A MODERN DAY CHONI HAM’AGEL STORY

The construction of the mikva in Recife, Brazil was quickly moving forward. There was a donor, an engineer had volunteered his time, space had been allocated, but one important thing was missing. Recife had been enduring drought conditions for five years (!), and there hadn’t been a drop of rain. While the shliach was extremely busy with the building project, the m’shaleiach “knew all that was being done.” During the farbrengen of Shabbos Parshas Shmini 5744, the Rebbe began to speak about a subject that filled the shliach with excitement. And the miracle? It naturally took place! “And these days shall be remembered and celebrated…”

Translated by Michoel Leib Dobry

Recife, Brazil is not as famous as its better-known sister cities, S. Paolo and Rio de Janeiro. Recife is a port city that extended its hands in kindness to Jews in their time of distress. Apparently, this merit came to its aid centuries later. It was during the era when the Inquisition instilled fear throughout Spain, highlighted by its uninhibited war against Judaism. The Jews were forced into exile from their native land, and many of these refugees found safe haven in the South American nation of Brazil. Some eventually settled in the port city of Recife.

Later, when the long arm of the Inquisition reached the shores of Recife as well, the longstanding Jewish community disbanded, and the local Jews wandered to other locations. When the shluchim of the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, Rabbi and Mrs. Shalom Yaakov Chazan, arrived in the city in 5743, the renewed Jewish community there only numbered about three hundred families. There was no mikva in the city, but Brazil’s longest serving shliach, Rabbi Shabsi Alperin, had promised to help them in its construction. Thus, upon receiving the Rebbe’s bracha, the Chazans set out on their shlichus to Recife.

As soon as they arrived in the city, activities began with the local Jewish community while they inquired about a suitable location to build the mikva. With G-d’s help, they managed to acquire such a location, owned by the local Jewish community center. They found a donor from S. Paolo, who agreed to cover the cost of the mikva construction, while a local Jewish engineer consented to do the work on a volunteer basis. He traveled to S. Paolo to see how a mikva should be built, and in Adar Sheni 5744, shortly before Purim, the mikva plans were finally ready and the construction began.

NOT A DROP OF RAIN

The Purim holiday was celebrated in the Recife Chabad house with great happiness and joy. Shortly afterward, Rabbi Chazan traveled to New York for a family wedding. On the 17^th of Adar Sheni, he submitted a report to the Rebbe, providing details on Chabad house activities in Recife during Purim. At the conclusion of the report, he also informed the Rebbe of the start of the mikva construction: “A few weeks ago we began constructing the mikva. The engineer, Mr. Tzvi (Ernesto) Kopman, took the matter quite seriously, and he is building at a rapid pace without payment. We hope that the mikva will be ready within two months. The matter has left a very powerful impression in the city that Judaism in Recife has, thank G-d, begun to blossom.”

The Rebbe sent the following answer in reply: Received with much thanks. “And a word in time” – close to Purim when “the Jews had light and joy, gladness and honor” – according to its literal meaning, and as in the saying of our Sages, of blessed memory – “so let it be with us.” I will mention it at the Tziyon.

The mikva construction was progressing, and everything appeared to be going smoothly. There was a donor, an engineer had volunteered his time, space had been allocated, but one important thing was missing. Recife had been enduring drought conditions for five years (!), and there hadn’t been a drop of rain. However, this did not trouble Rabbi Chazan. First let’s finish the construction, and then we’ll see what we’ll do, he thought to himself. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it…

Three days later, on the 20^th of Adar Sheni 5744, the Rebbe made a farbrengen. The shliach, Rabbi Shalom Yaakov Chazan, was there as well, standing in 770 among the throngs in attendance, listening with great concentration to the Rebbe’s every word. Everything seemed routine, relatively speaking, for the place representing the very heartbeat of the Jewish People.

THE REBBE SURPRISINGLY BEGINS TO DISCUSS THE SUBJECT

Then suddenly, the Rebbe started speaking about “the set date for this Shabbos, on the twentieth of Adar” (see Hisvaaduyos 5744):

This is the language of the Megillas Taanis: On the twentieth [of Adar], the people were thirsting for rain … and since the greater part of the month of Adar had gone by and yet no rain had fallen, the people sent a message to Choni HaM’agel, “Pray that rain may fall.” He told them, “Go and bring in the Pesach ovens (which were in the courtyard and made out of clay) that they shouldn’t be softened.” … He drew a circle and stood within it… He said, “Ribbono Shel Olam…I will not move from this place until You have pity on your children.” Rain began falling drop by drop. His students said to him: “…We believe that these rains have only come to release you from your vow.” He said, “Ribbono Shel Olam, not for such rain have I prayed, but for rain that will fill the cisterns, pits, and caverns.” The rain then began to come down with great force, every drop being as big as the opening of a barrel… [His students] said to him: “We believe that these rains came down to destroy the whole world…” He said, “Ribbono Shel Olam, not for such rain have I prayed, but for rain of benevolence, blessing and bounty.” The rain then fell normally, etc. It then concludes: And they made that day (the 20^th of Adar) into a holiday, as the rains do not fall except in the merit of Israel.

