Tikun Olam-Fixing the World 4

In 1992, my daughter, Nechama, took seriously ill with bacterial meningitis, one day after her second birthday. This was, of course, a very frightening time for us, and we are grateful to G-d that she pulled through. The doctors said that had we gotten to the hospital three hours later, she would not have survived. This was the Mt. Scopus branch of Jerusalem's Hadassah Hospital. Sima and I took turns over the next ten days keeping vigil at her bedside. There are many stories to tell from that experience, but one I wish to share with you now. I arrived at the hospital moments before the beginning of Shabbat, together with Nechama and our pediatrician, who came along to make sure we would be taken care of immediately. When the tests came back positive for meningitis, I was sent back home to Beit El with antibiotics for my family, as well as for the neighbors' children who had been at her birthday party the day before. There were two other cases in Beit El of meningitis at roughly the same time; a little boy who survived, and a woman who did not. Nechama was in intensive care with a full crew of doctors working on her all night. By the time I got back to the hospital from Beit El, it was several hours into the night. Remarkably, several food packages, including all the traditional Shabbat goodies, were waiting for me. Some were from organizations; the various Bikkur Holim (visiting the sick) Societies, some were from private individuals, sharing their Shabbat dinners with hundreds of people in Jerusalem's hospitals. (Sima later remarked "I can't imagine this! I barely get Shabbat ready for us and our kids. There are actually people out there who not only cook for hundreds, but also deliver the meals to the hospitals!"). The following Shabbat, Sima and I both stayed at the hospital, with our older kids taking care of their younger siblings at home, with neighbors helping out Those patients and their families who were well enough, were invited to a special room, where the Bikkur Holim Societies set up sumptuous meals for them. Most of the patents had just passed crises. There was a celebratory atmosphere in the room. with people sharing their stories of their brush with death. I would later see the same thing in hospitals in the U.S. Visiting the sick, praying for them, and seeing to their needs, is one of the fundamental aspects of Gemilut Hassadim. The Talmud severely criticizes those who neglect their sick neighbors. Each visitor takes away one-sixtieth of their suffering. The Divine Presence dwells over the heads of the sick. The Talmud lists visiting the sick as one of the actions for which one is rewarded in this world, while the full mitzvah remains for the next (i.e., the rewards in this world do not diminish the other-worldly reward. The reward in this world is like "interest" paid on the huge merit earned.) That one's friends and family look in on us when we are not well, is understandable. But that there are armies of devout Jews who volunteer week after week, day after day, to take care of strangers, is, perhaps, the ultimate fulfillment of the dictum "all Israel are responsible for each other". This is Tikun Olam.