The daughter of Rav Yaakov Hermann fell ill and was hospitalized in serious condition. All week long her parents were at her bedside but on Friday they returned home to prepare for Shabbat properly. "I'm sure that in the merit of Shabbat, she will heal," the Rav said.

On Shabbat morning, a telegram came announcing the girl's death. One of her sisters, who received the message, decided not to give it to her parents until the end of Shabbat, after Havdalah.

At that moment, she went to her father to tell him the sad news. Even before she had time to speak, a new telegram arrived, according to which the patient was now out of danger. The previous message, they learned, was due to a misunderstanding. "You see," concluded Rav Hermann, "it is in the merit of Shabbat!"