For Your Inspiration
Baalei Teshuva Stories
For Your Inspiration_(english).jpg)
One Shabbos invitation can do a lot.
Hi-
Thought you might like an interesting story that I credit to your organization.
Recently Toyota recalled over a million Camrys for gas pedal issues. The dealership for my 2008 Camry in the Five Towns closed, leaving me with the option to find another dealership or just ignore the potential issue. The next closest dealership that I found in Long Island was booked for the next 2 months for this recall fix-it!
Finally I found a dealership in Bayside, Queens which is not exactly around the corner from me. Anyway, I was a little bit late due to the traffic and as I sat down in front of the woman handling the paperwork, we started talking about NY traffic and one thing led to another and we realized we had an upstate NY connection. She then asked me if I knew the Temple in Middletown. Temple? Your Jewish I asked her? Her last name was Deluca, not very Jewish. She told me her father was Italian but her mother is Jewish as was her grandmother and all the way back.
At this point I started thinking back to those Kiruv videos you guys put out and I thought to myself that I have to invite her for Shabbos. Why not? So I gave her my number and she said she would definitely be interested in coming to my neighborhood to see my "Temple". She had not done anything Jewish since her Bat-mitzvah and she hasn't looked at a Siddur or anything in years. She was interested in re-connecting.
I waited a week but never heard from her so I decided I have to be pro-active and follow the advice I saw in the videos. I'll call her and invite her and if she has the worst time of her life, so be it! I called her at the dealership and invited her for a Shabbos meal and without hesitation she said she would love to come! I told her to come for Friday night, we would make early Shabbos so that she could come before Shabbos, and I davened that she would have a positive experience. My wife baked Challah's the kids were well rested and she arrived right before Shabbos. She lit candles with my wife and she listened to Shalom aleichem and she was glowing.
In short, she was blown away by Shabbos. Gefilte fish, challah, kugel, cookies, singing etc. She had never done Shabbos, lit candles or made a beracha on washing her hands. She had her questions answered, like if Jewish women shave their heads, why are there lights on? Do we eat at 'Applebees"? etc. etc. We sent her home with gefilte fish and challah for her work the next day, as well as any beginner Judaism books I could find. She was so interested in learning more and coming back again and again. All this was really a min hashamayim happening. One Shabbos invitation can do a lot.
1,000,000 toyota's were recalled and dealerships closed, all so that one Jew from the Bronx can re-connect to their yiddishkeit! Who knows?
Continue the great work!
Ahron and Elana Rosenthal
Far Rockaway, NY
| Like this article? Help us create more. Kiruv.com exists only through the support of our readers.  |
 |
|