ONCE UPON A CHASID: A New Sound (Chayei Sarah)

B"H

Cheshvan 22, 5766 * November 24, 2005

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O N C E U P O N A C H A S I D
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Parshat Chayei Sarah
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"I shall make you swear you by G-d, the G-d of the heavens and the G-d of the earth...
"G-d, the G-d of the heavens, Who has taken me from my father's house and from the land of my birth...' (Genesis 24:3-4)

In speaking of the time when G-d took him from the land of his birth, Abraham does not refer to Him as 'the G-d of the earth', only as 'the G-d of the heavens'; but in speaking of G-d in the present tense, he describes Him as both 'the G-d of the heavens and the G-d of the earth.'

Said Abraham to Eliezer: When G-d summoned me from the house of my father, He was G-d of the heavens but not of the earth: the inhabitants of the earth did not recognize Him and His name was not referred to in the land. But now that I have made His Name a commonplace in the mouths of His creatures, He is G-d in both heaven and earth. (Rashi's commentary)

"Who is like Your people Israel, a one nation within earth" (Shabbos afternoon prayers). The Jewish people, even in their material, 'earthy' involvements, are forever bound up with the Almighty. They are a "one nation within earth" - the nation which makes the Oneness of G-d a reality within the mundane earth. (Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi)

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A New Sound
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One evening, a joyous farbrengen was held at the humble home of Rabbi Shmuel Betzalel Sheftel (the 'Rashbatz'). For hours the group of chassidim sat, toasting l'chayim's, singing, talking, rebuking and inspiring one another. As the clock marked the passing of the night, the meager platters of 'farbaisen' (food with which to follow up the l'chayim vodka) ran out; so Rabbi Shmuel Betzalel instructed that the lamb being raised in his yard be slaughtered. A hot stew was prepared to fuel the farbrengen for many an hour to come.

The next morning, Rabbi Shmuel Betzalel's wife came in from the yard with the distressing news that the lamb - which constituted the whole of the 'family ranch' - has disappeared! The lamb is gone! Said Rabbi Shmuel Betzalel: "No, no, the lamb has not disappeared. The lamb is very much here, it has only changed its sound. Yesterday it said 'meh-eh-eh...', today it is saying 'Echo-o-d...!, O-o-one...!' "

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