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Parshas Bo 5785

החדש הזה לכם ראש חדשים ראשון הוא לכם ... (יב-ב)

MASHAL:     A sofer STAM, a scribe who transcribes holy scrolls by profession, once found himself in the synagogue of a far-away town. After davening, the local Rabbi began conversing with him. Upon learning of his profession, the Rabbi asked the sofer if he might check the shul’s one and only Torah scroll, which he did and found it to be completely invalid. An estimated $5,000 was deemed necessary to repair the scroll.

The Rabbi flatly refused to pay such an enormous sum of money, despite the fact that the shul had the funds for an elaborate repairment. The sofer, too, refused to come to terms with the fact that an entire congregation was using an invalid Torah scroll. Unable to sleep, the sofer contacted a friend, also a scribe, and convinced him to join him in a great mitzvah: they would fix the scroll despite the minuscule $500 the Rabbi was willing to pay for their efforts.

After completing the repairs and receiving their meager wages, the pair headed out of town. On the way, the scribes needed to make a “pit-stop” and saw a cemetery building. Suddenly, the cemetery caretaker appeared out of nowhere and growled at them: “What’s your names and address?”

Frightened, they told him. “Congrats young men,” he said lightly, “a wealthy man died today and left in his will that his money should be split between all those who attend his funeral. Guess what? You two are the only ones who showed up!”

NIMSHAL:     The focal point of Yetzias Mitzrayim is Hashem’s demonstration of ultimate power and ability. It is interesting to note that this parsha has a number of unrelated mitzvos in it as well. Perhaps the lesson is this: doing mitzvos can sometimes be challenging and expensive but do them anyway and don’t worry about the bill. Hashem can afford it!

 
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