Who's Gambling?

A priest, a minister, and a rabbi are playing poker when the police raid the game.

Turning to the priest, the senior officer asks: "Father Shaunessy, were you gambling?"

The priest turns his eyes to heaven, murmuring "Lord, forgive me for what I am about to do." To the police officer, he then says, "No officer, it was just a social game."

The officer then asks the minister: "Pastor Fredrick, were you gambling?"

Again, after a message to heaven, the minister replies, "No, officer, I was not gambling."

Turning to the rabbi, the officer again asks: "Rabbi Goldschmitt, were you gambling?"

Shrugging his shoulders, the rabbi replies: "So with whom would I be gambling?"

source

Covering the sun

A disciple went to Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav:

I shall not continue with my studies of sacred texts he said. I live in a small house with my brothers and parents, and never have the ideal conditions for concentrating on that which is important.

Nachman pointed to the sun and asked his disciple to place his hand over his face, in order to hide it. The disciple obeyed.

Your hand is small, yet it can completely cover the power, light and majesty of the great sun. In the same way, the small problems manage to give you the excuse you need in order to hinder your progress along your spiritual journey.


Just as your hand has the power to hide the sun, mediocrity has the power to hide your inner light. Do not blame others for your own incompetence.

source

Bless for the Bad

About two hundred years ago, the famous Chassidic Rabbi, Zushia of Anapoly lived a pious, simple and God fearing life.

In a rabbinical college, near to rabbi Zushia, two students were studying the Talmud. They got puzzled about a statement (Berakhot 54a, 60b Mishnah (9:5)) that said:

"A person must bless God for the bad just as one must bless God for the good"

Thanking God for the good, that's understandable and reasonable, but thanking God for the bad? That didn't make any sense.

So they went to the dean of the college for an answer. Th dean stroked his long beard and pondered the question. "This..... is a question that only Rabbi Zushia can answer. Go to his house and ask him!"

The students decided to go immediately. Rabbi Zushia lived outside of the town. They walked beyond the town's limits and entered into the wooded forest. Following a narrow path, they soon arrived at a run-down shack that was Rabbi Zushia's abode. The windows were broken, the roof looked in need of repair and the walls were badly cracked. As Rabbi Zushia greeted them and led them in, they saw the abject poverty in which Rabbi Zushia lived. The chairs were wobbly and few. The other furnishings were shoddy and in poor repair.

Rabbi Zushia apologized for not having any thing to offer them to eat but perhaps a glass of hot water would be sufficient.

The students explained that they had come to ask him this question. "Why does it say in the Talmud that we must thank God for the good as well as the bad?"

Rabbi Zushia asked them, "Why come to me to ask me that question? I also can not understand it. Nothing bad has ever happened to me. Is it possible that God does anything bad?"

Links:
The Shepard's praying (more stories)
Tosefta
Mishna-Brachot

Care or carry?

A Zen parable tells the story of two monks who are walking in silence together when they come upon a large, muddy river. There they see an attractive young woman struggling to climb up a muddy riverbank. One of the monks picks her up, lifts her, and carries her , putting her down safely.

The monks continue on their way in silence, until they reach the monastery. At nightfall, the other monk finally blurts out, “How could you have done that? We aren’t allowed to look at, let alone touch a woman! What have you done?”

“Friend” the other monk said quietly. “I let go of her at the riverbank. But you- you are still carrying her.”

What good is religion?

Story about an old rabbi and one of his congregants, who was a soap manufacturer.

One day the two of them were out for a walk and the soap maker asked, “What good is religion? Look at all the trouble and misery of the world: still there, even after years – thousands of years -- of teaching about goodness and truth and peace; still there, after all the prayers and sermons and teachings. If religion is good and true, how can this be?”

The rabbi said nothing as they walked along. They continued on until the rabbi noticed a child playing in the gutter by the side of the road. “Look at that child,” said the rabbi. “You say that soap makes people clean, but see the dirt on that youngster! Of what good is soap? With all the soap in the world, with all these years, the child is still filthy! I wonder how effective soap is, after all?”

“But, Rabbi,” the soap maker protested, “Soap can’t do any good unless it’s used!”

“Exactly,” replied the rabbi, “Exactly!”

Source-1, Source-2