The 2 Hoshia's

n the city of Vitebsk lived two tea merchants, both named Hoshia. One was known as "Big Hoshia and the other, "Little Hoshia." Big Hoshia was a wealthy man, with a large, respectable establishment. Little Hoshia was a small-time operator, forever scrambling for loans to keep his business afloat.

One day a message arrived that one of Little Hoshia's tea shipments had been confiscated at the border by customs officials. For the poor man, this spelled utter ruin. Not only would he lose everything, he would be left with crushing debts which he would never be able to repay.

"I was there," Rebbetzin Devorah Leah, daughter of Rabbi Menachem Mendel, third Rebbe of Lubavitch told, "when they broke the news to Reb Hoshia, who was in Lubavitch at the time. The unfortunate man collapsed in a dead faint; time and again they revived him, but as soon as he remembered what had occurred, he would pass out once more.

"We ran to my father and told him of Reb Hoshia's state. Father instructed that when Reb Hoshia is again revived, we should tell him that the messenger is mistaken. Shortly thereafter, the matter was indeed clarified. It turned out that the confiscated shipment belonged to the other Hoshia, the tea merchant, Big Hoshia, who would hardly feel the loss.

"Father always maintained that he never performed miracles. Now, the Chasidim who had witnessed the incident claimed that they had caught him red-handed with a supernatural feat. 'You are mistaken,' replied Father. 'There was nothing miraculous about my prediction.

You see, our Sages tell us that whenever the AlmIghty causes a person to undergo a challenge or trial in his life, He always provides him with the capacity and fortitude to bear it and to learn from the experience. So, when I saw a calamity which Reb Hoshia was not equipped to deal with, I understood that it was not meant for him. Obviously, there must have been some misunderstanding...'"