Simchas Torah: Would You Sign the Contract? | Rabbi Menachem Schmelczer

Simchas Torah Would You Sign The Contract? R' Yaakov Rahimi Cheder of Brooklyn R' Menachem Schmelczer who was struggling with his Yiddishkeit. I had a Talmid who was struggling with his Yiddishkeit. He unfortunately purchased for himself an unfiltered device. As I was Shmoozing with him, he was belittling himself, calling himself a bum and a lowlife. It bothered me very much that he spoke that way and I wanted so badly to give him Chizuk. I remembered a story that I heard from one of the Mashgichim in Ponevezh Yeshiva, who came and spoke in a Shul in my neighborhood. He said that in Ponevezh Yeshiva in the early years on Simchas Torah, the Talmidim were dancing vibrantly the sixth Hakafah. They were dancing around the Sefer Torah which was held by one of the Chashuve Bachurim in the Yeshiva. The Bachur in the middle who was clutching the Sefer Torah is singing out loud, טוב לי תורת פיך מאלפי זהב וכסף. The words of Torah are more valuable to me than all the money in the world. Chatzkel Levenstein, the illustrious Mashgiach of Ponevezh Yeshiva, זכרונו לברכה, approached the Bachur and asked him, "Do you really mean what you're saying? Do you really believe that the Torah is more valuable than all the money in the world?" The Bachur responded, "Of course, Rebbe. Of course I believe it." R' Chatzkel Levenstein then turned to him and posed the following challenge. He said, "If you were sitting in the Beis Midrash plugging away over a Tosafos during first Seder, when all of a sudden you found out that in the lobby of the Yeshiva there's a rich man who has a $5 million check that he'll give to you if you come out and get it during first Seder, would you walk out?" The Bachur sheepishly admitted that he would. R' Chatzkel turned to him in dismay and said, "Then how could you sing טוב לי תורת פיך מאלפי זהב וכסף? It's a blatant Sheker while you're clutching the Sefer Torah!" The Talmid turned to the Mashgiach and said, "Rebbe, I can answer?" R' Chatzkel said, "Yeah, I want you to answer. Please answer." And the Bachur said, "Let's imagine that that Gvir, that rich man, was offering me $5 million on condition, on one condition, that I will sign a contract that I will never ever learn again in my life, not a Gemara, Rashi, Tosafos, Mishnah, Halachah, Chumash, nothing. Do you think I would sign the contract and take the $5 million? Absolutely not! Not me and not one Bachur in this entire Beis Midrash would sign such a contract. Do you know why, Rebbe? Because טוב לי תורת פיך מאלפי זהב וכסף. We all believe it B'emunah Sheleimah, and that's who we are." When R' Chatzkel heard this, he grabbed the Bachur and the Sefer Torah בשמחה רבה and danced till the end of the Hakafah. I turned to my Talmid, and I posed the following question to my Talmid. I said, "Baruch, if somebody would come and offer you $5 million to sign a contract which says, 'I will never put a filter on my device for the rest of my life,' would you sign it and take the money?" He thought for a moment, he looked me in the eye and he said, "Absolutely not." I said, "So how could you call yourself a lowlife? You are somebody who is Moser Nefesh $5 million for the Eibeshter." My friends, let's not identify ourselves by our weak moments. Let's recognize who we truly are. None of us would sign a contract sacrificing our Kedushah for all the money in the world. Do you know why? 'Cause we are ממלכת כהנים וגוי קדוש and we are willing to do the רצון השם no matter the price.