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Our Fourth Trip Abroad

Wednesday, 28 December 2011

We just returned from an exhausting but rewarding trip abroad. In our efforts to bring our work to the Chassidic world as well (our handbooks were just translated into Yiddish), we were Zoche to meet with the following Mahigim on our trip. We spent about an hour with each of the Rebbes/Rabbanim below:

The Sqverrer Rebbe, Rav Dovid Twersky Shlita.

He was very warm and encouraging to our work. He gave us $180 and took our handbooks, which have recently been translated into Yiddish. He suggested we have a board of Rabbanim to oversee our website and make sure no one in earlier levels of addiction could possibly learn worse things from any of the more advanced levels. (This is generally not an issue since the moderators make sure no one posts anything triggering or any specific details of their falls).

 

HaRav Yosef Rosenblum Shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Shaarei Yosher in Brooklyn

He wished us Bracha and Hatzlacha, and assured us that we would see much Siyatta Dishmaya.

 

The Kossover Rebbe, Rav Shraga (Feivish) Hager Shlita.

The Kossover Rebbe is a Major Talmid Chochom who is in deveikus to Hashem, while hiding behind a facade of simplicity. He was very warm to our work, and was very happy that we will have a hotline for people to call. He also liked very much the phone partner idea, where people can call a friend at any time of the day when feeling weak. He told us that as much as we think we know, we have no idea how widespread this problem is, and how much destruction it is causing. He is all the time dealing with the terrible stories that emerge as a result of this addiction not being taken care of; divorces, child abuse, adultery and all types of terrible cases. He wrote us a few lines of Haskama and showered us with Brachos.

 

Rav Binyamin Eisenberger, Mara d'asra of K'hal Hechal HaTefilah of Borough Park.

As busy as he is, he gave us an hour of his time claiming that if he wasn't busy with other things he would be doing what we are doing, as this is the "Tzav Hashaa". Like the Kossover, he said that this is a magefa today that is out of control. Any Jew who has unfiltered internet is 100% going to fall, no matter how much Yiras Shamayim he thinks he has. After all, it's a Gemara: "If you put the son in front of a house of zonos, what can the son do and not sin?". Rav Binyomin makes everyone in his Kehhilah sign up with Covenant Eyes, and he gets their internet reports. Day and night people wait to talk to him about their problems, and he says that most of today's Tzorus comes from this problem of Shmiras Ainayim. When a person takes upon themselves to strengthen in this area, he says that he often sees a drastic improvement in Parnassa and other areas. He was extremely happy about our work and said that he has already sent a number of people to us. He offered to write us a carefully thought out Haskama, claiming that we are fighting the Amalek of our generation. He gave us $500 and showered us with Brachos.

 

We also met with Rav Dovid Ekstein, the Rosh Hakahal of Monroe, and got his total and absolute support for our work, which means that we now have the backing of the Satmar community in the U.S. as well. Indeed, we hope to have a Yiddish website, forum and phone conference system in place within the coming year or two, be'ezras Hashem.