A Soulful Journey

Three Jews about to be executed were lined up in front of a firing squad. Each Jew was asked whether he wanted a blindfold. The first one said, “Sure”. The second one said he would also take the blindfold. When the third Jew was asked if he wanted a blindfold he emphatically declined it, and said, “No.” At which point, the second Jew leaned over to the third one and said, “Stop making trouble. Take the blindfold.” - Rabbi Stuart Weinblatt These are difficult times we are living  through.  Bigotry manifested as Anti-Semitism is growing.  Yet now is not the time when we should shrink from embracing our identity.  Know who you are, where your destiny lies and immerse yourself in Judaism, your heritage.   Being silent, trying to be invisible, is not an option.

What most people do not know is that Israel had already developed a self-driving car a number of years ago.  The car was able to understand and respond to verbal commands.  If you wanted the car to go to the right, all you had to do was say “Yemina”, and it would turn right.  To go to the left, you merely said, “smola”.  Since some of the engineers who worked on the car were religious Jews, they programmed it so that in order to activate the car you said, “Baruch HaShem” which of course means, “thank God.”  And it would go forward.  And to stop it, you said, the same thing, only in Yiddish, “Gottza Danken.”  Everything was going pretty well on the initial test run until the driver got to a treacherous cliff.  As the car was going downhill it began to speed out of control and the driver panicked.  He could not remember the Yiddish command to get the car to stop.  He yelled out every Yiddish word he knew, and even a few curse word...

A story is told about a king who reversed his father’s order forcing the Jews to convert.  The town’s rabbi was excited and told his wife.  “Bracheleh,” he exclaimed, “I have great news.  The new king has said we don’t have to be Christian anymore.  We can go back to being Jews.”  His wife let out a sigh, expressing disappointment.  The husband was surprised and puzzled, and asked her what was wrong.  “This was the moment we have been dreaming of and waiting for,” he told his wife.  She said, “I know.  I know.  I can’t be happier, but couldn’t he at least have waited a few more days, until after Pesah to allow us to be Jews again?!” -  Rabbi Stuart Weinblatt