Dov Berish Wiedenfeld was born in the small town of Poland to the town rebbetzin and rabbi, a Husyatiner Chossid, Rabbi Yaakov. The young Dov Berish greatly developed his knowledge of Torah and spirituality, and at the age of 19, married and moved to the town of Tchebin, Galicia.
The great scholar was forced to engage in backbreaking laborDespite his business commitments, he devoted long hours to learning Torah, and steadfastly refused the many entreaties to accept a rabbinical position, insisting on supporting himself through his business so as not to use his Torah knowledge for personal benefit.
Only at the age of 40, when his business failed, did Rabbi Wiedenfeld accept the rabbinical position in Tchebin, to the great joy of the townsmen.
Later, when Hitler and his henchmen stampeded across Europe, the newspaper of the Nazi party, "Der Sturmer," portrayed Rabbi Wiedenfeld as "the greatest Talmudist in the world," and placed him high on their black list. Thus the rabbi was forced to flee to Lvov (Lemberg), then under Soviet control, where he stayed in the home of the Husyatiner Rebbe.
No sooner had the rabbi settled into his new surroundings was he arrested by the Soviet secret police as an illegal alien. Exiled with his family to the forests of Sverdlovsk in Siberia, the great scholar was forced to engage in backbreaking manual labor. Yet this saintly man secretly studied Torah by heart with his son-in-law, Rabbi Baruch Shimon Schneerson, recording his Torah thoughts on scraps of paper or wood.
At the age of 65, Rabbi Wiedenfeld managed to leave Russia and reach Israel with the remnants of his family.
One look at the holy eyes of Rabbi Wiedenfeld and a certain Jerusalem scholar decided to serve as his attendant. This attendant thrived in the saintly man's presence, imbibing from his wellspring of knowledge and extraordinary character traits.
One day, as Rabbi Wiedenfeld was getting ready to leave his house, the attendant noticed that a button on his cloak was loose and would likely fall off.
The attendant broke out in a cold sweat"Please wait a moment," he asked the rabbi as he hurried to fetch a needle and thread. Reverently, the attendant sewed up the button, explaining that it wasn't appropriate for a Torah scholar to appear in a way which may be seen as sloppy.
Suddenly, the attendant's needle unwittingly pricked the rabbi. Filled with dread, the attendant broke out in a cold sweat and began to tremble from head to toe.
"It's okay," the rabbi assured him. "I hardly felt it."
But the attendant couldn't be calmed.
"Why are you so afraid?" the rabbi lovingly asked him.
The attendant's teeth were rattling like dice.
"M-m-my sin…is too great to bear," he stammered. "Only the fires of hell will cleanse my soul…"
The rabbi continued to relax the Jew, talking to him in soft words, but the attendant remained gripped by fear. Finally, the rabbi said, "Don't be frightened, my dear. Even if you enter hell, I will personally take you out of there."
At those words, the attendant visibly relaxed and the two proceeded to their intended destination.
"My promise to you I will keep. But grant me a great kindness."Soon after, Rabbi Wiedenfeld became renowned across the country for his brilliance and piety. He settled in the Sharei Chessed neighborhood of Jerusalem, and reestablished his yeshiva from Poland on the holy soil. The yeshiva Kochav m'Yaakov-Tchebin, which he ran together with his son-in-law, Rabbi Schneerson, still exists until this day, and is one of the most popular schools in Jerusalem.
Many years later, before his passing, Rabbi Wiedenfeld summoned his old attendant who had served him so wholeheartedly in the early years of his life in Israel.
"Do you remember all those years ago," the Rabbi asked the Jew, "when I promised that I would retrieve you from hell?"
It took the attendant a minute to recall the incident and his mouth opened in shock. This great rabbi, known throughout the world, one of the great masters of the generation had called him to ask about long-forgotten words he had spoken.
"Yes, I remember, Rabbi," he whispered.
The rabbi gazed at him with love. "My promise to you I will keep. But grant me a great kindness. Please don't make the job too difficult for me."
