Baruch was a young man learning in the Chofetz Chaim’s Yeshivah in Radin, where he excelled and became a Talmid Chacham. It reached a point where his parents felt he should leave the Yeshivah to come home and get married. Baruch went to the Chofetz Chaim’s house to say goodbye, and get a Brachah before he departed.
After telling the Chofetz Chaim of his plans, the Chofetz Chaim gave him a stern look, and asked Baruch to promise that he would never be Mechalel Shabbos. Baruch didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, since he was never Mechalel Shabbos in his life, but realized that maybe his Rebbe saw him do something once.
He promised the Chofetz Chaim that he would never desecrate Shabbos, but the Chofetz Chaim kept his stern look, and extended his hand. He said, “Shake my hand and guarantee me that you will never, under any circumstance be Mechalel Shabbos.”
Now, Baruch felt like crying because obviously his Rebbe suspected him. Baruch shook the Chofetz Chaim’s hand and made the promise. He left feeling dejected instead of uplifted. At home, Baruch met Rochel, got married and started building a family. They had four children. Baruch learned in the Kollel, and worked a few hours a week in the local grocery, and they somehow made ends meet.
Everything changed when war broke out, and Baruch and Rochel made the difficult decision to leave for America. This meant to change everything they had ever known in their life, and say goodbye to their family, not knowing if they would ever see them again. They boarded the boat and came to America, and it was not long before they realized that the streets were not paved with gold, and it certainly wasn’t the land of opportunity, especially for someone Frum.
A Low Wage Job in the Textile Industry
Baruch got a job in the textile industry for a low wage, and he didn’t have time to learn Torah that much anymore since he was focusing on bringing home food for his family. He became known as a reliable, hard worker and worked his way up in the company. Soon, The Great Depression set in, and his meager salary was cut, making things even more difficult.
One day, Baruch came to work and received notice that his boss, Mr. Mark, wanted to see him. He had always been on good terms with his boss. Mr. Mark told him, that the company was not doing as well in the poor economy and they would be forcing all employees to work seven days a week. He told Baruch that he understood that he was a religious Jew and that this would be hard on him, but he wanted Baruch to be one of the first to know.
Baruch finished work and made his way home at the end of the day and broke the terrible news to his wife. He refused to work on Shabbos and he would have to quit his job. He already knew many people who were out of work as it was, and looking to be off for Shabbos made it more difficult. Few people were able to start new jobs on Sunday, but were fired the next Sunday when they didn’t show up to work on Shabbos. How was he going to find work?
The Children Went To Sleep Starving
Slowly, their small meals became even smaller and most nights the children went to sleep starving. Day after day Baruch went on interviews, but with all the same result: no job unless you work on Shabbos. One night, Baruch and Rochel made the horrible decision for Boruch to go to work on Shabbos, because they simply could not survive anymore. They rationalized that this was a case of Pikuach Nefesh because the children were suffering so much, and their very lives were likely at risk.
The next morning, Baruch got on a train to go find a job where he would work on Shabbos. Suddenly he burst into tears and his hands began to tremble. He had forgotten about his promise to the Chofetz Chaim! Baruch got off the train at the next stop, turned back the other way, and went home. Through tears, he told his wife of his promise, so many years earlier. Rochel started to cry herself, and said how much she regretted the decision, saying that the suffering of the children affected her.
A Knock at the Door
They were sitting at the table thinking of what to do to somehow make ends meet, when there was a knock at the door. Baruch opened his door and was surprised to see Mr. Mark, his old boss standing there and asked if he could come in. He said he came to apologize. Mr. Mark explained that he had a partner who didn’t like religious Jews very much. He said that the most important thing to a Jew is money, and if put under a little pressure, their religion would be tossed out the window. Mr. Mark disagreed, and they made a bet that they would pick one Jew in the company to test.
They picked Baruch because he had grown in the company and he stood to lose more than others. Mr. Mark said to Baruch: “You won the bet. You didn’t give in to the pressure and agree to work on Shabbos.” He then took out an envelope from his briefcase and gave it to Baruch. It contained a fortune of $1,000. He also gave Baruch a promotion and made him manager of his branch in the company.
After Mr. Mark left, Baruch and Rochel cried tears of joy, astounded at how close they had come to being Mechalel Shabbos. Baruch attributed it all to his Rebbe, the Chofetz Chaim, and his powerful influence and hand shake from so many years ago!
Reprinted from the Parshas Acharei Mos 5784 email of Rabbi Yehuda Winzelberg’s Torah U’Tefilah.
