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The Disturbed Sabbath
At the end of the Sabbath, the Baal Shem Tov used to climb into his carriage and drive out into the night. On one occasion, he took with him three rabbis and his coachman Alexei, who held the reins. However, deep in the forest something happened and the horses galloped off out of control, taking them beyond the dimensions of known time and space. After a while they found themselves on a strange meadow and they observed that their journey must have taken a whole week, since the new Sabbath was fast approaching. They found an almost abandoned hut and a most inhospitable homeowner who expressed all his pent-up loathing of all learned people, particularly Hassidim. Since the rabbis had no choice, they were forced to put up with all forms of degradation by not being allowed to welcome the Sabbath in the accustomed dignified way. When their suffering was at its worst, a hitherto invisible door opened and a young lady appeared, and related that she was a servant of the Baal Shem. She had once been the victim of unfair accusation which in turn had disturbed the sanctity of the Sabbath. Experiencing such desecration at first hand taught the rabbis just how much sorrow was caused by loss of the Day of Rest. They could now be reconciled with their host, her husband, who had in fact engineered this episode as a trial of their faith, and they enjoyed the rest of the evening in joyous harmony.
"You shall not cause pain to any widow or orphan. If you (dare to) cause him pain...! – for if he shall cry out to Me, I shall surely hear his ou.tcry. " (Exodus 22:21-22)
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