My grandfather, Rabbi Jacob J. Hecht, had a dear friend, Yossel Hirsch. He and his brother ran a bakery in Brooklyn, New York, and were survivors of World War II. One day, while incarcerated in the Mauthausen Concentration Camp in Austria, Yossel was rounded up together with other prisoners.
The Nazis were always experimenting with different ways to expedite the killing of their prisoners, and that evening, they were trying something new. They forced the group of prisoners into an ammonia-chilled refrigerator in the hope that they would all freeze to death. Next to Yossel in that freezing death trap was a friend of his of small stature. As he stood there shivering, he turned to Yossel and said, “Yossele, ich bin kalt!” (Yossele, I’m cold!). Yossel, caring for his friend, wrapped his arms around him and started to rub him, his body, his hands, his feet. All that night, he focused on making sure he could feel the warmth of his friend, and pleaded with him not to give up. When morning came, they were greeted with the horrific sight of death all around them. Yossel and his friend were the sole survivors of that ordeal. Having worked to warm his friend, he had raised the temperature of his own body and survived. My grandfather would share this story, and he would conclude, “When you help another person in despair, you’re really helping yourself.”
When Hashem instructed Moshe to take a census of the Jewish nation by collecting a half shekel from each individual, Moshe was confused. In response, the midrash tells us, Hashem showed him a coin of fire. It’s surprising that Moshe seemed to be unsure what a half shekel was and it remains unclear why a coin of fire cleared this up for him. Perhaps Moshe wasn’t unsure about the coin, but understanding the effort people put in to make a buck and how difficult it can be to then let go of some of it, he was unsure how to motivate the giving. To this, Hashem showed him a coin of fire. Fire is the one physical element that when shared, isn’t diminished but increases. Share the contents of one cup into another cup and the first will have less than before, but if you share the flame of one candle with another, you increase the light!
By showing Moshe a coin of fire, Hashem was telling him to share the message with the people that when we give of our resources to assist another, we’re not diminished, but enhanced. As my grandfather’s friend, Yossel, learnt on that fateful night in the freezer at the Mauthausen Concentration Camp, when you help another, you’re really helping yourself.
