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Jewish World Review Jan. 26, 2001 / 3 Shevat, 5761
http://www.jewishworldreview.com --
THE VALUE of an act of chesed, kindness, is easy to underestimate. We
can tell ourselves that someone else could do the job
better, or has more time to do it or that perhaps it doesn't
even really need to be done. But the Torah (Bible) tells us,
in Parshas Vayeira (Genesis 18-22), that chesed is, in fact, the ultimate
expression of our belief in and devotion to the Creator.
Rabbi Nosson Tzvi Finkel
notes that the Torah makes
no mention of what we
might consider Abraham's
greatest Kiddush
Hashem, the santification of His name --- the first Jew's willingness
to be cast into a fiery
furnace rather than
worship idols. In the
Torah portion, however, it
does describe in clear
detail every aspect of
Abraham's chesed.
Why is kindness so
important that the
Torah presents it to
us in such detail,
while totally omitting
any mention
of Abraham's willingness
to die to
sanctify G-d's
name? Because
this is what
He wants us
to emulate. The Creator
gives us this gift of
life as the fabric
with which to fashion
acts of kindness --
large and
small -- acts that
emulate His
own kindness and
strengthen it
in the world.
The Creator
doesn't put
us here to
perish, even
in sanctification
of
His name.
He wants
us to live,
and to use
our lives to elevate our
world through kindness.
Adapted from "Majesty of Man,"
by Rabbi Henoch Leibowitz,
shlita, with permission from
Mesorah Publications, Ltd.
Inner Excellence
BORROWING THE KEYS TO CALM
Each of us knows someone
we consider to be a
calm, patient, levelheaded
person. It's
unlikely
that this
person
never
becomes
annoyed or
angry. He
simply
knows how
to maintain
his self-control
in the
face of it
all.
That person knows
something you need to
know, and the Torah tells us
to seek out his wisdom and
learn from it. What does he
think? How does he perceive
things? What's his key
to patience? It's our job to
find out. "Who is wise? He
who learns from every person,"
Pikei Avos teaches.
It's even possible to learn
from the simplest of people.
The Alter of Slobodka told
his students of two peasant
women in
the Vilna
marketplace
who
were setting
up their
separate
stalls to sell
beans. They
became
involved in
a raging territorial
dispute,
when
a customer came to one with
a few pennies to buy beans.
Instantly, the rage dissipated
as the woman smiled and
graciously served her customer.
When she needed to
let go of anger, she could.
From this, said the Alter, we
can learn.
People let go of anger for
fear of losing jobs, losing
customers, insulting superiors, or embarrassing themselves
before friends. When
it needs to be done, it can
be. The challenge is convincing
ourselves that it
needs to be done.
Adapted from "Anger, the Inner Teacher,"
Living for kindness
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