Eran Lavi and the Media Channel

Nearly twenty years ago, relates Rabbi Yosef Schorr, the director of the Shuvu Banim community, a group of us traveled as spiritual emissaries on a holy mission for the Shuvu Banim Yeshiva to spread Judaism and emunah (faith) to the general public. On one particularly memorable occasion, we traveled to a military outpost in the Eilat area, at the border crossing between Israel and the Sinai Peninsula, and distributed sufganiyot (doughnuts) to the soldiers serving there. We began with friendly conversation with the soldiers, and once the sufganiyot opened their hearts, we spoke about Judaism and mitzvos, about emunah and tefillah (prayer). By the grace of Hashem, in most cases, there were soldiers who showed interest and thirstily drank in the words of chizuk (strengthening and encouragement).

However, as always, there were also those who were so far removed from anything that carried even a spark of Judaism, and they sealed their ears from listening. There were times when they even mocked our words, whether quietly or loudly, and tried to harass us, attempting to paint us with the image and reputation of missionaries, Heaven forbid, who were trying to force their beliefs upon the soldiers.

Yet, in most cases, the overwhelming majority of the soldiers were traditional, or at the very least came from homes that respected tradition and religion. Thus, alongside the cynicism and disrespect that we accepted as a gift of bizyonos (humiliations), we merited to awaken a great spiritual stirring in the hearts of the soldiers. Some of those soldiers returned in complete teshuvah (repentance), while others continue to strengthen themselves on their own path but remain in touch.

On that trip to the southern border of Israel, all the soldiers in the area participated in the conversation with us, except for one soldier. That soldier was educated and intellectual, and he felt it was beneath him to listen to a few Charedi Breslov Chassidim talking about matters of emunah.

In such cases, we remained faithful to the path of Rebbe Nachman, who said that there is no despair in the world at all. Certainly, Hashem never despairs of any Jew, and therefore, we too walked in the ways of the Creator, blessed be He, and did not give up on even the most distant Jew. On the contrary, we tried with all our might to draw him into the conversation so that he would hear a few words of Torah and emunah, hoping that the illuminating light within the Torah would bring him back in teshuvah. Rebbe Nachman teaches us that when people are dancing and one person remains outside and does not join the dancing, there is a spiritual concept of pulling him into the dance, the joy, and the gladness, even against his will, so that he will not continue to excuse his sadness and distance by claiming that no one reached out a hand to him.

We, too, acted in this manner and tried to ensure that the circle of joy and words of emunah with the soldiers would not leave a single soldier who hadn't heard us, whatever his excuses might be. This was especially true if his excuse was that he was an intellectual, for the wisdom of the Torah is greater and more immense than all other wisdoms combined.

In such instances, Rabbi Nasan Bezanson would speak with wondrous expertise about details in history and science, so much so that even the educated soldiers would be left open-mouthed at his precise knowledge of worldly subjects, and they would then become interested in hearing about emunah as well. On that particular trip, Rabbi Bezanson was not with us, but we remembered a few historical details, dates, and names of kings, in order to impress the souls trapped in the klipah (spiritual husk) of secular intellect. We began to speak loudly about these topics, tossing various dates and subjects into the air.

And indeed, that soldier who had stood at a distance and only mocked us began to draw closer and joined the conversation. He saw that he was facing cultured people and figured that conversing with us would be pleasant for him. We spoke about Judaism and emunah, and ever since, that soldier has kept in touch with us. This connection has endured to this day, for nearly twenty years!

That soldier, whose name is Eran, told us that he had finished his mandatory military service eight years prior and was now called up for reserve duty. This was the first time he had returned to the army since leaving eight years ago. He also shared that by profession he is a cameraman, working in the mainstream media.

In the year 5779 (2018-2019), following the media attack claiming that Rabbi Berland promises families of the sick that he will heal their ailing relative and performs a Pidyon Nefesh (redemption of the soul)—a topic we addressed extensively in a comprehensive article appearing in this book—I decided to call Eran. I wanted to tell him about two cases of techiyas hameisim (resurrection of the dead) and the healing of critically ill patients that occurred within our own family, where the Rav healed our sick family members through open miracles, without asking for any Pidyon Nefesh whatsoever.

If I could have, I would have said this in the media, but of course, the media at that time only sought to slander. Their entire goal was to eradicate the pure Jewish faith and the emunah in tzaddikim that still remains within the Jewish people, and to mock it. Therefore, I decided to speak about it at least with someone from within the media—with Eran the cameraman. I told Eran the stories about my two family members whom, as mentioned, the Rav healed through an open miracle and without a Pidyon Nefesh. Then Eran said to me, "Do you want to hear a story about the Rav? Listen closely!"

