When the Besht was in Mezhibozh he suffered from great persecutions, but his name constantly grew stronger and mightier.

The daughter of a Misnaged who lived in a Shtetl far away from Mezhibozh became very ill. The doctors had already given up on her – so several Jews advised him to meet the Besht.

Not having any other options, he accepted the advice and he set out on his journey. Not far from Mezhibozh a terrible blizzard and snowstorm started to fall. 

He barely managed to find shelter in the house of a Jew who sat and learned.

He was almost completely frozen. The Jew greeted him with great hospitality and gave him food, drink, and dry clothes.

Afterward the Jew – who was a big Misnaged, but also a great Torah scholar – asked him: “Where is a Jew traveling in such weather?” The Jew whose daughter was very ill replied: “To the Besht. To save my sick daughter.”

As soon as the host heard this, he became furious and wanted to throw him outside in the stormy weather.

The Jew pleaded for mercy, and he had to promise his host that he would return home without traveling to the Besht.

This story was related to the Besht. Whereupon he said: “The host is a great man. He is on the level of Rav, and Rav has the status of a Tanna who can disagree [with other Tana’aim].”²

I.F.

Mezhibozher Rebbe

1. See Eruvin 50b רב תנא הוא ופליג. https://www.sefaria.org.il/Eruvin.50b.15?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en. Rav himself had tanna status and therefore, unlike later amora’im, could disagree with the views of tanna’im.