Building Eternity

The rav of the main Jewish community in Hungary was Rabbi Yehuda Assad (1797–1866), otherwise known as the Mahri Assad. In his time, he was regarded as one of the select gedolei hador. He served as rosh yeshivah of a yeshivah with over 400 bochurim, the largest of its kind in those days.

One day, an elderly woman named Leah Abelzs, the mother-in-law of Rabbi Avrohom Eliezer Eckstein, passed away. Upon hearing the news, Rabbi Assad instructed the Chevra Kadisha that the levayah was to take place in the main shul of Assad, and that the entire town should attend.

The Chevra Kadisha was stunned.

Ordinarily, a levayah would not take place inside the shul, and never in the city's history had the body of a woman been brought into the main shul for a hesped. It was completely unheard of. They respectfully attempted to dissuade the rav, but Rabbi Assad remained unwavering.

The time of the levayah arrived. The shul filled with townspeople, all wondering what could possibly justify such an extraordinary honor.

As Rabbi Assad stood before the crowd, he burst into tears. "This entire flourishing community," he declared, "owes its existence to this woman.”

The audience was bewildered.

Rabbi Assad then shared the following story:

“Many years ago, when I was still a young boy, I became gravely ill with a contagious disease. No one was willing to care for me. It was not because people lacked compassion, but because they feared contracting the illness themselves. No school would accept me, terrified that the disease would spread to the other children.

"I remember standing alone in the street, frightened, weak, and hopeless. With nowhere to turn, I cried out to Hashem for help.

"At that very moment, a woman passing by heard my cries. Without hesitation, she sprang into action. She took me into her home, fed me, cared for me, gave me lodging, and quite literally brought me back to life — all at her own expense and risk, expecting nothing in return.

"And that woman,” Rabbi Assad said through tears, “is the woman we are eulogizing today."

The entire shul fell silent.

"With her quiet chessed, she enabled me to survive. Because of her, we were able to build this community, establish this shul, provide everything necessary for Jewish life, and raise a great yeshivah of hundreds of bochurim. Everything that stands here today traces back to her selflessness.

“And therefore,” he concluded, “it is only fitting that she merit being the only woman in this city's history to have a hesped held in the main shul. This is all because of her."

We can never know how far the ripple effects of a single act of kindness can travel.