The beginning of the story took place together with Rabbi Yosef Schorr, who had relayed the question to the Rav during those days. However, the end of the story was a revelation even to him. This is what Eran Lavi recounted in that phone call:

"A few years ago, my brother fell ill and suffered severe complications in his intestines. We took him to the best doctors, and tests revealed that he had a knot in his intestines, requiring surgery to untangle it. We indeed proceeded with the surgery, but during the hours my brother was under general anesthesia for the operation, he suffered a stroke. Since his body was anesthetized, the surgeons did not identify what was happening and continued their work on his intestines, while at the very same time, his brain was sustaining horrific damage.

"When time passed after the surgery and my brother still had not woken up from the anesthesia, they began to realize that something had gone wrong. In the tests they conducted, they discovered that he had suffered a stroke that caused severe brain damage. My brother fell into a vegetative state. All attempts to restore his brain to functioning were of no avail.

"We are a very serious family, and when such a thing happened, we spared no expense. We took my brother to all the senior surgeons and professors who specialize in the brain, trying to restore some level of function. Initially, he was hospitalized at Hadassah Ein Kerem, then at Shaare Zedek, and finally, we traveled to Paris to one of the greatest brain researchers in the world. But they all gave up and explained it to us in these exact words: 'You cannot turn a sponge into a brain. His brain has been damaged and is like a sponge; a large percentage of it is no longer a brain, and there is nothing to be done.'

"We are a family that generally does not believe in rabbis. However, with my brother's condition being so severe and the doctors unable to do anything, we tried every possible avenue and decided to go to rabbis as well, in an attempt to bring about a salvation for my brother."

At that time, as I remember well, we turned to Rabbi Ifergan, "The X-ray," from Netivot, and to Rabbi David Abuchatzeira from Nahariya, but both of these tzaddikim said there was nothing to be done. Rabbi David Abuchatzeira shared in the family's sorrow, saying, "How is it possible to restore a damaged brain?"

We almost despaired of any chance and hope, until I remembered Rabbi Yosef Schor, my friend from reserve duty on the Sinai border, the Breslov Chassid who came to bring joy and speak with us about emunah (faith). I remembered that he was connected to the tzaddik, Rabbi Eliezer Berland, and I asked him to mention my brother's name for a blessing to the Rav.

Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a wrote a few lines on a note, and Rabbi Yosef Schor passed the note in the Rav's handwriting to me. There were a few sentences in Aramaic there, which the Rav commanded to be said next to my brother's bed, and to place the note under his pillow. On the back of the note, the Rav wrote a few words: "He will get up, he will walk, he will speak."

Contrary to all the prognoses of the senior doctors—who, by the way, took enormous sums from us just to tell us that they were completely unable to help—only the note and the blessing of Rabbi Berland, who did not ask us for a single shekel, helped in an amazing way.

After a short period, my brother woke up. Following a rehabilitation process, he got up and began to learn to walk, and he is managing to speak a few words. His speech will also return to him, with Hashem's help, after the rehabilitation process, because the Rav promised and wrote in the note, "He will speak," and we believe this with complete faith. This week, my brother received his driver's license back, which proves a blessed rehabilitation and good functioning.

It is very interesting that the order of my brother's rehabilitation was exactly according to the order of the words the Rav wrote. He got up and started walking before he started speaking, exactly as the Rav said. As mentioned, this was contrary to all the prognoses of the greatest doctors in the world in the field of neurology.

During the same week that the unprecedented attack took place on the news broadcasts in the general media against the practices of our teacher, the Rav, regarding Pidyon Nefesh and healing the sick, an evening conversation developed in my family's home on the subject. Naturally, they began to speak against the Rav and disrespect all the rabbis, Heaven forbid. I silenced everyone and told them, "You can say whatever you want, but the last people who can speak against the power of tzaddikim in general, and against Rabbi Berland in particular, are you."

"Your brother rose from a vegetative state and severe brain damage only in the merit of the blessing of Rabbi Berland, so how are you capable of speaking?" And indeed, when they all heard from me that the Rav who gave the miraculous note was Rabbi Berland, the same Rav they had just seen in the media, they were in shock. They took it upon themselves not to speak about tzaddikim, and not to believe a single word said in the media, except for the date and the time...

From the book "Pele Elyon, Part 3"