Kiddush Hashem to a Neo-Nazi – Lighting up the Darkness

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Daniel Kravitz, the owner of a secondhand furniture shop in Denver, was taken aback by the customer who entered his store. The young man was dressed like a hoodlum, with a shaved head that clearly marked him as a neo-Nazi. His bare arms were covered with tattoos with the venomous message, “Kill Jews!” Fortunately, Daniel’s yarmulke was concealed beneath a cap.

Daniel spent the next hour assisting his customer. He took the man on a tour of the shop, helped him select a decent array of furniture, granted him a generous discount, and helped the young neo-Nazi load his purchases into a waiting pickup truck. Then, after looking the man over carefully to make sure he was not carrying any weapons, Daniel began to speak.

“Tell me,” he said cautiously, “Do you really feel what all those tattoos say?”

“You bet I do,” the man replied.

“Have you ever hurt anyone?” Daniel pressed.

“Yep!”

Daniel paused, then asked, “What do you have against the Jews?”

“They are thieves and liars” the customer launched into a tirade, spewing out every imaginable anti-Semitic stereotype.

Daniel listened patiently until the man had finished speaking. Then he removed his cap to reveal his yarmulke and said, “Are you aware that you have just spent an hour with a Jew? Haven’t I been honest, kind, and generous this whole time?”

The neo-Nazi gaped in disbelief. “No way, No you’re not, man!”

Daniel motioned to the mezuzah on the door, then showed the man a siddur on his desk.

“You can see very clearly that I am Jewish, and I’m not at all like the image you have of Jews. You have been brainwashed. I can’t believe that your parents raised you with this kind of hate. You must be estranged from them,” Daniel surmised. The neo-Nazi grimly confirmed his suspicions, he hadn’t spoken to his parents in ten years. Just then another costumer came in and Daniel wished the neo-Nazi a good day and turned to assist the other customer.

Six months later, the man returned to the store, this time with a full head of hair, decent clothes, and long sleeves to conceal his tattoos. To Daniel’s surprise, the man embraced him warmly. “I need to apologize to you and thank you,” he said tearfully. “You really made me reassess all of the ideas I had believed. Thanks to you, I now know what a Jew is, and I’ve decided to turn my life around. I’ve even reconnected with my parents.”

We can make a difference. We cannot give up. We can bring light to the deep darkness.

This story was shared by Daniel Kravitz to Rabbi Shraga Freedman author of Living Kiddush Hashem and sefer Mekadshei Shemecha. Please email [email protected] for a free download of sefer Mekadshei Shemecha and other resources.

{Matzav.com}


21 COMMENTS

  1. Nice try, but most of the time their hatred is irrational, and no matter how sweet we may be it won’t change their perverted minds. In terms of hishtadlus, the only viable approach is to make them understand that we are fully capable of defence and of devastating them back should they attack us, while not actively threatening them and staying out of their contact as much as possible: speak softly and carry a big stick – that’s how you deal with wild bears; with the above approach they may not love us, but they sure won’t attack those that can beat the living lights out of them.

      • Oh yeh? Why are you hiding your name, then? Where is the store located? What is the exact address? Maybe I can purchase some furniture that I need.
        One could be led to think that is some exaggeration in this story. In today’s day and age, everyone is looking for thee most inspirational dynamic maaseh, even if it means fudging the facts and little. Just saying.

        • What a silly post! And nasty, for no reason, too.

          Here’s why:

          Oh yeh [sic]? Why are you hiding your name, then?
          1) Identifying oneself as a child of a specific person isn’t exactly hiding one’s name.
          2) Using a screenname other than “Anonymous” proves nothing; this site has no verification process.

          Where is the store located? What is the exact address? Maybe I can purchase some furniture that I need.
          Providing information that anyone can look up on the internet is proof positive of one’s ID? Did that even make any sense to you when you typed it?

          One could be led to think that is some exaggeration in this story. In today’s day and age, everyone is looking for thee [sic] most inspirational dynamic maaseh, even if it means fudging the facts and little. Just saying.
          1) “Led” by what? Your own suspicious mind?
          2) The self-identified child of the story’s protagonist confirmed that the story’s 100% true. But you decided that (s)he’s “fudging the facts a little”, based on… nothing, other than your own suspicious way of thinking, because “everyone” does that in search of a “dynamic” (???) maaseh. Okaaaaay.

        • My name Isaac, my father is Dan. The store is located at 1900 W Mississippi ave Den Co 80223.
          Sure come get some furniture!
          The story is 100% true and not exaggerated, in fact its actually downplayed in this article.

          • Thank you for the comment. I can imagine the story was downplayed. I am the anonymous who has personally seen someone immediately go out the door, get in whatever shop happened to be opened, and have something else tattooed over his existing tattoo. It took much less than assisting him for an hour and giving a discount. And I can tell that, besides changing the shape of his skin pigments, this person has been extremely respectful, kind and sweethearted ever since. My story, too, is downplayed, believe it or not. Isaac and Dan will believe me.
            To all other commentors, please try it for yourself. Yes it should be called Darchei Shalom but is very beautiful nonetheless, and worth a few minutes of our time.

    • Well put. I confess to often being skeptical of such stories myself, but as you so eloquently said, “…one can / should do a little research before speaking negatively.”

  2. The entire story is 100% true. Dan is my father. The store is called Home Again Furniture located at 1900 W Mississippi ave Den Co 80204.
    Dan davens at Zera Abraham on the West side of Denver

  3. It may have happened exactly or not, but it is possible. I personally know a formerly despicable person who got a large black tattoo to cover something he no longer wanted to be seen on his arm.

  4. A few points – Anything Shraga Freedman would write is true. If you knew him and the home he grew up in then there would be no questions. And thanks to Michael in Seattle for the link to the store – and there is a news video about an interview and the owner is wearing a yarmulke.
    But perhaps most troubling is the never ending stream of nasty comments that are posted. Life experience has shown that they usually originate from people who are in pain – and experience validation by knocking down others. Frankly, I would be ashamed to show a non-religious person the comments on this story and many other articles as well. I urge people to step back, and think for a few minutes – and ask themselves – is it really worth it to leave such negative comments? A Freilichen Chanuka – SW

  5. Please stop referring to Darkey Sholom as Kidush H. The former might be important but is nothing more than just a practical living arrangement with the goyishe majority, while the latter has an obligation to sacrifice own life for in some cases. Kidush H is a matter of increasing kovod shamaim in the world – primarily in front of Yiden not goyim. Favorable goyishe opinion of us not only does not define Kidush H – in fact, most of the time we increase kovod shamaim, goyim will have a negative opinion, at least until yemos hamoshiach.

  6. People who doubt the story, probably doubt a lot of other things as well in life. Negative people will always find a flaw, something to critic. And guess what, these people who are always negative, criticize Chachomim, Gedolei Torah and Chazal. A wise person and a person who always sees the good in others, sees the good in Hashem. A person who is always quick to judge and see the bad in everything, will be quick to question Hashem.

      • It’s no mitzvah to post a negative comment especially before doing some basic “looking into”. Just because you don’t believe something doesn’t mean you have to do something nasty about it.

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