Go to the Hospital Now

A most wondrous story reached us from Rabbi Yosef Bitton, may Hashem protect and sustain him, from the city of Ashdod. A friend of his, a senior lawyer by profession, told the story with fear and trembling. Several Breslov Chassidim came to this lawyer; for some reason, they had become entangled in a certain business deal, and another lawyer was suing them for extremely high sums that they simply did not have. The wicked lawyer literally exploited a legal loophole that allowed him to sue the Chassidim, even though in truth, the Chassidim had done no wrong and committed no crime. The entire issue was that they had acted with pure innocence and were merely extorted by someone who deceived them. Now, the lawyer of that swindler was continuing the wickedness, suing them for massive amounts of money.

Naturally, the Chassidim acted through the paths of prayer and Hisbodedus (personal, secluded prayer). They went to the true tzaddikim of our generation and visited the graves of the tzaddikim who dwell in the dust. Yet, at the same time, they approached the lawyer telling this story, so that he could help rescue them from the despicable false plot of the lawyer suing them.

The Breslov Chassidim requested that the lawyer take on their case free of charge, since they had no ability to pay anything. They had already been extorted out of large sums by that swindler, and now the lawyer was suing them for enormous amounts, so they desperately needed help with true mesiras nefesh (self-sacrifice). To convince the lawyer to agree and perform this act of kindness for them, they told him they would bring him to their teacher and master, the tzaddik Rabbi Eliezer Berland, so that he could receive a blessing for success in his life. The lawyer agreed to do this kindness and perform a true mitzvah for his fellow Jews. A few days later, he arrived at the home of Rabbi Berland, accompanied by the group of Chassidim. They explained to the Rav that this was the precious and righteous lawyer who had agreed to represent them for free, and they asked the Rav to bless him in the merit of this mitzvah.

The lawyer received the Rav's blessing, but beyond the blessing, the Rav instructed him exactly how to proceed regarding filing an appeal against the lawsuit of the wicked lawyer suing the Chassidim. Upon leaving the Rav's house, the lawyer remarked that he had originally planned to handle the case completely differently and that he did not understand the logic behind the Rav's instructions at all. However, since the Chassidim completely nullified themselves to the Rav, he was willing to follow that path and do exactly as the Rav instructed. And so it was.

A short period passed, and behold, the wicked lawyer, realizing that the Chassidim had retained the services of this lawyer, sued the lawyer himself over a tax matter for the sum of ninety thousand shekels. This was not an insignificant amount at all, especially considering that the lawyer had earned absolutely nothing from filing the appeal and managing the case against the Chassidim, having done it entirely on a volunteer basis.

It would have been a massive loss of a huge sum if the lawsuit had indeed been accepted. In the meantime, however, the lawyer decided to put all his legal efforts aside and go up to the home of the tzaddik, Rabbi Eliezer Berland, who had advised him on how to act. On a simple level, it seemingly appeared that precisely because he had obeyed the tzaddik, Rabbi Berland, these troubles and this terrible lawsuit had come upon him from the lawyer trying to harass him. The lawyer asked to enter the Rav's room to receive his blessing and tell him what had happened, hoping the Rav would extricate him from this major lawsuit, which could even endanger his status as a lawyer. (As is known, the Bar Association is quick to revoke a lawyer's license and position if a lawsuit is filed against him with sufficient cause for dismissal.)

During that period, it was very difficult to gain access to Rabbi Berland. When the lawyer arrived at the Rav's home in Beitar, they did not let him in. But he spoke with anyone he possibly could and tried with all his might to enter the tzaddik's room, until the Rav's son, Rabbi Nachman Berland shlit"a, arrived and brought him in to see the Rav. The lawyer briefly told the Rav how he had obeyed his instructions regarding the matter required to help the group of Chassidim entangled in the lawsuit with the wicked lawyer, and how now he himself was entangled in a lawsuit with that same wicked lawyer who was trying with all his might to harm him.

The Rav made a motion with his hand, telling the lawyer to leave, and said to him decisively, "Go to the hospital." The lawyer did not understand. He tried again to tell the Rav that he had come to receive a blessing and advice regarding the lawyer's lawsuit, and that he did not need a blessing for healing. He tried to explain to the Rav that he had no need to go to the hospital at all, but rather to the courthouse, if anything. But the Rav said again that he should go swiftly to the hospital, and with that, the meeting ended.

The lawyer left the Rav's house completely confused. He did not understand what this was about or why he was being treated this way. He had come to do a kindness for some Chassidim, received a blessing and advice, and when the situation turned against him, they were sending him to the hospital. But he felt that the tzaddik does not just say things for no reason. Perhaps there was a deeper matter here, and he needed to act with pure faith and follow the Rav's words even if he did not understand them. Thus, the lawyer decided to go immediately to the hospital, repeatedly muttering to himself the phrase, "What do I have to lose?" He only went to the hospital so that his conscience wouldn't beat him up later, and so he wouldn't be tormented by the question of why he hadn't listened and obeyed the tzaddik. In his mind, however, he saw absolutely no logic in the matter.

Halfway there, he began to realize that he was doing something that could cause him great embarrassment. He was not accustomed, like Breslov Chassidim, to loving and cherishing humiliation; honor and status were still important to him. He could not imagine himself arriving at the emergency room and asking to be admitted because he had a referral from Rabbi Berland. He suddenly realized that he had no medical referral and no pain whatsoever, and that he needed to quickly find some excuse to explain his arrival at the emergency room.

By the time his turn came in the emergency room, he had already managed to formulate his story. He told them he was experiencing chest pains, since he had experienced some heart complications in the past (which was true, but only regarding the past; currently, the lawyer felt no pain at all). He was taken in for tests, and the tests revealed that ninety percent of his heart's arteries were blocked and he urgently needed to undergo surgery. His life was saved in the merit of listening to the tzaddik. While he was still recovering from surgery, they explained to him that had he arrived just a few hours later, he could have died of cardiac arrest, Heaven forbid. They praised him for the alertness he showed by coming to the hospital. But he knew there was no alertness here at all, only an open miracle and the Ruach HaKodesh (Divine Inspiration) of the tzaddik, Rabbi Berland shlit"a. If he deserved any praise, it was only for deciding to obey the tzaddik and not dismiss his words, even though he had not understood them at all.

But the story did not end there. During his days of hospitalization after the surgery, it came to his attention that the same wicked lawyer who had sued him and tormented the Chassidim with his malicious lawsuits had also been rushed to that very same hospital, suffering from a severe illness. A few days later, he passed away. The lawsuit that had been hovering over his head and the heads of the Chassidim was automatically nullified. The lawyer who had done a kindness for the Chassidim and listened to the voice of the tzaddik received his life as a gift. More than anything, he received the great merit of believing in tzaddikim—something that is not to be taken for granted, and praiseworthy is the one who merits this.

From the book "Pele Elyon, Part 3"