By Rabbi Ephraim Epstein
Moshe (Paul) Reichman
You might be familiar with the Reichman family from Canada. The Reichmans, a very well-to-do, are great benefactors and philanthropists. And although they come from Hungary, before that, they had a personal history in Morocco.
It therefore didn’t come as too big a surprise when the King of Morocco held an extravagant birthday party and invited people from all over the world to attend the party, the Reichman’s included.
But this didn’t make it any less uneasy. Many households struggle with that to get family members for their birthday. And if you can imagine that being a question when thinking about a family member, it’s certainly a question when you’re thinking about the King of Morocco.
Uncertain what to get, the Reichman brothers convened with the intent on reaching a consensus. In tossing around multiple ideas, they knew they wanted to create a Kiddush Hashem through their actions and likewise gift the King with something that would0 honor him. After many days of discussing it and mulling it over, they decided on an appropriate gift.
The heralded day arrived and the Reichmans flew to Morocco and attended the birthday. There, individuals began getting up one by one and stating what they had chosen as the gift to honor the King.
One announced, “We, the Country of Africa, pledge to his Majesty an Ireland off the coast of Africa for his birthday.” Another got up and declared, “We, the family from Britain, are giving a fleet of racehorses to his King, his Majesty, for his birthday.”
And then Mr. Moshe Reichman got up, sweating. With a sense of reverence and humility, he said, “We, the Reichman family from Toronto, Canada, humbly pledge to the King, his Majesty, that we will build a beautiful Jewish school—a yeshiva—in the city of Fez, the largest Jewish community in Morocco, with his name on the school.”
There was dead silence in the entire room. Mr. Reichman began sweating even more profusely, as the King began getting a little red. Grabbing the microphone, he screamed, “What are you crazy? You’re going to build a Jewish school in Morocco? You think the future of the Jewish people is in Morocco? Build it in Israel! The future of the Jewish people is only in Israel!”
If you visit the neighborhood of Talpiyot in Jerusalem today, you will see a Moroccan Jewish school built in honor of the King of Morocco.
Reprinted from the Parashat Shelach 5784 edition of the Torahanytimes Newsletter edited and compiled by Elan Perchik.
