“Check the Meat”—How One Question Changed Everything

Rabbi Yisrael Stein from Tel Aviv, author of Kaftor VaFerach, shares a powerful personal story—one that changed his life over three decades ago.

“About 36 years ago,” Rabbi Stein begins, “I was offered to buy a share in a successful nursing home in Netanya. It sounded like a dream opportunity. The place was already running smoothly, and the partners didn’t have to do much besides collect profits. One partner wanted out and was offering his share for about $25,000—but he was earning $5,000 a month. That kind of return was almost unheard of.”

At the time, Rabbi Stein was a regular attendee of Rabbi Ben Zion Palman’s Torah classes. After one such class, he asked Rabbi Palman for advice about the deal. Rabbi Palman didn’t answer directly. Instead, he suggested, “You should ask Rabbi Steinman.”

Rabbi Aharon Yehuda Leib Steinman zt"l was one of the greatest Torah sages of the generation, known for his deep wisdom and simple lifestyle. Rabbi Stein took the advice seriously and went straight to Rabbi Steinman’s home in Bnei Brak on 5 Chazon Ish Street.

“I explained everything about the offer,” Rabbi Stein recalls. “Rabbi Steinman listened carefully, and then said something that surprised me: ‘It sounds like a good deal. But check if they’re not feeding the elderly non-kosher meat. If they are, the whole thing isn’t worth it.’”

This warning puzzled Rabbi Stein. Every nursing home in Israel needs kosher certification—how could non-kosher food be involved? But he trusted Rabbi Steinman’s words and decided to look into it.

He arranged a meeting with the nursing home’s management and asked many questions, including about the food. The manager answered confidently, “Of course, the place is kosher.” But when Rabbi Stein pressed further—“Where do you buy your meat?”—the answer was, “At the Carmel Market.”

“Does the meat there have kosher certification?” Rabbi Stein asked. The manager grew defensive: “Why complicate things? We have a kosher certificate. Buying meat at the market saves us money—it’s only one lira per kilo instead of ten!”

That answer didn’t sit right with Rabbi Stein. It sounded like corners were being cut. He decided to walk away from the deal.

Just a week later, he opened the newspaper—and was shocked. The headline read: State of Israel Sues Nursing Home. It was the same nursing home he had almost invested in.

The article explained that the Ministry of Welfare had opened a case against the facility. The lead plaintiff was Rabbi Shmuel Bukovsky, the ministry’s legal advisor—and a neighbor of Rabbi Stein. Rabbi Stein decided to ask him what had happened.

Rabbi Bukovsky placed his hands on his head in distress. “I never imagined Jews could stoop so low—to save a bit of money, they murdered the elderly,” he said.

He went on to explain that the nursing home had been required to serve beef to the residents. Instead, to save costs, they had been buying horse and donkey meat—non-kosher, and even dangerous. Cooked in a way to hide the difference, this meat was filled with toxins and had caused many deaths over time.

“At that moment,” says Rabbi Stein, “I understood exactly what Rabbi Steinman meant. When he said, ‘Check the meat,’ he saved me—not only from financial loss, but from being part of something that was hurting people. His holy words came from a place I still can’t fully grasp.”

In Judaism, kashrut—the laws of kosher food—is not just about ritual. It's about holiness, health, and sensitivity to life. The Torah teaches us to honor the body, a gift from Hashem, and to be careful about what we consume. In this story, a great rabbi sensed danger in a way that can only be described as ruach hakodesh—a Divine insight.