The Color of Techeiles
Torah learning
When Rav Gershon Henoch came up with his new formula for reintroducing the techeiles with which to dye the wool of tzitzis, he created a huge stir. He went from rebbe to rebbe trying to get their approval for his method. Among those he approached was Rav Yehoshua of Belz, who turned him down. The Rebbe did not approve of his dye.
"Let me explain my refusal," Rav Yehoshua said. "If you wish to argue with me using your Talmudic skills and erudition, you will surely defeat me, because your intellectual prowess in Torah is certainly superior to mine. However, I will tell you a story that explains why I simply cannot agree with you.
"Once, my saintly father, the tzaddik, the Sar Sholom of Belz, woke me at dawn and asked me to come outside with him. He pointed upward to the heavens and said, 'Do you see the color of the sky? This is the color of techeiles.'
"Now, unfortunately, the color you show me here does not match the color my father showed me."