Parshas Bereishis 5786
- Torah Tavlin
- Oct 17
- 3 min read
ויברך אלקים את יום השביעי ויקדש אתו כי בו שבת מכל מלאכתו אשר ברא אלקים לעשות ... (ב-ג)
Reb Shmuel Strauss, a great-grandson of the Baal Shem of Michelstadt, lived in Karlsruhe, Germany, and managed a small bank that his father-in-law had founded. From the start, it was evident that Reb Shmuel possessed unrivaled business acumen. As a man of integrity, many entrusted their entire savings with him, enabling him to support his family in comfort.
One Friday morning, Reb Shmuel donned his Shabbos clothing to attend a relative’s bris and headed straight to his office for several hours before returning to prepare for Shabbos. That evening, on Leil Shabbos, Reb Shmuel was returning home from shul when he suddenly felt something in his pocket. To his shock and horror, he realized that all the monies from the morning’s deposits were still in his coat, neatly wrapped in a cheesecloth and fabric pouch. His heart pounded wildly in his chest. His life and future, his reputation and integrity, all hung in the balance. Dropping that pouch was tantamount to throwing everything he had worked to build, into a raging river. In his mind’s eye, he could already imagine the storm in the bank, his faithful clients - simple farmers and proprietors, professionals and small-time businessmen who had put aside penny after penny over the course of many years - gathering around his house and shouting, “Thief!” “Swindler!” “Criminal!”
Standing on the sidewalk in the heart of Karlsruhe near the teeming town square, Reb Shmuel Strauss made his choice. His hands didn’t even tremble as he gently shook out his pocket and watched the money pouch fall to the ground. Without delay, he continued on his way, without casting another look behind him. Only in the back of his mind did the thought glimmer that he’d just switched fates with some Karlsruhe gentile who was about to catapult to wealth, while he’d plummet to poverty.
That Shabbos was unlike any Shabbos the Strauss family could remember. Reb Shmuel sang every zemer and melody with extra fire and passion, and divrei Torah spilled from his lips as pearls and gems. His wife and children were all blissfully ignorant of the sacrifice he’d made on the way home from shul, and they couldn’t help but be infected by his unusual enthusiasm on that uplifting Shabbos. And when three stars glittered like diamonds in the Karlsruhe sky, Reb Shmuel held his gleaming silver becher and recited Havdalah. Droplets of red wine trickled down his hand and palm as he recited the blessings, inwardly thanking Hashem for infusing him with the strength of character and spiritual fortitude to fulfill His will.
Then, to his family’s surprise, Reb Shmuel asked everyone to be seated and listen as he told them what he’d done on Leil Shabbos. Shock and fear, joy and consternation, terror and gratification, mingled in those moments as the family sat at the table still bedecked in its white tablecloth, and absorbed the enormity of their father’s decision, his sacrifice, and future consequences. A long, meaningful silence ensued as everyone sank into their thoughts, reflecting on what Reb Shmuel had done. Suddenly, Reb Shmuel stood up abruptly and walked to the ornate coat closet, removing his hat and coat. “I must still do my hishtadlus,” he said. “I’m going to look for the money pouch. Maybe, by some odd chance, it’s still there.”
Reb Shmuel hurried toward the spot where he’d dropped the money pouch several paces away from the town square, and, sure enough, right there in the corner where he’d dropped it nearly twenty-four hours earlier was his pouch! He knelt to the ground and picked it up. The familiar feel and thickness were sufficient for him to know that every bill was still there! Reb Shmuel lifted his eyes Heavenward. Tears shone in his eyes, and his lips murmured the timeless words of Mizmor L’sodah, expressing his boundless gratitude to Hashem for standing guard over his money, just as Reb Shmuel had guarded Shabbos.
The following morning the Finance Minister of the district visited Karlsruhe. Deeply impressed by Reb Shmuel’s character, the minister decided to open a government account and deposit government funds in his bank. Word of the government account spread like wildfire, attracting numerous clients, who all opened accounts in Strauss Bank, ultimately causing the business to triple and then quadruple in size, catapulting Shmuel Strauss to fame and fortune. With the proceeds, Reb Shmuel donated the historic Strauss Courtyard in Jerusalem, at the request of R’ Yisrael Salanter zt”l, which housed numerous tzaddikim and gaonim, among them R’ Itzele Blazer zt”l and R’ Naftali Amsterdam zt”l. (Stories That Changed People’s Lives, Rabbi Tzvi Nakur)