The long-distance call
The Rev. Billy Graham went to see the Pope in Rome. While he was waiting, Billy noticed a red phone. As he was ushered in to talk to the Pope, he asked, “What’s the red phone for?”
“That’s to talk to God,” came the reply.
“Really,” Graham gasped, “how much does such a call cost? It’s an awful long way.”
“$10,000 a minute, but it’s well worth it,” replied the Pope.
Some weeks later, Graham went to see the chief rabbi in Jerusalem. He noticed that he, too, had a red phone. “I don’t suppose,” asked the reverend, “that this phone is to talk to God?”
“Yes, it is,” came the reply.
“And how much does that cost?” Graham inquired.
“Twenty cents a minute,” shrugged the chief rabbi.
“How come it’s so cheap?” Graham asked, “the Pope has a phone like that and it costs $10,000 a minute!”
“Well,” said the chief rabbi with a grin, “from here it’s just a local call.”
© david minkoff
CopyrightJ, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California