Hundreds of years ago, a group of Jews who fled the destruction of the Holy Temple found themselves facing an impossible test. A local ruler demanded they prove their identity – and if they failed, their fate was sealed. This is a story of faith, miracles, and the wisdom of the Torah that reveals hidden hints even in difficult moments of trial.

Sunday, 4th of Shevat 5785 - The Daily Chizuk (encouragement) from our teacher, the Rebbe, Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a (may he live long and good days). These are his holy words:

When Faith Stands the Test of Fire – The Wondrous Story of a Decree, a Mysterious Dream, and the Rescue of Jews After the Destruction of the Holy Temple, these are his holy words:

Like the story in the Kol Bo (a book of Jewish law written during the era of the Rishonim) about a ship that arrived in Algeria and Tunisia with a thousand babies, a thousand women, and a thousand men, and they wanted to let them off there. This was after the Churban (destruction of the Temple); there was no Holy Temple, they burned the Holy Temple. The Holy Temple was already burned—what do we do with the Holy Temple when it is burned?

Everyone fled. The Romans said that anyone who does not kill [Jews] will be killed himself (Gittin 55b). It is written there that there was a decree: whoever doesn't kill is killed, so they had to kill all the Jews.

The Kol Bo says that they arrived in Algeria and Tunisia. The local minister came and asked, "Who are you?"

"We are Jews."

"Where did you come from?"

"From the Land of Israel."

"Why?"

"Because they burned our Holy Temple!"

"How will I know that you are Jews?"

They said, "What do you mean? We are circumcised."

"Circumcised? The Arabs are also circumcised; half the world circumcises itself. Fine," he said, "you know what? Bring me one of you and we will throw him into the fire. If I throw him into the fire and he doesn't burn, you stay. If he burns, I'm throwing you out."

Well, they fasted for 30 days, and another 30 days. What would happen at the end of the 30 days? Would they throw us into the fire? Into the fire again? Yehuda was thrown into the fire, Avraham Avinu (our forefather Abraham) into the furnace of fire, Rabbi Akiva was combed with iron combs—all of the Ten Martyrs. Learning Gemara (Talmud) is harder than the Ten Martyrs; only the study of Gemara can save a person from the furnace of fire!

In any case, we return to the story of the Kol Bo. They fasted for 30 days and shared their dreams every day, but meanwhile, they found no hint in a dream. On the last day, the 30th day, an hour before they were to be thrown into the fire, one of them said, "I dreamed a dream, but I don't remember it." They said to him, "Then tell us what you dreamed!" But he was an am ha'aretz (unlearned person); he said, "I dreamed: two 'Ki' (because/when), three 'Lo' (no/not). 'Ki' is a cow (parah), meaning two cows and three 'Lo'."

Well, the tzaddikim (righteous men) of the community were there, who knew the Tanakh (Bible) by heart, Isaiah by heart, and they identified the verse - "When (Ki) you pass through the waters, I am with you, and through the rivers, they shall not (Lo) overflow you; when (Ki) you walk through the fire, you shall not (Lo) be burned, and the flame shall not (Lo) kindle upon you" (Isaiah 43:2).

Yitzchak (Isaac) suffered so much. Esau killed Nimrod. Do you know what it means to kill Nimrod? He killed Nimrod. What did Nimrod do to him?

He said, "No, he threw my grandfather Abraham into the furnace of fire." Well, Yitzchak saw that he killed Nimrod, so he said he is a tzaddik because he killed Nimrod. But that's not true, because Abraham died so as not to see this; Abraham died five years before his time because he wanted to return the Land of Israel to them.

What did Yosef (Joseph) say? "And behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me" (Genesis 37:9). What did Yosef mean? Yosef meant that he could stop the sun!

Anyone who comes to Shuvu Banim needs to stop the sun! If not, he cannot enter Shuvu Banim!

A person needs to know that if he becomes Breslov, if he becomes Shuvu Banim—which is only souls from before the creation of the world—the souls of the Tzaddik are souls from before the creation of the world; they do not belong to this world at all. These are souls of the "Bnei Kedem" (ancient ones); these are not souls of smartphones or iPhones—there is no need for that, there is the Gemara (Talmud) which is full of stories. The stories in the Gemara are more interesting than anything, more suspenseful than anything.

Shuvu Banim is only souls from before the creation of the world.