Rabbi Elimelech Biderman
The following story will demonstrate the importance of taking care of tzedakah and chessed matters right away; not pushing them off for later:
There was a G-d fearing baal tzedakah who was careful to give tzedakah according to halachah: to the right places, the right amount of money, and other halachic criteria. Therefore, he would learn hilchos tzedakah with the Bach, daily.
Once, someone came to the Ba'ch with a problem. He ran a tavern that he rented from a poritz, but someone convinced the poritz to rent the tavern to him instead, and he offered the poritz more money. It’s forbidden to take away someone else's parnassah. But that person did that, and now the victim was asking the Ba'ch for assistance.
The Ba'ch summoned for the baal tzedakah, and requested that he go and speak with the poritz. The baal tzedakah knew the poritz from his dealings, and they were on good terms. He could influence the poritz to keep his previous tenant. The baal tzedakah promised to do all he can.
Tombstone of the Bach
But outside the Bach’s home, when the baal tzedakah spoke with the tavern keeper, he said, “I will take care of it as soon as I return from the Leipzig Fair.”
The tavern keeper said, “But by that time, he may have already signed a contract with the competition. And even worse, the competition may already have moved into the tavern, and then it will be harder to send him out. Please take care of it before you go to Leipzig."
The wealthy baal tzedakah replied, "I am liable to lose all my money if I don’t go to this fair. I’m sorry, I have no choice; I must go. But don’t worry. The fair is only for one week. As soon as I return, I will speak with the poritz Even before I go home, I'll go straight to the poritz's home. Everything will be fine."
To encourage the tavern manager some more, he reminded him: "Nothing happens if it isn't Hashem's decree. Your competitor can't take the tavern away from you, if it wasn’t decreed on Rosh Hashanah..."
The Tavern Manager’s Wife
The tavern manager was comforted, and went home to tell his wife the good news: “The baal tzedakah promised to speak with the poritz for me, and everything will be good, be'ezras Hashem. He said he will speak with the poritz as soon as he returns from Leipzig.”
But his wife was very worried. The tavern manager repeated the ideas of emunah and bitachon he heard from the baal tzedakah, but those didn’t calm her.
She said, “If it was for anyone else, the baal tzedakah would have taken care of the matter immediately. But since it's for you, everyone knows that they can push you off. It's your fault! You let people take advantage of you!” She screamed and insulted her husband with her sharp words.
Now, in addition to their worries, their shalom bayis was affected too.
A week later, the baal tzedakah returned, and even before going home, he spoke with the poritz as he said he would, and succeeded to convince the poritz to keep the old contract.
Came to the Bach in a Dream
Years passed. The night after the baal tzedakah was niftar, he came to the Bach in his dream and told him the following:
"I was greeted in heaven with honor and joy, and the court said that I can go to a high place in Gan Eden, where there are many great tzaddikim. I headed towards the gate that leads to Gan Eden, but a large, beautiful malach stood at the gate and didn’t let me pass. I told the malach that the court told me I may go to a high place in Gan Eden, and I pleaded with him to let me pass, but he refused to let me get to the entranceway.
He said, 'I was created by your good deed, when you spoke to the poritz on this man's behalf. It was a very special deed, which created a beautiful malach. But you also did something wrong. You went to Leipzig first. That put stress on the shalom bayis of this couple, not to mention that they were agonized with worry.
Each Hour Felt Like Many Years
I was brought before the heavenly court a second time. The court ruled that for the amount of days the couple suffered, I would need to stand outside Gan Eden. I am now standing in the corridor outside of Gan Eden, and watching the tzaddikim inside. It’s extremely painful for me to be here, and not be permitted to enter. Each hour, feels like many years.
In the morning, the Ba'ch gathered the community, and told them his dream. He said that we learn from this the importance of doing chessed without delay. When someone needs help, lend your help immediately, because pushing it off for later is prolonging their sorrow.
Reprinted from the August 1, 2024 email of the Torah Times Media – Treasures of Emunah – Stories of Faith by Rabbi Elimelech Biderman. Copied with permission form Be’er Emunah.