And thus, we can learn an instruction in Avodas Hashem from this story, as in all matters of the Torah… relevant to each and every Jew… When a Jew stands to pray and ask G-d to give him all he requires… there is the teaching learned from the story about the prayer of Choni HaM’agel – how the matter of t’filla should be with each and every Jew…

With regard to the conduct of Choni HaM’agel, who ‘drew a circle’ and ‘I will not move from this place until You have pity on your children’ – only Choni HaM’agel can take such a commitment upon himself, certain that his prayer and his request will be fulfilled immediately, as opposed to any other person, who can’t accept such a commitment upon himself. However, regarding the manner of t’filla itself, ‘like a son who imposes himself on his father’ – this matter is relevant to each and every Jew, since ‘you are the children of Hashem, your G-d’…

And the intention is – that he should turn to G-d forcefully once, twice, three times, etc. and if he sees that his request had not been completely fulfilled – he says ‘not for this have I prayed, etc.’ On the other hand, when he sees that the drawing down of the bracha is in a manner of ‘an excess of good,’ and he still lacks the ‘vessels’ for that – ‘You showered upon them an excess of good that they could not endure’ – he should not be embarrassed (‘the bashful person cannot learn’), rather he should say that for the time being … he asks that they give him a quantity of bracha in accordance with his current status and condition. And all this ‘as a son who imposes himself on his father.’

And although this is the conduct of Choni HaM’agel, our Sages, of blessed memory, have said: A person must say: ‘When will my deeds reach the deeds of my forefathers – Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov?’ And naturally, after Choni HaM’agel opened and paved the way – it would then be easy for every Jew to conduct himself in such a manner, as we found regarding the matter of yiras Shamayim after the avoda of Moshe Rabbeinu, it is ‘a small thing’ for each and every Jew…

A LOVING FATHER TENDS TO HIS ONLY SON

Rabbi Chazan listened to these words with unrestrained excitement. He felt as if the Rebbe was speaking directly to him. The Rebbe was simply providing the cure before the illness – like a loving father concerned for his only son – his shliach building a mikva in Recife, Brazil, and in need of rain. It’s easy to understand that Rabbi Chazan was not all that surprised when a few days after the farbrengen, he received a telephone call informing him that rain had suddenly begun to fall in Recife…

On the 15^th of Menachem Av 5744, Rabbi Chazan wrote a report to the Rebbe, including an interesting episode that took place in its camp program: “One day, when one of the children participating in the camp returned home, he was playing with his friends, and they were eating candy. The boy covered his head and told his friends, ‘I’m now going to make a blessing over food. Even though you don’t understand what this is, answer Amen when I finish.’” At the end of the report, Rabbi Chazan informed the Rebbe that the mikva construction had been completed, enclosing an invitation to the dedication event.

In reply, Rabbi Chazan received a general-personal letter, dated Motzaei Tisha B’Av, beginning as follows: “The letter, etc., were received, and much thanks.” The word etc. referred to the invitation to the mikva dedication and the PaN he enclosed. However, the Rebbe didn’t settle for that, adding afterward in his own handwriting: “And the invitation and the PaN.”

A MIRACLE IN RECIFE AND A KEY FOR THE REBBE

As Rosh Hashanah 5745 approached, Rabbi Chazan and his wife came to the Rebbe. Rabbi Chazan had written a report on the mikva dedication ceremony, clearly detailing the content of his speech before those participating in the event, which focused on the miracle of the rainfall in Recife:

“We saw G-d’s Kindness during the building of the mikva, as Recife and its surrounding area had already gone five years without proper rainfall. It’s interesting that when we began dealing with the mivka’s construction, around the month of Adar, thank G-d, there was rainfall for about six months.

“Furthermore, it’s interesting that while we were here in [Beis Chayeinu] on Shabbos Parshas Shmini, the 20^th of Adar, one of the sichos at the farbrengen [that day] was regarding the story of Choni HaM’agel, which took place on the 20^th of Adar, and its [relevant] lesson. From that week on, rain began to fall in Recife…”

Together with the report, he enclosed a key framed with the inscription: “The Rebbe Shlita. Key of the mikva building. Recife, Brazil. 5744.”

The Rebbe issued the following response:

Received with much thanks. “And a word in time” – close to the Time of our Rejoicing, Shmini Atzeres, Simchas Torah, and Shabbos B’Reishis. I’ll mention it at the Tziyon.