A Soulful Journey

“For the next 2 1/2 hours the Orthodox and Faithful debated the right of juice to pray on the Temple Mount.  One Orthodox man said: the chief Rabbinate has said it is forbidden to go up to the Temple Mount, because we are all ritually impure and may not stand in the area of the Holy of Holies.  One Faithful retorted: “But you don’t except the authority of the Chief Rabbis.”   The Orthodox man shot back: “But you do.” – reported in Jewish Chronicle

Rabbi Meyer Heller tells of the strongest and shortest sermon on record, consisting of only nine words, given in New York City at the turn of the century.   Rabbi Jacob Joseph had come from Vilna to become the Chief Rabbi of New York City.   He was a man with vast learning and a phenomenal memory who could speak for hours, quoting at length from a variety of sources. No one of such Jewish learning and stature had ever graced America’s shores before. When he spoke, the entire Lower East Side came to hear him.  People walked from all over, even arranging to sleep in Manhattan wanted to be present at what was considered a major spiritual and intellectual event. But sadly, Rabbi Joseph suffered a stroke. It was not known whether he would ever be able to speak again. To recover slowly and was finally released from the hospital just before Rosh Hashana. The community waiting anxiously to see if he would address them again.   His family and friends tried to dissuade him ...