By Rabbi Nissan Telushkin for COLlive and Hasidic Archives
A wealthy Jewish man supported the great Chassidic leader Rabbi Zussia of Hanipol (R’ Zusha of Anipoli) before anyone know who he was.
At one point, the donor decided it would be more worthwhile to support a well-known righteous man. When he stopped supporting Rabbi Zussia, his business went downhill, and he was left impoverished.
The once-wealthy man went to Rabbi Zussia and told him what happened. The rabbi quoted a passage from our sages about a prophet praying that the rich should give charity to those “who are unworthy” (Baba Kama 16b).
Surely, the prophet had no negative intentions; rather, he knew that before G-d, no one’s actions are perfect. Therefore, he prayed that the rich should give charity to those who are unworthy, so that they would be able to say before G-d, “Just as I assist those who are unworthy, please assist me though I am also unworthy.”
This is exactly what happened, Rabbi Zussia told the man. “As long as you were assisting me, who you considered unworthy, G-d helped you. Once you began to judge me, you were judged above, and a decision was made that you are not worthy of your wealth.”
Find more of Hasidic Archives latest books on HasidicArchives.com. Hasidic Archives books are also available in bulk.
