ועשית מנורה זהב טהור (תרומה כה: לא)

And you should make a Menorah from pure gold.  

The son-in-law of the Chiddushei Harim zt’’l was ill, and the Chiddushei Harim visited him and inquired from the doctor about the patient’s situation.  The doctor replied with a parable.

‘A king possessed an expensive stone with a noticeable speck.  He asked all diamond experts to try and remove the mark.  Since they were all experts, they were afraid to attempt removing the trace, as they understood the ramifications that, through the process, they might ruin the stone.  The king approached a regular apprentice who didn’t have experience handling stones and asked him to remove the speck. He wasn’t afraid to handle the stone and removed the speck.’

The doctor continued. “I already treated patients with this illness, but since I know he’s the Rebbe’s son-in-law, I’m afraid to treat him, and the protocols are much harder.  Therefore, I suggest that a different doctor, who doesn’t know who the patient is, should treat him.”

The Chidushei Harim exclaimed, “I always couldn’t understand the Midrash that said that Moshe Rabbeinu couldn’t make the Menorah and Bezalel was able to make it.  Moshe was the greatest of people, and Bezalel, who wasn’t on his level, was capable?”

“After hearing the doctor’s explanation, I can understand that since Moshe was so great and understood all the holy aspects of creating the Menorah, it was hard for him to accept the task. Therefore, Bezalel, who was on a slightly lower level than Moshe, didn’t have a problem creating the Menorah just like Hashem specified.”

Filed under Parshas Terumah |