Special Revelation: “In 25 Years of Work and Specialization in This Field, I Have Never Encountered Anything Like This”

Many years ago, Dr. Yehuda Leib Shopek visited the Shuvu Banim yeshivah in Jerusalem and left with overwhelming amazement > The reason, he later put into words in a special letter of appreciation to Rabbi Berland shlit"a, together with a donation to the yeshivah > “With the power of Emunah, self-sacrifice, and love for one’s fellow, it is possible to overcome even the impossible.”

To Draw Out the Precious from the Disgraced

For more than fifty years, Rabbi Berland has devoted his entire being to the exalted mission of the teshuvah revolution. Rabbi Berland is a graduate of Kfar Chassidim Yeshivah, and later, as a kollel avreich in the Volozhin Kollel in Bnei Brak, he discovered the light of Breslov. Within only a few years, the Breslov path of drawing close and strengthening those who are far brought him onto the long road of the teshuvah revolution, which he began more than fifty years ago. Tens of thousands of Torah-observant Jews throughout the Land of Israel and beyond are the sweet fruits of this great revolution.

One of the greatest wonders is Rabbi Berland’s success and tremendous influence on ba’alei teshuvah—especially those who drew close in the early years of the teshuvah revolution, when he was with them all day, shining upon them from his light. In time, they became outstanding servants of Hashem and teachers of Torah to the public.

There Are No Wicked People in the Jewish People!!!

The great cry—“There are no wicked people in the Jewish people!”—which Rabbi Berland cried out from the roar of his pure heart at a gathering in Yad Eliyahu on the eve of Shavuos 5760, led by Maran the Rishon LeTzion Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, symbolizes above all his path in drawing close those who are far, and his loving gaze upon every Jew, wherever he may be. With such a unique outlook and his special approach, he succeeded in bringing about a transformation in the most distant hearts. Rabbi Berland never despaired of any Jew— even those who were addicted to forbidden substances in the most severe way. Even when they tried to break free and went to doctors and specialists, those professionals gave up and offered them no hope. Until they came to Shuvu Banim—where Rabbi Berland, the one who loves the Jewish people, succeeded in freeing them from those dangerous and forbidden substances, set them upon the King’s road, and later helped them establish faithful homes in Israel.

Dr. Yehuda Leib Shopek encountered this astounding wonder when he visited the Shuvu Banim yeshivah. He found patients who had been addicted to drugs—people whose future he himself had despaired of—and suddenly he saw them in a state he described as “born anew.” His great amazement moved him to send a special letter to The Rav, and we now reveal its contents to you:

A Letter of Appreciation and Amazement

In honor of Rabbi Eliezer Berland

“Shuvu Banim”

Jerusalem.

“I am writing to you in order to express my amazement and my deep impression from my visit to your institution this week. For an extended period, I personally treated three individuals who suffered from severe drug addiction, along with all the accompanying phenomena of such an addiction. Various institutions that treated these individuals despaired of any chance to rehabilitate them, and I too did not hold much hope regarding their future.

To my great astonishment, I met these individuals this week during my visit to you, and I realized that they have been born anew. They are studying, functioning, and working in a way that is truly inspiring. Two of them have even married and established families.

In 25 years of work and specialization in this field in France and in Israel, I have never encountered anything like this—something that proves that with the power of Emunah, self-sacrifice, and love for one’s fellow, it is possible to overcome even the impossible.

I wish you great success as you continue your blessed activity.

With great respect,

Dr. Aryeh Leib Shopek.

P.S.

I am also enclosing a modest personal donation in the amount of 2,000 shekels. Please confirm its receipt.”