She Shall Be Praised

A mother with nine children in yeshivos and no food in the cupboard would not call them home to help support the family. “When I am in the Next World, I’ll need their help. Now, I’ll survive.” She did -- and they did. Blumka, a lone poor woman pushed through the crowd to bring food to the Shaagas Aryeh and his wife, who were being expelled from Minsk on Erev Shabbos. Gratefully, he blessed her and she prospered. Rebbetzin Bruck braved the threat of death to hide a Jewish boy from the hostile Polish army. She saved not only his soul but his life. This book is the story of such Jewish women -- some famous, most almost anonymous. All of them embodied values, conviction, sincerity, kindness, faith, selflessness -- the virtues that have made the Jewish wife and mother the foundation of her home, the molder of her children, the backbone of Jewish life, the soul of Jewish history. In modern times with their topsy-turvy perspective, the historic role of the Jewish woman seems an anomaly. How does one reconcile modesty with strength, loyalty to home and family with influence on society? Abraham and Sarah knew how. When angels came, Abraham announced proudly that she was in the tent. But when the family was at a turning point, G-d Himself told Abraham to heed whatever Sarah said. The secret of the Jewish woman? Avraham Erlanger, the author of this charming collection, looked for it in real life, spread across centuries and continents. He collected stories from scores of sources, on fourteen areas of life. Taken together, they weave portraits of goodness and greatness. This is a book to pick up again and again, as we get to know dozens of women who will make us exclaim, with King Solomon, “False is grace and vain is beauty, a G-d-fearing woman -- she shall be praised!”