Chicken Fight

Nearly fifty years ago, a young rabbi was building a Jewish center in New England. As is often the case when someone wants to do something good, he faced powerful opposition, so he headed to New York to consult with the Lubavitcher Rebbe at a private audience.

The Rebbe responded with a story about the famous 18th-century Torah scholar, Rabbi Yonatan Eibeschutz:

An ardent fan of chicken fights, the king suggested a contest to resolve the matterRabbi Yonatan was well respected by the king of Prague, and often advised him on matters of state. Jealous of Rabbi Yonatan's wisdom, members of the court began speaking ill of him to the king. Initially the king refused to believe them, but as time went on, the slander grew and grew until the king was forced to deal with it. An ardent fan of chicken fights, the king suggested a contest to resolve the matter once and for all.

Each contestant had to train a chicken to be quick and vicious. The chickens would then have a race. Participation of all the king's advisers was mandatory. The advisor whose chicken won the race would prove his wisdom and talent, and would become the hero of the king's court. Rabbi Yonatan had no interest in participating and had no idea how to make anything in this world vicious, certainly not a chicken. Nevertheless, he had to participate.

The day of the race arrived. Each contestant brought a chicken that was groomed and trained for the occasion. Rabbi Yonatan brought a chicken too, except that his chicken was thin, weak and not at all aggressive. The contestants took their places and set down their chickens. The race began.

As soon as the race started, the quick and vicious chickens began to fight with one another. Rabbi Yonatan's chicken, however, untrained in such matters, quietly made its way around the brawling birds and crossed the finish line first while the other chickens were still busy tearing one another apart. After emerging as the winner, Rabbi Yonatan's status was never questioned again.

The Rebbe then concluded by telling the young rabbi, "In the end, we will prevail." Amazingly, that very week the rabbi's chief opponent moved out of the city for good. To this day, this Jewish center in New England is flourishing with the same rabbi at the helm.