The Sign of Tefillin

Rav Yitzchak Elchonon Spector, zt”l, was the undisputed leader of all religious Jews during his times, and also enjoyed the respect and admiration of many non-Jewish noblemen of his day. Yet he had his share of enemies who sought to diminish his stature in whatever way they could. The people who wanted to destroy him were not above resorting to less than honest means. Rav Yitzcahk Elchonon would remove his tefillin at the end of davening each day—even when it was the custom in his country to say a misheberach for the king after davening, he would immediately remove his tefillin before they said this prayer. His enemies felt that they had finally found the opportunity to make him trouble, since there were numerous witnesses to this “offence,” which they thought could not be disputed or explained away. They filed a complaint with the king that Rabbi Spector clearly did not respect the monarch since he was brazen enough to remove his tefiljlin before praying for his welfare. This was obviously a sign that, to him, the davening was complete and the extra prayer was an unnecessary addition. When the rav was confronted about why he removed his tefillin before the prayer he based his reply on a famous halacha. “Quite the contrary, I remove my tefillin as a sign of my great respect and awe for our beloved monarch. The Talmud teaches that we do not wear tefillin on Shabbos or Yom Tov due to the special character of the day. Similarly, I remove my tefillin before the prayer for the king because to me this day is likened to Shabbos and Yom Tov when we do not wear tefillin due to our great respect and awe!”

To Drink or not to Drink?

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, zt"l, taught that one should avoid alcohol at all times. He explained that many major failures in history happened due to wine. From Adam to Noach and beyond, the underlying problem was alcohol. The only exceptions to this iron rule are Shabbos and Moadim, when one should drink "a little." And Purim when one should fulfill the halacha to drink abundantly.
Rebbe Nachman explains that a true tzaddik elevates the wine he drinks and rectifies the world by drinking; nevertheless most who drink at Chasidic gatherings would be better off abstaining. Although some great authorities argued with this contention-- Bnei Machshavah Tovah is in favor of drinking at Chasidic gatherings as a means of uplifting one's spirits--others emphatically agreed with Rebbe Nachman.
Rav Yeshayah of Prague, zt”l, was once sitting at a tisch surrounded by his chassidim. Together, they partook of a seduas mitzvah where they discussed inspiring divrei Torah at length. Naturally, this sublime experience sparked a lot of enthusiasm.
“Let’s send someone to bring wine,” a certain older chassid declared.
Rav Yeshayah immediately discouraged this notion. “Our sages teach that sleep in the morning sleep and wine in the afternoon take a person out of the world.”
“But don’t our sages also teach that one who gives wine to a talmid chacham is like one who pours libations on the altar?” the old man piously declaimed.
But Rav Yeshayah did not feel that this was appropriate. “I never understood the words of our sages at the end of Sotah. There we find that in the times proceeding Moshiach’s arrival, grape vines will give their fruit yet wine will be expensive. If there is an abundance of grapes, why is wine costly?
“But now I understand. Since we also find that chutzpah will be rampant in the times immediately preceding the arrival of Moshiach, every person will think that his rebbe is like a talmid chacham discussed in the gemara and buy wine to fill his throat and those of his followers. With such a great demand for wine, it’s no wonder that it will be costly!”