This story was relayed by Rav Chaim Yitzchak Porush, the director and editor in chief of the famous Zichron Aharon publishing house, which in the last few decades has published dozens of volumes of works from the Rishonim and Acharonim. He related:
One day, I received a phone call from a distinguished Jew who lives in America. He was seeking to locate the writings left by Harav Avraham Sha’ag, zt"l, the Rav of Kobersdorf, who settled at the end of his life in Eretz Yisrael. He wanted to publish these works and promised to fund the project, whatever the cost.
I made a quick calculation that the cost of the project could reach astronomical sums, but he was determined, and therefore I could not help but wonder what had motivated him. He told me as follows:
"More than twenty years ago, my son had two daughters, very close in age, and it quickly emerged that they both suffered from a rare genetic condition that prevented them from growing and developing normally. Baruch Hashem, they were followed by a healthy son, and then another few healthy children. From then, to this day, we have invested a huge amount of resources in trying to ease their suffering. The house runs on a relative routine, which was disrupted when the son reached the age of shidduchim.
This son is a very sweet boy, he learns well and is an oved Hashem. He comes from a prominent and wealthy family, and naturally, he should have been flooded with shidduch suggestions. But his sisters’ ailment led to many shidduch rejections. People were afraid, and rightfully so, that the disease is genetic.
My grandson’s pain touched me deeply, and I decided to get involved. I reached out to a medical askan who specializes in genetic illnesses and asked him to find out if indeed, this is a genetic illness.
At the same time, I went to one of the gedolei hador and shared the painful story with him. The tzaddik listened and then said: "You need a good advocate to daven for you, and I think the best advocate for you is Rav Avraham Sha’ag, who was called by his Rebbi the Chasam Sofer the rare title of a ‘living Sefer Torah.’"
Upon hearing this, I didn’t ask any questions. As soon as I got the answer, I called you and I’m now asking you to take part in the effort..."
They began the process of publishing Rav Sha’ag’s writings. The grandfather of the boy and other relatives were closely involved and the project was blessed with constant siyata diShmaya. We began with just a few manuscripts, while the rest were scattered in locations around the world, or were not yet found. It slowly continued, and as the existing writings that we had were published, with tremendous Hashgachah pratis, we kept finding more writings.
Throughout that time, we went often to the kever of Rav Avraham Sha’ag to daven for the success of the family and of the project. Aside for that, on Erev Rosh Chodesh Nissan, his yahrtzeit, we went with a minyan to Har Hazeisim, and put the pages ready for print on his gravestone and asked, "Rabbeinu, this is yours, here are your divrei Torah that you toiled so hard on, please advocate for the philanthropist who took upon himself the burden of publishing them, and daven for a yeshuah for the family, especially for a yeshuah for his grandson to find a zivug quickly."
During that time, I got to know a descendent of Rav Sha’ag, an elderly man named Rav Avigdor Sha’ag, who lived in the Zichron Moshe neighborhood. I went to his house and told him about my work publishing his grandfather’s writings. The man was very weak and frail, but when he heard about the project, he mustered up some energy and pointed to a high shelf in the bookcase where there was a very old box. Inside there was no less than one hundred and fifty pages written in his grandfather’s close writing.
"These writings have been passed down in our family for five generations," the old man said with a tremor in his voice. "My father instructed me to bring them to print, but I did not merit to do so. I am not calm about going to the World to Come without having fulfilled his instructions. Take these writings as a gift and publish them."
I carried out his instructions and remarkably, the older man passed away just three days later. This story is one of many stories that showed wondrous Hashgachah pratis that accompanied the publishing of Rav Sha’ag’s work.
Concurrent to his investment in the writings, the dedicated grandfather continued to oversee the progress of the research about his granddaughter’s illness. A few universities participated, together with a special research team from Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Yerushalayim. With siyata diShmaya, after a very comprehensive study, the researchers were able to isolate the gene responsible for the illness. And that’s how they reached the conclusion that someone who carries this gene in an inactive form is not in danger, nor are his offspring, and even when the gene is active it can be detected with a blood test that is administered by Dor Yesharim.
The minute the happy conclusion was reached, there was someone who made sure to publish it very prominently, and bechasdei Hashem, within a short time, the son found an excellent shidduch.
In the global medical community as well, the results of this study were a major breakthrough, and it had ramifications regarding many other studies that were taking place concurrently. A number of people were partners to the discovery, but for the grandfather, it was much more than symbolic that the most prominent of the doctors was from Hadassah Ein Kerem, and his name was none other than Avraham Sha’ag.
A short clarification revealed that this doctor was none other than the son of Reb Avigdor Sha’ag, who in his final days even joined the efforts to publish his grandfather’s writings.
How great is the power of tefillah. And how remarkable is it to see the power of tzaddikim who even in death are called alive!
Simna Tava Chayei Sarah
