Letter: I didn’t take this Mageifa seriously, until my brother-in-law was rushed to the hospital

To my dear brothers and sisters, Unfortunately, I did not take this mageifa as seriously as I thought I did.

I only realized the severity when my brother-in-law was rushed to the hospital with difficulty breathing. That is when it hit home.

You all know the story about the Rebbe Reb Meilich, and how he spent many years in galus. One time when coming back home from two years in galus, he heard a commotion at the outskirts of the town that Meilich’s son is very sick. His heart started to beat, he started to cry and ran home. He arrived home and saw his child was BH just fine and that it was the other Meilich in town’s son who was sick. He let out a sigh of relief, but then broke down crying. He cried and cried, “Ribbono Shel Olem, what have I accomplished in my two years of galus if when I heard it was the others Meilich’s son I let out a sigh of relief. That means Meilich didn’t learn anything in galus.”

Reb Meilich picked himself up immediately and went back into galus for another two years.

Rabbosai, we have to feel the pain of our yiddishe brothers and sister, and internalize it before it hits home. Acheinu Kol Bais Yisroel, we are all part of one another.

Lo aleinu vlo aleichem, so many yidden so many yiddeshe homes are broken, destroyed, cholim in so many homes and hospitals (many before the mageifa). So many of our brothers and sisters have already been laid off, so many people have lost all their money, there are homes with no food, people dying in hospitals or fighting for their life – all alone without their families being able to comfort them. Yidden that were ashirim yesterday, are now penniless.

I am chalila not suggesting to get depressed. Klal Yisroel accomplishes most with Simcha, but let’s take to heart, internalize the pain that klal yisroel is going through, and pierce the heaven with our cries and tefillos, and in that zechus, our families will be healthy and we will merit the end of this gezeira, with the coming of moshiach.

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8 COMMENTS

  1. It’s so sad and VERY annoying how ignorance is prolonging this mageifa. I don’t like to speak harshly or negatively against anyone in klal yisrael, but by now you would think we would have gotten it. How important self quarantine/social isolation is. Please. For everyone’s sake. For Kvod malchus shamayim. Stay put for 2 more weeks. The discomfort you feel now, surely beats the discomfort of preparing for a levaya. Wishing you all the best of health and siyatta dishmaya.

  2. The Ramak on the Zohar says that lashon hara prevents our tefillos from ascending up to Heaven. If this is true, then no matter how many tefillos are going to be said, it may not help if we have hovering over us the dark heavy cloud of machlokes for the past year and a half.

    I am referring to what happened when we had the measles outbreak in Lakewood and then in other communities. The sinas chinam and lashon hara spread faster than the coronavirus on websites, chat groups, newspapers, magazines, and in person.

    Do you think Hashem has a bad memory? I don’t think so. I think He does remember what happened then (and may still be happening), and it is scary to think that He may just throw back down on our heads our tefillos and tehillim if we don’t try to correct the damage done.

    Rav Kanievsky, shlita, said a few weeks ago that we must be careful about lashon hara and we must let things slice. The Anti-virus Initiative is encouraging all people who were involved in this machlokes to ask mechila from those they hurt with their words and their actions AND those who were hurt should grant mechila to those who hurt them even if they are not directly asked for mechila.

    Hashem is in charge of this virus; the virus is not in charge of Hashem. The only way we can save ourselves and our loved ones is if we get Hashem on our side. Without that, we are tragically lost.

    Please do not let my posting lead to more lashon hara. On the contrary, I hope that people will post that they are granting mechila to those who hurt them and that others will post that they are asking mechila from those who they hurt. And please spread the word to others about this Anti-virus Initiative at a greater speed than the coronavirus is spreading. Thank you!

  3. Thank u to the writer for this beautifully written letter. And to those who haven’t yet “been mekabel” what every gadol has been saying ( regarding social distancing, no minuanim, etc..) I am not judging u, but perhaps you should evaluate if you are willing to take responsibility of having blood on your hands. The growing list of “cholim” from this virus, many of whom have been hospitalized, should be enough to wake up those who were still sleeping until now. May we share the zechus of protecting (not only yours, but others’ as well!) Yiddishe life together!

  4. I realize that you and many other didn’t take this seriously until it hit close to to home.
    What I don’t understand is how people heard that the poskim who our gedolim instructed us not to make outdoor minyanim and yet many people ignored that thinking that they knew better.
    This virus is airborne and it’s very possible that someone wasn’t feeling well, coughed, sneezed… and even though people were officially standing far apart droplets in the air really can travel. What would you do if someone got sick because they were davening at the outdoor minyan you or someone else arranged?
    My question is- while so many people followed , why did some ignore? What happened to respecting gedolim?

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