A traveler is journeying from Palestine to Babylon. One
morning, he stops to eat his breakfast, and not far off he sees two birds
pecking at one another. Suddenly, one of the birds falls over mortally wounded,
and the victor flies away.
A little sparrow has been watching from a bush nearby; the
little bird flies off, but it soon returns carrying a green herb in its beak.
The sparrow careful he places the herb in the beak of the dead bird. A few
minutes pass then, the dead bird begins to stir. Soon, it sits up and
eventually it is strong enough to fly away.
The traveller is amazed, and he walks over to the place with
the birds have been. There on the ground, he sees that a piece of the magic herb
remains, so the man puts it in his pocket.
Then, he sets off toward Babylon.
Nearing the city of Tyre, the man comes across a dead lion
that the local people have pushed over to the side of the road. Ah, thinks the man, here is my chance to try
out the wondrous herb. He reaches into
his pocket, he takes out the plant, and places it in the gaping mouth of the
dead animal. Slowly the lion begins to move; then it rises up and with a
powerful sweep of it’s paw, it knocks the man down and eats him.
Midrash Tanhuma, retold by Michael Jay Katz
We are not meant to take on the role of God, deciding who shall
receive life and who shall be denied.
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