the envelope, brought it to my host, and confessed the whole story. My host was visibly shaken and trembling in fear: “I cannot take the money from you! I have never been in Eretz Yisrael and have never lent such a huge sum of money to anyone. Either your holy grandfather descended from the World of Truth to help you in your time of despair, or it was Eliyahu HaNavi!” Years later, when I told Father that I had outgrown the suit and gotten rid of it, Father said in anguish: “What a shame! You should know that you got that suit directly from Heaven, sent by an angel on High!”

I Waited for the Live Broadcast — "I Have a Surprise!"

And now we will tell you our personal tale that happened to us in light of the above story: We live in Ra'anana and own a small Hi-tech company. During the corona crisis, we were in need of $8,000 to cover the immense expenses of the month of the Chagim. At the end of Elul, on the night of the hilula of Rabbi Chaim Pinto, we prepared a festive meal, lit candles with our children, and recounted the story of Rabbi David in Paris in his youth. Late at night, watching the moving live broadcast of the hilula from Essaouira in Morocco and seeing Rabbi David at the gravesite of Rabbi Chaim, I prayed with all my strength: “Rabbi Chaim, help us! Send us someone who will lend us $8,000, or let those who owe us money pay their debts today.”

The next day at one in the afternoon, my wife called me and said: “I have a surprise!” She had called her previous bank in Europe, where she had an account that had been completely dormant for five years since before we made Aliyah, just to inquire about a credit card. To her astonishment, the representative told her, “Madam, you have 8,000 dollars in your account. What do you want to do with it?” My wife worked in an investment bank for fifteen years and knew the account had been empty, and no source for the deposit could ever be found! When she called me with the news, I told her, “My dear wife, it is Rabbi Chaim! Last night at the hilula I asked him to help us obtain $8,000, and here it is, praised be Hashem!”