My Brakes Failed on a Downhill Ride. I Thought I Was Going to Die.

A moment can change a life. Sometimes a person understands a message only when standing at the edge of danger. The following story is a powerful reminder of the holiness of prayer and the synagogue.

A Downhill Ride Toward Disaster

In the publication 'Mikdashi Tira'u', the following story was shared:

“During the most recent holiday break, I went on a bike riding trip with friends. On one of the downhills the brakes failed, and the bike picked up speed and was flying at a terrifying pace. I shouted at the top of my lungs, ‘Help! Help!’ I knew I was about to crash into the ravine. I cried and recited vidui. I literally saw death before my eyes.

And then, suddenly, a scene from the previous Shabbat came to mind. The gabai, who was responsible for making sure people did not talk during tefillah, kept approaching me again and again, pleading with me: ‘Please, stop talking during tefillah and Keriyat HaTorah. It is a chillul Hashem. You are disgracing Hashem. You are sinning and causing others to sin.’ And I was simply waiting for him to leave so I could return to my conversation.

Those were the thoughts racing through my head in those critical seconds. I understood the hint immediately. With my last bit of strength I cried out: ‘Ribono Shel Olam, I accept upon myself never again to speak during tefillah and Keriyat HaTorah under any circumstances. Please, in the merit of this commitment, save me and let me come out of this without injury.’

Saved in an Instant

Salvation from Hashem came immediately. From afar I spotted a huge mound of sand mixed with gravel that a company had prepared while paving the entrance and the new road to Jerusalem. I steered the bike toward that rise, and that is how I stopped and was saved. I walked away without a scratch, baruch Hashem.

Of course I will keep my promise fully, and my advice to everyone is simple. Do not wait for hints.”

The Holiness of the Synagogue

In the mussar work Kav HaYashar, Chapter 50, it is written that the walls of the synagogue are extremely holy, and the light of the Shechinah hovers over them at all times. For this reason, there is a custom to kiss the synagogue walls because of their holiness.

In Sefer Hasidim, the respect due in a synagogue is described with striking words. If you see the house of a tzaddik or a synagogue in ruins, or wicked people dwelling in it, know that Jews once lived there in a degrading way. A beit midrash where people behave with levity will ultimately fall into the hands of non-Jews. Our forefathers told us, and we have seen with our own eyes, that many synagogues were turned into houses of idol worship because people treated them lightly.

These sources remind us that a synagogue is not just a building. It is a place where the Shechinah rests. The way we behave within its walls carries weight far beyond what we may imagine.