Revealed for the First Time: A Letter Sent by the Esteemed Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a to the Esteemed Rabbi Yoram Abergel zt"l in the Year 5758

Recently, the great leaders of Israel from across the Torah spectrum have issued a holy call to the Jewish people in Israel and the diaspora. In all cases, the nature of the call was identical, expressed as a request for the public to participate in the writing of Torah scrolls by purchasing letters. Here is one example among many.

"In these days when the coronavirus is spreading worldwide (God forbid), we wish to write a special Torah scroll called 'Ilan DeChayei' (Tree of Life) dedicated to the healing and salvation of all of Israel and the world. With a symbolic donation of only eighteen shekels, each of you can acquire a letter in the Torah scroll and also join the general mitzvah of writing the special Torah scroll - 'Ilan DeChayei' to stop the coronavirus."

In another instance, the giant of Jewish music, singer Avraham Fried, called upon the public to take part in a new initiative that has arisen these days, against the backdrop of the 'corona' pandemic affecting Eretz Yisrael and the entire world - again: "Purchasing letters in a Torah scroll, which can help prevent the spread of the pandemic and stop it, and brings unity to Israel."

Amazingly, in a video published by Fried, he recounts "that this is not a new idea, but an ancient initiative of the holy Baal Shem Tov: "During the time of the Baal Shem Tov, there was a plague, God forbid, in Mezhibuzh and its surroundings, and they asked him (the Baal Shem Tov): 'Rebbe, what to do, how to save the situation?' The Baal Shem Tov suggested writing a Torah scroll, and of course, it helped, and the plague stopped."

While various calls were being published to participate in purchasing letters in the Torah scroll, a rare letter was revealed for the first time, written by the esteemed Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a. Rabbi Berland sent the letter in the year 5758 to his dear friend, the esteemed Rabbi Yoram Abergel zt"l (then shlit"a, of course). This is its chilling content, as even then the esteemed Rabbi Berland mentioned in the letter the Baal Shem Tov's segulah for sweetening the plague.

22 Shevat 5758

"To the honorable Rabbi Gaon Yoram Abergel, my beloved friend who is entrenched in all the regions of my heart, longing to see him every day, peace and blessing and all good forever."

"In these turbulent days when the serpent, in gematria Amalek, and indeed its name in gematria is Amalek, threatens our brothers, the children of Israel, throughout Eretz Yisrael, and especially the residents of the holy city Tel Aviv, and it was said that it has a quantity of germs for all the residents of Tel Aviv, God forbid, and of course all the cities of Israel are in danger, including Be'er Sheva, Ashdod, Dimona - the nuclear reactor, all of which are within missile range, and especially Be'er Sheva, which is not far from the nuclear reactor, and now it is an obligation upon the Sanhedrin of the generation, among whom is counted our holy Rebbe Yoram Abergel, to go out and measure the first before everyone, all the more so that the great ones of the generation, the Sanhedrin of the generation, must do everything in their power to prevent even one casualty, God forbid, as the holy Torah says in Parshat Yitro "and many will fall from it" (Exodus 19:21), Rashi says: whatever falls from them, even if he is alone, is considered before Me as many, so God forbid, if from all the war even one Jew falls, God forbid, and even just from the fear of the sirens or the Patriots, one dies, God forbid, all the more so that in the previous war, just from the noise and thunder of the Patriots, about two hundred people suffered strokes, then certainly it is an obligation upon all the Sanhedrin of the generation, including our Rebbe Yoram Abergel, to do everything in their power to spread now the Torah of our Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, who promised that whoever believes in his merit will certainly not suffer any harm. And as our holy Rebbe wrote in Torah 48, Part 2, 'And know, that a person needs to pass over a very, very narrow bridge, and the main thing is not to be afraid at all.'"

"Therefore, we come in this letter to your esteemed and exalted honor, that now, three hundred years since the Baal Shem Tov, it is a tremendous and unique merit for anyone who merits to purchase a letter for each member of his family, will certainly be saved from the missiles and the sirens and the Patriots and the terrorists who lurk for us every day, both spiritually and physically."

"And therefore, it is an obligation upon each and every one in these turbulent days to purchase a letter for each of his family members, his sons and daughters, for each son and each daughter, for his wife, for his relatives, for his parents, for his brothers, for his uncles and aunts, just like Rahab who brought two hundred families into her home and they were all saved. So each one, in order to save all his family members, relatives, and friends, should purchase for all of them a letter in the Torah scroll being written for the elevation of the soul of the Baal Shem Tov, and also the obligation to awaken all his acquaintances, friends, and neighbors to purchase a letter for the Torah scroll being written in the name of the Baal Shem Tov."

"And I myself was the first to purchase a letter for the Torah scroll being written in the name of the Baal Shem Tov, and so my wife bought immediately after me. And therefore, it is now assured that anyone who cares for his life, the lives of his sons and daughters, the lives of his relatives and friends, is obligated to protect all of them from the terrible war that may occur over our heads. And perhaps in the merit of purchasing these letters now and awakening everyone to purchase these letters, we will succeed in the merit of the Baal Shem Tov and in the merit of Rebbe Nachman ben Simcha ben Feiga, to prevent the war altogether and to remove the missiles from that wicked one without war."

In the merit of our holy Rebbe, and with the blessing of the holy Torah

Eliezer Berland.

The original copy of the letter from the esteemed Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a to the esteemed Rabbi Yoram Abergel zt"l