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Weekly Chasidic Story #1330 (5783-37) 16 Sivan 5783 (June 5, 2023) "Saved by Strands and Knots" The fighting in Gaza was fierce, and Jews in America were looking for ways to increase the spiritual armor that protected the young soldiers in the IDF. Connection: Weekly Torah reading of Shelach - the last eight verses.
Story in PDF format for more convenient printing
Saved by Strands and KnotsDuring an extended Israeli army operation that took place in Gaza a number of years ago the fighting was fierce. Concerned Jews in America were looking for ways to increase the spiritual armor that protected the young soldiers in the IDF.
R. Moshe-Tuvia Lieff was one rabbi who participated in this mission, and raised money to purchase tzitzis for tens of thousands of Israeli soldiers who did not have their own. After the war he heard a story that illustrated the life-saving power of this protection: THE SOLDIERS of the Yahalom Counter Terrorist Unit were a subdivision of the IDF's Golani Brigade. They were assigned a delicate and dangerous mission that would take them, undercover, into enemy territory to search for a certain group of terrorists. To do the job, they had disguised themselves in Hamas uniforms, but underneath, they wore the tzitzis they had just received from the American tzitzis campaign. They entered the building they needed in Gaza and began searching for the terrorists, knowing that any moment they could be discovered and killed. All at once, the mission went wrong. The soldiers were discovered and were being shot at by terrorists hiding in different places in the building. The soldiers returned fire, and made their way to the roof of the building, in an attempt to lose their attackers, or to at least draw them into the open, and out of their hiding places. As they reached the roof of the building they saw a welcome sight: an Israeli helicopter had come to save them! Or so they thought. However, in one terrifying moment, their relief turned into panic. The helicopter was not positioning itself for a rescue, it was getting ready to fire! The men suddenly realized that because of their disguises, they had become targets. With only seconds left before the helicopter would open fire, there was no time to make radio contact with the pilot, and there was no place to take cover on the roof of a building. The group's leader screamed out to his soldiers, "Take out your tzitzis!" Frantically they grabbed for their tzitzis and began waving them in the air. When he saw this strange sight, the helicopter pilot, who literally had his finger on the trigger, held his fire. He realized that no matter what they were wearing on the outside, their fulfillment of the mitzvah of tzitzis had shown instantly who they were on the inside, and they were saved!
Biographical note: Footnote: [1] Or tziztzit. Four-cornered garment ---- called tallit katan -- with a specially-knotted 8-string tassel (tzitzis) dangling from each corner (see Num. 13:37-41). [The numerical value of the word 'tzitzit' in Hebrew combined with the number of strands and knots equals 613, the total number of commandments in the Torah (Five Books of Moses).]
Thick tzitzis fringes on tallit gadol ('big tallis') worn shawl-style on top of all garments by Jewish males, during Morning Prayer [photo from JudaicaPlaza.com]
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Thin
tzitzis fringes on tallit katan ('little tallis'), worn poncho-style
by males commonly under their shirts, or else over the shirt under a long jacket.
Yerachmiel
Tilles is co-founder and associate director of Ascent-of-Safed, and chief editor
of this website (and of KabbalaOnline.org). He has hundreds of published stories
to his credit, and many have been translated into other languages. He tells them
live at Ascent nearly every Saturday night.