Rabbi Aron Amzalak and the 13-Year Dollar Mystery

Rabbi Aron Amzalak, a rabbi in Sydney, Australia, passed away on Monday. In 5749 (1988), the Rebbe gave him three dollars, but the fourth ended up with someone else. The mystery remained unsolved for years until a video surfaced that brought the puzzle pieces together.

By Anash.org writer

Rabbi Aron Amzalak, who served as Rabbi to the Machzika Hatorah/Nefesh community in Sydney, Australia, for over 50 years and as a senior mashgiach for the KA kashrus agency, passed away on the 22nd of Iyar at the age of 85.

The following incredible story about Rabbi Amzalak and the Rebbe was shared several years ago on social media and quickly went viral:

In the year 5749 (1988), during the Hebrew month of Kislev, R’ Aron Amzalak of Sydney, Australia, was in New York for the engagement of his daughter Miriam to a young man from Venezuela, Moshe Moskowitz.

On the day of the engagement, Wednesday, 22 Kislev, Amzalak went to inform the Rebbe of the good news. Thousands of people from all walks of life would line up to see the Rebbe, receive a blessing, and be given a dollar to distribute to charity. Each person had just a brief moment with the Rebbe to ask a quick question or make a short request, after which the line would move forward.

When Amzalak came before the Rebbe, he said with a beaming smile, “My daughter became a kallah today.” The Rebbe gave him a dollar and blessed him that the wedding should take place at an auspicious time.

Amzalak continued walking, and the next person in line – R’ Mendel Itkin of Los Angeles – stepped forward. But the Rebbe suddenly called Amzalak back. He was holding another dollar he intended to give in honor of the engagement. Amzalak, however, didn’t hear him. A moment of confusion followed: the Rebbe stood holding the dollar, the line stopped, and R’ Mendel Itkin waited in limbo, trying to call Amzalak back.

During the brief commotion, the Rebbe handed the dollar he was holding for Amzalak to Itkin. A moment later, Amzalak returned to the Rebbe, who gave him another dollar, saying, “This is for the bride.” Then the Rebbe took yet another dollar and said, “For the groom.” But before handing it over, the Rebbe took one more dollar and gave both to Amzalak, asking him with a smile, “Kest?” – a Yiddish term meaning dowry or financial support from a father-in-law to a son-in-law.

Amzalak smiled and accepted the additional two dollars. As he walked on, the Rebbe chuckled and said, “He doesn’t know what kest means!”

So what happened here? The Rebbe gave Amzalak four dollars: one for himself, one for his daughter, and two for his son-in-law. And a fifth dollar—meant for Amzalak—ended up with a “random” man from Los Angeles.

Now fast-forward 13 years. In 2003, that man from Los Angeles – Mendel Itkin – married Amzalak’s other daughter, Aviva.

The dollar that was intended for one daughter ended up with the future husband of the other daughter, who just happened to be next in line. And the extra dollar “for the groom” turned out to be for a second groom in the Amzalak family – though nobody knew it at the time.

The Rebbe’s knowing smile makes perfect sense in hindsight.

But there’s more.

This whole moment was captured on video. Yet for years, no one connected the dots, until someone happened to stumble upon the video on YouTube, recognized Amzalak, and sent it to him. The family was stunned to see that a future father-in-law and son-in-law had stood next to each other without knowing it—and that the Rebbe had seemingly orchestrated the match years in advance.

VIDEO: