The dynasty of Ger had many great tzaddikim, one of whom was the Beis Yisroel of Ger. When the chassidim would go into the Rebbe, they would bring a “kvittel,” a piece of paper that had their names written on it. One of the chassidim decided that he would take it upon himself to ensure there was always adequate paper by the Rebbe for anyone who needed it. He bought beautiful, high-quality stationery and planned to present it to the Rebbe, excited to help facilitate this improvement.
This was in a time and place where such stationery was not common or cheap but when he proudly presented the paper to the Rebbe, the holy Beis Yisroel looked at it, thanked him for such a respectable contribution, but asked him to take the papers back to the manufacturer and request a change to the design. The change that he wanted was that he remove the words בס”ד, which stands for “bisiyatta diShmaya”, “with the assistance of Heaven”, which the chassid had gotten preprinted on every piece of paper. The chassid was shocked! It was a common practice for many years that when a Yid writes, he put the letters בס”ד on top of the paper as a way of acknowledging his faith that everything can only be done with the help of Hashem! Why does the Rebbe want him to remove it?
The Rebbe responded: “Emunah has to be personal, and it needs to come with your own handwriting. Emunah cannot be preprinted! If I am writing words of Torah on a piece of paper, and I am trying to express myself in writing, I have to write with my own hands, bisiyatta diShmaya, with the help of Hashem. My emunah has to be written in my own handwriting. When a Yid comes in and is writing a kvittel, they have to express their emunah, written in their own handwriting. You cannot have a preprinted, one-size-fits-all declaration of bisiyatta diShmaya.”
Throughout our week, Hashem presents us with many different opportunities to express our emunah in our own handwritten way. Hashem should bless us with the ability to express ourselves properly with our handwritten emunah. Some people’s handwriting is more legible and nicer, and some is less so. The important thing is that it’s our own unique expression of emunah. If it’s in your handwriting, the Rebono Shel Olam appreciates it! May we be zoche to express ourselves in this way, bisiyatta diShmaya, and may we merit the coming of Moshaich b’rachamim, bimheira b’yameinu amen.
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Issue 14.