A Chassidc Story

[RabbiO]

The students of the Rebbe wanted to see if they could stump him one day, and so the boldest student came to him and asked the Rebbe if he could answer a question. The Rebbe of course agreed, and so the bold student asked, "Rebbe, there is a ladder, there are 613 rungs on this ladder corresponding to the 613 commandments. There is someone near the top and someone near the bottom (meaning that the one near the top does almost all of the commandments, while the one near the bottom does few of the commandments). The question, Rebbe, is who in the eyes of God is higher?"

The Rebbe said nothing. You see, if the Rebbe said the one at the top, the obvious answer, it would have denied the heights, however low, achieved by the one at the bottom, but if the Rebbe had said the one at the bottom, it would have denied the heights reached by the one at the top. And so the students thought they had him! So the boldest student pressed him, and asked, "What is wrong Rebbe, have you an answer?" The Rebbe replied, "I am waiting for the rest of the details of the problem."

The student said, "But we have left out nothing! There is a ladder, with 613 rungs, someone is near the top, someone is near the bottom, who in the eyes of God is Higher?"

To which the Rebbe replied, "But you have not told me which of the two on the ladder is moving upward."

Edited November 22, 2010 by RabbiO

[RevRainbow]

[SilverRose]

:thumbu:

[emalpaiz]

Magnificent answer!

Hermano Luis

[Atwater Vitki]

Touché Rebbe!

Blessings of Peace,

[Jonathan H. B. Lobl]

Nicely done.