Listen: We are in a time of great favor and mercy

Many of us ask ourselves—after all, the great tzaddik Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a brings about salvations for so many! How can I, a small person, help such an immense tzaddik?! Before us are the stirring words of Rabbi Ofer Erez shlit"a, one of the greatest baalei teshuvah (those who bring others to repentance) of our generation and one of the chosen students of Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a. "What we have seen from the Rav over all these years, his service of Hashem and his self-sacrifice for the collective and the individual, places upon us an obligation not to be indifferent to the situation of the tzaddik—the great tzaddik Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a."

"Each one of us has an obligation to pray for the tzaddik. There is an evil inclination that wants to cool us down, to prevent us from awakening in prayer or any other way for the salvation of the tzaddik, to the point that the holy Zohar says that the power of impurity of Esau is coldness. This has very great importance in Heaven, as Hashem sees that we are not indifferent to the situation of the tzaddik. We must remember that the greater the tzaddik, the more he carries our iniquities. It is written in Isaiah, chapter 53: 'But he was wounded because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his bruises we were healed.' We do not know to what extent the tzaddikim in general, and Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a in particular, add life and blessing to each one of us through the sufferings they take upon themselves. In truth, we cannot repay these kindnesses, but the least we can do is to recite the Tikkun HaKlali, and to mention the tzaddik in our personal prayer (hitbodedut) and in our prayers. To ask that the Rav be saved from this terrible exile. One must remember that the tzaddik is in a very terrible exile; I do not know if such a thing has ever been heard of—a man so great in Torah who has sacrificed himself for decades for every holy matter and every detail of the Torah, at such an age, having to suffer such torments that are inconceivable and unheard of."

"We travel a lot in Israel and around the world for the sake of spreading Torah and bringing the distant closer, and everywhere we arrive, people inquire about the welfare of Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a. We see that people who have a heart feel the pain of the tzaddik. Many of us ask—Rabbi Berland shlit"a has brought about very great salvations for many people and redeemed many from distress, why does he need my prayer? But from Heaven, they want our awakening, and if we do not awaken to this, Heaven forbid, it could stir up a great accusation against us! There is nothing greater than unity, to act without asking questions; our true sword is prayer and supplication."

"We need to ask ourselves—what must we do to bring Mashiach? Our prayer for Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a is also included in the prayer for the entire Jewish people, because every Jew is connected to the soul of the tzaddik. We must not forget that the Jewish people are undergoing exile and terrible sufferings in body and soul, and we are in a period of great concealment. With all this, we are in a time of great favor and mercy. Therefore, we must not be indifferent; I see how immense this time of favor is—Hashem is bringing us to teshuvah (repentance) when we least expect it."

Courtesy of the Information Line 02-587-5777