My Very Favorite Baba Sali ‘Miracle Story’
I don’t know whether this happened, of course.
Rabbi Yisrael Abuchatzira, known as the “Baba Sali”, opposed the introduction of the secular “Alliance” schools to his region in Morroco, so they stayed away. But when he once left on travels, the school saw an opportunity. By the time he came back, the school was already a done deal.
There are times for talk, but the Baba Sali decided that would no longer work in this case. Parents everywhere want their children to have a better economic future and often tend to dismiss religious concerns. So he used his reputation for miracle-working. He publically announced for the first and last time: Anyone whose sons were still registered in the school would not wake up the next morning.
And… that was that. No one died, but the school closed.
The school closed because not one parent was interested (in dying).
Shivers…
Update: An alternative version is of Rabbi Avraham Chaim Ades threatening anyone who offered the seducers hospitality (“a cup of water”) with death that year.
