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Letter: A Boy in Need

We received this open letter from Devorah Leah Leopold in which she describes her inspiration to say tehilim for a critically ill teenage boy, Alexander Hecht.

I know many of you have heard of Schneur Chaim Yitzchok Alexander ben Nechama Dina, who is in desperate need of a total recovery.

I don’t even know him, but I owe him a huge thank you.

Over the last year, I have been struggling to move on with things in my life, and start learning again. I used to be a very studious person before I got married and afterwards I slacked. And then I got pregnant and slacked some more, and then I had a baby, and I don’t know where my learning went in the past 18 months, but as of late I am struggling to peice back together everything I use to do, with minimal success but last night, as I played Fruit Ninja to unwind, I thought for minute, “here I am healthy, playing a game, with my baby upstairs sleeping, while someone else’s baby is in a hospital fighting for his life, and I’m not even taking time to do something in his merit?” I stopped my game and set about to say Tehillim.

Before I could my husband reminded me that it’s not the best to do at night, but if I happened to read the commentary on Tehillim, while I was saying it, that would be better. We have three different seferim that have commentary on Tehillim, one I couldn’t make heads or tales of, it was the commentary of the Rashab, (the 5th Lubavitcher Rebbe), one was the very famous M’kraos Gedolos,

small print, and hard for me to read, and another, knock off brand, we call it from the “Kehos” outside of 770, that may or may not be a real printing company, my husband found the book in shemos but the Rashi script is very clear.

Myself, being myself, of course it wasn’t good enough that I just read the commentary and pretend to learn it, for the sake of saying Tehillim, but I wanted to understand what Rashi said. So I started reading it, and learning and I felt so wonderful afterwards that I had struggled for an hour to get through the Rashi and learn something, I felt indebted to this dear fifteen year old, who should be blessed with long life and goodness for inspiring me to learn! I floating in joy and a feeling of completeness I haven’t felt since having a baby! What a merit this boy has to inspire someone so!

God willing I will do it again tonight, and I will keep him in my prayers that Hashem should grant Schneur Chaim Yitzchok Alexander ben Nechama Dina a full recovery, not just speedily but right now!

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18 Comments

  • you-re allowed to!!!!

    for a Choleh-s/o that is sick, you are allowed to say tehillim @ night!!!

  • Zogger

    Let’s get 100 comments of people who have said Tehillem for Schneur Chaim Yitzchok Alexander ben Nechama Dina TODAY.

    Let’s do it now.

  • you may say tehlim at night for Refuah

    יש להתיר בשופי
    אמירת תהלים בלילה בדרך תפלה ותחנונים
    למרי גפם בעת צרתם ולחלות ולחגן לפני יוצר כל
    להוציא ממסגר נפשם או נפש קרוביהם האסורים
    באסירי עני וברזל כאשר ידוע ומפורסם בכל הספרים
    הקדושים כי מקרא התהלים בכוונה ובהכנעה כחו אתו
    לדחות כל מיני פורעניות ופגעים רעים וכל מחלה וכל
    תקלה ממנו ומעל אנשי ביתו ומשפחתו ולפתוח
    שערי ברזל נעולים ולקרוא לאסירים דרור
    (שו”ת ציץ אליעזר חלק ח’ סימן ב)

    according to this you may (in the future say Tehilim at night for someone that need a Refuah

  • tehillim sayer

    how is he doing? yesterday we were inundated with information.today nothing! I am saying tehillim

  • DL Leopold

    My husband said he had it on authority from Rabbi Wolf in Morristown,when he asked from a similiar incident. I would check with a Rav, perhaps this situation is different. If not I will definitely do the same tonight God willing. But lets all do more mitzvahs anyway to help him have a speedy recovery!

  • Down undrr

    My 13 year old daughter brought my tehillim to my bedroom n said mum “Shnuer Chaim yitzhok Alexander needs your tehillim. I said ”it is after dark“ she said ”he needs it now mummy n u are allowed”. In fact she is right n naturally I said tehillim n begged the one above for his speedy recovery. Let’s unite n shake heaven n earth for this golden kid.

  • AA

    #6: it’s a quotation from Shaalos Uteshuvos Tzitz Eliezer, vol. 8, no. 2. Unfortunately, the commenting system here doesn’t support Hebrew text, and converts it into gibberish. (Admins: isn’t it time to join the 21st century and make the site Unicode-aware?)

    Translated, it says:

    “It is definitely permissible to say Tehillim at night, when it is as a prayer and plea for people suffering from troubles, to beg and beseech the Creator of all to free them or their relatives, who are bound in ‘chains of suffering and iron.’ It is well known from many holy books that saying Tehillim with concentration and humility has the power to push aside all kinds of troubles, bad occurrences, sickness or problems from the person [saying Tehillim] and his family and household members, to open locked iron gates and to announce freedom to prisoners.”

  • Davening for Alexander

    We are taught that the daily tehillim from chitas should not be said from dark until after chatzos, but for a choleh, tehillim is permitted at any time.

  • Daven Hard

    Please keep Davening and inspire others to do the same he really needs our prayers. someone who love Chaim Alexander very much.

  • Samantha Kuchlik

    all the girls at the ivy league torah study progrsam said tehillim in his merit, today and yesterday. Refuah Shleima now!