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| Art by Alec Levin |
"Therefore, tell my father of all the honor that is given me in Egypt" [Vayigash 45:13]
The Ohev Yisrael (R' Avraham Yehoshua Heschel of Apta) was travelling with his son, R' Yitzchak Meir, through the neighboring towns. Wherever he went, hundreds of Jews came out to greet him, the gadol b'Yisrael, and showed him great honor.
The Ohev Yisrael was distressed by the amount of honor that he was receiving and, because of his great modesty, he truly believed that he did not deserve it. He therefore turned to his son and asked: "My son, why is everybody honoring me so much, being that I am not worthy of it?"
R' Yitzchak Meir saw how distraught his father was, so he consoled him: "Do not let it worry you, Father. For these people have come to honor me."
"And why do you deserve such honor?" asked the Ohev Yisrael.
"That is obvious" replied R' Yitzchak Meir. "It is because I am the son of the Apter Rav."
The Rebbe smiled, and he said: "This, my son, is what Yosef meant when he stated "Therefore, tell my father of all the honor that is given me in Egypt - for all the fame and honor that I receive in Egypt is only thanks to my father's merit!"
The ending of this 'story' reminds me of a dear elderly Rabbi who was a close friend of the family.
ReplyDeleteAfter his daughter would pay him a visit and would be ready to leave, this dear Rabbi would muster all his strenght and 'sprint' towards the door. Placing his hand on the doorknob he would say good-naturedly: "Please 'mein tayer kind'- my dear child, permit me to grab the Mitzvah to open the door for a 'Bas Talmid Chacham!"
LOL!!!