Shabbat Stories

“And Moshe took the bones of Yosef with him…” (Shemos 13:19) 

The Challenge of Our Generation 

Today, our community faces a challenge that was not as prevalent in previous generations. 

Times have changed, and we no longer need to work as hard as our ancestors did. We have forgotten what it means to truly exert ourselves. We have grown accustomed to comfort and ease, and the culture surrounding us encourages us to avoid all effort and difficulty. 

The yetzer hara (evil inclination) exploits this spirit of laziness, and when we encounter challenges in Torah study or mitzvah observance — when circumstances demand real effort from us — we find ourselves running away from our religious obligations rather than rising to meet them. The yetzer hara tempts us and convinces us that we simply aren’t capable of working hard anymore. 

At a time like this, we must tell our children — again and again — how our grandparents and great-grandparents lived for more than three thousand years. In an unbroken chain from Avraham Avinu to our own generation, they gave their very lives to uphold the Torah and its mitzvot in every circumstance. 

Mesirat Nefesh in Previous Generations 

Even simple Jews of earlier generations, who labored all day just to survive, would still come daily to shul to daven with a minyan — to hear Kaddish, Kedushah, and Barchu, and to answer Amen — knowing that this brought great joy to Hashem, who sustained them. 

They also set aside fixed times for Torah study, even under the harshest conditions. A simple Jew in Russia once related to me, that the Communists demanded work beginning at five in the morning, with real danger for anyone who arrived late. To learn and pray, they would rise at three. 

Many of the great sages of Israel, wrote enduring Torah works while suffering terribly. Some lived in extreme poverty. My holy ancestor, the Baal Heichal HaBracha of Komarna, spent entire winters without heat, and often lacked even a morsel of bread. I also heard from the Klausenberger Rebbe, that my ancestor, the Bnei Yissaschar, lived in a house with a broken roof, rain dripping inside. 

Even when the requirements for a mitzvah such as a shofar or esrog were unavailable, Jews exerted themselves with tremendous self-sacrifice to fulfill the mitzvot. Through this devotion, Jews upheld Torah life in the hardest circumstances: among the Anusim in Spain, the Cantonists in Russia, and even the prisoners of Auschwitz. 

The Counsel of the Ruzhiner Rebbe 

R’ Yisroel of Ruzhin zt”l said, “Before the coming of Mashiach, Yiddishkeit will hang by a thread. As a antidote, the Jews should gather together every Shabbat Kodesh and speak about tzaddikim and their good deeds, for through these stories of their self-sacrifice, the Jews will be able to strengthen themselves.” 

The Power of the Shabbat Seudah 

Especially one who sits at the Shabbat meal with his children must know that this is the most opportune time to educate his family in Torah and yirat shemayim (fear of heaven). For when eating a meal together on Shabbat, free of distractions from phones and the many concerns of the weekday, there is a peace of mind that allows for a deeper connection to all those who are there. 

Moreover, on a deeper, inner level, the time of the Shabbat meal is uniquely suited to draw down strength in emunah and closeness to Hashem. For this reason, the Shabbat meal is called  se’udesa  d’mehemnusa — the meal of faith. 

Chazal teach (Shabbos 118a) that one who partakes in the three Shabbat meals is saved from the war of Gog and Magog. My holy ancestor, R’ Yitzchak Isaac of Komarna, explained that this refers to the spiritual struggle that will precede the coming of Moshiach, when waves of confusion and heresy will flood the world. Through the Shabbat meals, a person is protected from losing faith and trust in Hashem throughout his life. 

For this reason, we must not squander these precious moments at the Shabbat table. Rather, we should use them to draw hearts closer to our Father in Heaven — by sharing stories of Jews who served Hashem with self-sacrifice, and speaking of their greatness. In this way, a deep desire is awakened in the hearts of our children to walk in their path. 

Yosef HaTzaddik: Example of Mesirat Nefesh 

One of the first Jews who showed an example of observing mitzvot in the most challenging of circumstances, was Yosef HaTzaddik. 

Yosef was the cherished son of his father’s old age, yet he was cast down to the lowest state—sold as a slave, stripped of all rights, the lone Jew in an entire land. He was only seventeen, an age when passions run strong. 

At that moment, Potiphar’s wife approached him, adorned in finery, pressing him to sin—something considered ordinary in Egypt. She even offered him a thousand silver talents, a fortune beyond measure, promising him a life of comfort, pleasure, and ease. And she threatened to imprison him had he rejected her advances. 

But Yosef answered: “How can I do this great evil and sin against Hashem?!” 

Therefore, the Gemara teaches (Yoma 35b), that if someone responds in the Heavenly court that he was not careful in observing Torah and mitzvot because of the difficulty of great challenges that he faced, they will answer him, that he did not have trials as great as those of Yosef HaTzaddik, and he should have learned from Yosef HaTzaddik that one must and can overcome all trials. 

Yosef’s Eternal Message 

According to this, we can explain that when Bnei Yisroel merited to be redeemed from the bondage in Eygpt, to leave with great wealth, merited additional wealth at the Red Sea, and went to settle in Eretz Yisroel, there was a concern that they would stop exerting themselves in their avodat Hashem, as it is written, “Yeshurun became fat and kicked” (Devarim 32:15). 

Therefore, Yosef HaTzaddik said, ” Hashem will surely remember you, and you shall bring up my bones from here with you…” He asked Bnei Yisrael to bury him in Eretz Yisroel, so that we would always remember him and learn from his behavior, to always work hard and diligently to serve Hashem. 

He also hinted in his words to the most propitious time for this. For the word “זה” (zeh) alludes to the mitzvah of Shabbat, which is written in the Torah twelve times, corresponding to the numerical value of “זה,” as the Chofetz Chaim zt”l wrote. Therefore, he said “מזה” (mi’zeh) — from within the holy Shabbat day, that you should tell about me at the Shabbat meals. “אתכם” (itchem) — then my conduct will be able to remain with you. 

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The Kalever Rebbe is the seventh Rebbe of the Kaalov Chasidic dynasty, begun by his ancestor who was born to his previously childless parents after receiving a blessing from the Baal Shem Tov zy”a, and later learned under the Maggid of Mezeritch zt”l. The Rebbe has been involved in outreach for more than 30 years and writes weekly emails on understanding current issues through the Torah. Sign up at www.kaalov.org.