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Baalei Teshuva Stories

Am Yisroel has been chosen by Hashem to be a model among the nations of the world. It is our duty to live up to this status by learning and living by the laws of the Torah. In this fascinating story told by Rav Avrohom Chaim Feuer, we learn how one man discovered what it means to be chosen.

I came to daven Maariv one night in a shul in Yerushalayim. I often stop in this particular shul to daven, and over a period of time, I became friendly with a young man named Aton Reese*, who heads a night kollel there. We had a few minutes until Maariv, so I asked Aton what he had heard from his rosh kollel that day. Aton learned during the day in a prestigious kollel under the direction of a prominent rov. Then, at night, Aton ran his own kollel for a select group of men.

Aton replied, "Today, the rosh kollel talked about the bracha we say on the Torah each morning: 'Asher bochar bonu mikol ha'amim, venosan lonu es Toraso - Who chose us from all the nations of the world and gave us his Torah 'The Tur says (Orach Chaim 47) that when you recite this bracha each morning, you should think about maamad Har Sinai, the revelation on Har Sinai,how Hashem chose us from all the nations of the world and allowed us to hear His words from the midst of the fire."

As Aton continued to talk about this topic, he began to choke up. I wondered why he was becoming emotional, and finally, I asked him.

Aton replied, "Rabbi, it's a long story. You see, I wasn't always like this. Four years ago, believe it or not, I was living a totally different lifestyle. I was not religious at all. I spent my days hanging out on the beaches of Tel Aviv and following my heart's desire. I travelled the world seeking out fun and excitement. I was always searching for new thrills.

"At one point, my travels brought me to the jungles of Africa. I was excited by the adventure. I rented a jeep, took my backpack and a map, and set off for the thrill of my life.

Aton replied, "Rabbi, it's a long story. You see, I wasn't always like this. Four years ago, believe it or not, I was living a totally different lifestyle. I was not religious at all. I spent my days hanging out on the beaches of Tel Aviv and following my heart's desire. I travelled the world seeking out fun and excitement. I was always searching for new thrills.

"At one point, my travels brought me to the jungles of Africa. I was excited by the adventure. I rented a jeep, took my backpack and a map, and set off for the thrill of my life.

"One day, while I was travelling through the wilds, I saw a young African boy in the distance. As I came near him, he stretched out his hand towards me. This was not an unusual sight, and I had already gotten used to such encounters. When these young African boys saw a foreigner, they stretched out their hands in the hopes of receiving some candy. I was prepared for this, so I stopped the car near the boy and signaled to him to wait a moment as I stuck my hand into my backpack to fetch a candy.

"As I got the candy out to give to the young boy, I looked up and suddenly I had the shock of my life. I was totally surrounded by a very large group of frightening Africans. The boy had been part of a ploy to entrap a tourist. The boy would get the tourist to stop, and then the group would pounce on their prey.

"I immediately thought of slamming my foot on the gas pedal, but I realized that in my open jeep and with these wild men facing me with machine guns and machetes, I would certainly not survive the attempt. My life flashed through my mind and fear gripped my heart as the men made threatening motions and sounds which I could not understand. They were obviously going to rob me or worse.

"Suddenly, the head of the group began to approach my jeep as the rest of the men made way for their leader. With a fearsome face and with a gun in hand, he came up close to me. It seemed like it was all over now. This was truly a living nightmare.

"'Where you from? Where you from?' repeated the man in broken English.

"I wasn't sure what to say. Should I tell him the truth? He would certainly kill me if he found out I was Jewish. Should I lie? I decided that it was safest to tell the truth, as they would probably find out anyway when they took my wallet and found my Israeli driver's license.

"'I am from the land of Israel,' I said with fear in my heart.

"'You from Israel?' he asked incredulously. 'Israel!' He seemed to be getting excited about this revelation. I thought that now I was really in trouble as he began to tell his other tribesmen where I was from. Then he turned to me and said something incredible. 'You Chosen People! You Chosen People!' he shouted.

"His sinister face turned into a giant smile and he began to laugh. He seemed to be admiring the fact that I was a Jew. All the men began to jump up and down in excitement. As they repeated, 'Chosen People, Chosen People,' I was shocked beyond words. They were ecstatic that they had met a Jew.

"And I, in turn, felt lower than ever. Here I was in the depths of the African jungle, and these African men were telling me how special the Jewish people are. I had never viewed myself as part of a chosen people. Truth be told, I didn't even know why we were chosen or what being chosen meant.

"As I was sent away with blessings and unscathed, I made a promise to myself. I was going to find out what it meant to be part of a Chosen People. When I returned to Israel, I began my search into Judaism. I discovered a shul in Tel Aviv and attended davening and a Daf Yomi shiur. After a few days of being in the shiur, the rov came over to me and introduced himself. I told him my story, and he advised me to begin my studies in a baal teshuvah yeshiva. I did, and the rest is history.

"That is why this bracha means so much to me. Because each time I say it, I remember just how lucky I am to be a part of the Chosen People. And I thank Hashem for giving me the opportunity to learn his Torah."

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King of the Jungle

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