By Dovid Zaklikowski for COLlive and Hasidic Archives
When Rabbi Zelig and Chaya Slonim had a son, they were in such dire financial straits that they could not afford a bris. Rabbi Zelig approached his friend Rabbi Shlomo Leib Eliezrav and asked for a loan, one gold Napoleon.
Rabbi Eliezrav, a respected rabbi in Hebron and the founder of the Toras Emes yeshiva there, gladly agreed. Relieved and grateful, Rabbi Slonim pocketed the money and headed home. When he arrived, he put his hand in his pocket to remove the coin, and to his horror, discovered that it was not there.
At the time, the gold coin could support an entire family for a week. Rabbi Slonim was at a loss. “Perhaps I lost it on the way,” he said to himself. “Or did I mistakenly leave it at the Eliezrav home?”
Though it was already dark, he carefully retraced the route to his friend’s house, scouring the ground for any sign of the coin. He arrived without finding it, however, and with a sinking heart, knocked on the door, despite the late hour.
As the rabbi opened the door, he blurted out, “Perhaps I forgot the Napoleon here? I have searched everywhere, and I cannot find it!”
“You forgot it here. Let me get it for you,” Rabbi Eliezrav said calmly.
He disappeared and returned with the coin. Rabbi Slonim went home with a light heart, relieved and happy that he had not lost the small fortune.
The next morning, as the sunlight streamed into his home, Rabbi Slonim discovered the lost Napoleon, lying on the floor where it must have dropped from his pocket.
He realized that Rabbi Eliezrav had willingly given up a large sum of money rather than add to his friend’s burden of anxiety.
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