There was a man who badly, really critically, needed a kidney. He went to the organization and asked for one. The organization said, “We’ll put you in line. There’s a long line, and there’s a while until we find the kidney, the proper match, and the proper system.” The man said, “Okay, I’ll wait, but I don’t really have a lot of time to wait.”
The next day, the man’s sister called the organization and said, “Do you have a kidney for my brother?” They said, “No, no, we don’t have you.” She called again in the afternoon. “Do you have a kidney for my brother?” “I told you this morning, lady, we don’t have a kidney.” The next day, she called back. “Do you have a kidney for my brother?” In the afternoon, she called back again: “Kidney for my brother.” The next day, she asked, “Do you have a kidney? Please, my brother needs a kidney.” The next day, she was like, “Lady, we’re trying.” And the next day, morning and afternoon, and morning and afternoon, day after day, week after week, month after month after month after month. I don’t know how many months—months and months and months of calling twice a day, every single day, for her brother to get a kidney to save his life.
Finally, they said, “You know, we got one, and we’re going to help you because of all your requests. We’re going to let your brother cut the line, and we’re going to give him the kidney.” And they gave him the kidney. Now the head of the organization was waiting for the sister to call. A week, a week and a half went by. Finally, he called the sister and said to her, “We gave your brother a kidney. How is he doing?” She said, “I have no idea.” The head of the organization said, “You have no idea? You asked us a thousand times for a kidney. We gave your brother a kidney. How’s he doing?” She said, “I’ll tell you the truth. My brother doesn’t talk to me and hasn’t spoken to me in years.”
So the rabbi said, “But you call every day?” She said, “He’s my brother.” The rabbi said, “Let me handle this.” He called the brother, the man who got the kidney. He asked, “How are you doing?” The brother said, “Thank you so much. You guys saved my life.” The rabbi said to the man, “I’d like you to come to my office. I want to meet with you.” The man said, “You saved my life? Of course I would.” He came to the office, and the rabbi said, “You said we saved your life.” The man said, “Yes, you got me a kidney.” The rabbi said, “We didn’t save your life. You know who saved your life? Your sister. A sister you haven’t spoken to in two or three years or more. She called us—can you close the door? Hit the bottom?—she called us every day, twice a day. She called us twice a day to get you a kidney.” The man said, “My sister? I haven’t spoken to her in years.” I said, “Yeah, we know. You got your kidney. She’s the reason we cut the line. She’s the reason you cut the line. She’s the reason you got a kidney.” And they put the brother and sister back together. Sure enough, they’ve been at peace ever since.
Now, I think the story is incredible. But let’s be honest. Isn’t this sister unbelievable? In all likelihood, she’s unbelievable in this story. But there’s probably something that got on her brother’s nerves. Maybe because she was a noodge. I don’t know. There’s something that got on her brother’s nerves, and she’s probably annoying at times and incredible at times, because that’s how most people are. Most people don’t walk on water. Most people aren’t perfectly soul people. They’re not all neshama (soul). We do great things, and we mess up in other things. Sometimes we mess up, and other things are on purpose because we’re tempted or we’re pulled.
Hashem said this about the Jewish people. “I said about you,” the Pasuk (verse) says, “I said that you were godly. You are the sons of the Most High.” Hashem said, “I thought that you could be people who are purely neshama.” But instead, you have to die like human beings.
What is this Pasuk referring to? It’s referring to the sin of the Egel (Golden Calf). When Hashem gave the Jewish people the Torah, He said, “Maybe here’s their chance. Maybe they can live by the Torah completely and entirely. Maybe they will be all soul. Maybe there will be a people now that Hashem spoke to them face to face. He gave them two mitzvot (commandments) by himself. Now they have the Torah. Now they have the Aseret HaDibrot (Ten Commandments). They have the 613 mitzvot. Maybe there will be all neshama. I thought maybe now you could be godly. And all of you are the sons of the Most High.” But within a few days, you committed the sin of the Egel, because at the end of the day, you’re humans, and humans mess up and have bodies.