Subject: In Memory of Baruch Yitzchak ben Yirmiyahu (Barry Pessin)
From: Heath Berkin <heath.berkin@gmail.com>
Date: 2/9/2018, 5:37 AM
To: Heath Berkin <heath.berkin@gmail.com>
BCC: menachem@alonsystems.com
In this weeks Parsha a number of verses, state the idea that when the downtrodden or suffering cry out to Hashem, He Will listen to their prayers. Many times a person finds themselves in a difficult situation. When they approach prayer they should come to realization that in truth only Hashem can help. Of course a person needs to make their own efforts, but they must realize the only salvation is truly through Hashem.
Many times we don't see immediate "responses" and in some cases we feel that our prayers aren't answered at all, but no prayer is ever lost as Hashem works in mysterious ways.
The following story R' Elimelech Biderman told over:
A few years ago there was a large family in Williamsburg whose elderly mother/grandmother was in a nursing home. One day the family received a dreaded call that their beloved mother had passed.This well known family made the proper Jewish funeral arrangements and arranged a special plot for the deceased. The funeral was large, attended by all of their friends and family. The family sat shiva, recited kaddish for her and they arranged for the customary learning of mIshnayos in the merit of the deceased. On the last day of Shiva when everyone was in the house, the phone rang. One of the daughters picked up the phone and was shocked to hear the voice of her mother on the line.The mother asked her what is wrong and why has nobody come to visit her in the past week? The family didn't understand what happened but were ecstatic to receive the news that their mother was in fact still living. When they finally worked out the details, they realized that apparently the nursing home made a mistake and when they called the family to inform them, the caller skipped a line on the list of patients and called the wrong family.
The nursing home though now needed to inform the correct family of their mistake and to pass along the unfortunate news. They called the deceased woman's family and her son answered the phone. Her son was totally unaffiliated with anything Jewish and was too involved with himself and his business dealings. When they told him the news he responded that his mother always prayed that she would have a proper Jewish burial and that someone should say kaddish for her. The son responded he has no time for any of this and he can't deal with it. He said he would not be able to fulfill her wishes as he wasn't prepared to arrange for a Jewish burial or for kaddish. He repeated over and over again that the only thing his mother prayed for was for "a proper Jewish burial and that someone should say kaddish for her".
In the end Hashem had his ways to make sure this elderly woman was afford a proper burial and given all of the necessary respect. As unlikely as it is Hashem made sure her prayers were answered.
