Beruriah was the
learned, intelligent, pious, tactful, witty and wise wife of the saintly Jewish
Rabbi, Meir who lived in the second century AD. On a Sabbath day, while Rabbi
Meir was teaching in the house of study, his two beloved sons died accidentally.
The Sabbath is observed as a very special and precious day by all devout Jews.
Beruriah did not want to grieve her husband on the Holy Sabbath day. She
decided to wait till the end of the rituals of Sabbath to convey the tragic
news to her husband. She also wanted to soften his sorrow and prevent a sudden
shock to him by following an intelligent and tactful approach. She laid the
dead bodies of their sons on a couch in the upper room of their residence and
covered the still bodies with a sheet.
When the
Rabbi returned from the Academy after the Sabbath, he enquired about their
sons, but she hid the news tactfully till he had completed the rituals of the
Jewish religious ceremony of Havdalah. It involves the use of the five
senses-tasting the wine, smelling sweet spices, seeing the light of the
Havdalah candle, feeling the heat of its flame, and hearing the blessings. He
pronounced the prescribed Blessings and finished the customary evening meal to mark
the ceremonial end of the Sabbath. She then told him calmly, “A few years ago,
a friend had given me a treasure of two precious ornaments to be kept under
safe custody. I used to appreciate the treasure and love them as if they were
our own. But now the real owner of the treasure wants it back and has come to
claim his property. Kindly advise me whether I should return them to the owner
or not.” The Rabbi ruled emphatically, “You should return the treasure without
any hesitation. That is the prime duty of one who holds a deposit.”
She then led him through
the stairs to the upper room and gently removed the sheet covering the precious
bodies of their beloved children. She said, tearfully, “These are the ornaments
God gave to us in trust to keep under our safe custody. He has now taken them
back.” He expressed great grief and cried, but she reminded him of his earlier
direction that one who holds a deposit should readily return it to the owner as
soon as he demands it. She quoted the
following verse from the Book of Job: “The Lord gave, and now He has taken
away. May His name be praised!” This tactful approach reduced his grief and he
praised the wisdom of his wife which illuminated him and enabled him to
withstand the great tragedy.
Life
after death is a reality. In the heaven of happiness reserved for the
righteous, we will meet our loving Lord who created us to be with Him forever.
It is said that when we are born, we cry and the people around us rejoice. When
we die, people cry, and, if we are saved, we rejoice! Man’s way
leads to a hopeless end while God’s way leads to an endless hope. Everyone is equal before death
as death comes to all - great and small.
The
world is like a garden and every person is like a precious flower. But God, the
owner of the garden, has the right to pluck the flowers of his choice. That is
what happens when our dear ones die. Death is a moment of sorrow for everyone
close to the dead person. In the sorrow, we may cry and complain to God why he
has taken our dear ones away from us. But let us believe that one dies when he
is called by God to His abode. Often the best flowers are plucked earlier.
…………………………………………………………………
©
By: Prof. Dr. Babu Philip, Former Professor, Cochin
University of Science & Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala,
India, Prof. Mrs. Rajamma Babu, Former Professor, St.
Dominic's College, Kanjirappally, Leo. S. John, St.
Antony's Public School, Anakkal, Kanjirappally and Neil John, Maniparambil, Alfeen
Public School, Kanjirappally, Kerala, India.
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