In 1995, Jeremy Jordan underwent extensive surgery. During his recovery, he developed a severe infection, which necessitated an additional operation.
Jeremy's own surgeon was out of town at the time, and so a surgeon whom Jeremy had never met, Dr. S., was to perform the second surgery. Dr. S. put Jeremy under general anesthesia and began operating.
During the surgery, Jeremy woke up! He felt no pain, and was aware of his surroundings. As he looked up at the ceiling, he saw the Rebbe. The Rebbe told Jeremy to give a message to the doctor who was operating on him!
The Rebbe then told Jeremy to tell Dr. S. that if he began to put on tefilin every day, the difficulties he was experiencing with his daughter would cease. The Rebbe stressed that although something was very wrong with the man's daughter it would be rectified if he performed this mitzva.
Jeremy told the Rebbe he would pass on the message. Imagine the consternation in the operating room when the "anesthetized" patient began to speak! The nurse told Dr. S. that the patient had awakened, and asked what she should do. Dr. S. replied that she should give him additional anesthesia.
Before this could be done, however, Jeremy asked Dr. S. to come close so that he could see his face. Dr. S. complied, asking Jeremy if he was in any pain, and curious to know if his "unconscious" patient truly understood what was going on around him. Jeremy made it clear that he did.
Then Jeremy told the doctor: "You may think I'm crazy, but I have a message for you. Do you know who the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, is?"
Dr. S. replied, "I've heard of him, why?"
"Well," Jeremy continued, "He just appeared to me in a vision and told me to tell you that the difficulties with your daughter will be solved if you put on tefilin every day."
The doctor was dumbfounded, but remembering where he was, he managed to say that the surgery was almost finished and that he would have Jeremy out of the operating room soon. During the remainder of the procedure, Jeremy recalls that he remained conscious, feeling a unique peace of mind as the Rebbe's words echoed in his thoughts.
While Jeremy was in the recovery room, Dr. S. came over and closed the curtain around the bed. He took Jeremy's hand in his own and, with tears in his eyes, whispered, "I believe you! The last time I was in a synagogue was at my Bar Mitzva. I haven't prayed or acknowledged G-d since then.
"My daughter is gravely ill. Since I am a physician, I feel doubly helpless that I can't help her. This morning, I prayed for the first time in over 30 years, pleading with G-d to heal her. I added: 'If You really exist, show me a sign.' "Then you awoke during surgery and gave me that message from Rebbe Schneerson! It's incredible!"
After this experience, Dr. S. purchased a pair of tefilin and began attending synagogue. Within weeks, his daughter recovered completely.
Mrs. Terri Naiditch, a member of the Lubavitch community in Pittsburgh, once received the following letter from her father.
"In the fall of 1985, I went for a check-up shortly before my crucial business season started, as was my habit in those years.
"I was referred to a dermatologist to confirm that a mole on my back had all the earmarks of a malignant melanoma - a potentially lethal affliction that can spread cancer throughout the body. He in turn sent me to the Mayo Clinic to see about having the mole removed.
"At the Mayo Clinic, I asked the head of dermatology to tell me frankly whether it was malignant, for I was also suffering such intense pain and worry that I was considering early retirement. He not only confirmed that it was malignant, but even had his whole staff come in and look at my mole, evidently as a textbook example of a melanoma. (I had studied a pamphlet on this disorder, and had seen that mine was identical to one of the most graphic illustrations.)
"Upon hearing of my planned operation, you and Pinky appealed to Rebbe Menachem Schneerson to intercede on my behalf, which he generously did.
"You know the sequel. When the operation took place, the tissue was sent out for the obligatory biopsy, and only moments after I was sewn up, the surgeon returned with the greeting, 'Boy, were you lucky! It's not malignant!'
"Now, you know that your mother and our dear friends the Dotys were there with me, and that their prayers and others were offered for me. The unique thing about my appreciation, though, was for the help of the Rebbe. I do not make any claim - I do not feel qualified to do so - that G-d saved me from this life-threatening malady because of the Rebbe's intervention. Yet I have complete faith in the Mayo Clinic's staff and their diagnosis, and to me this experience cannot be explained in purely logical terms. I shall always feel a debt to, and a special affection for, the Rebbe....
"Love, "Dad."
Now, Mrs. Naiditch is a convert; her father, John Huff, is not Jewish. Nonetheless, when a blessing was requested for him, the Rebbe responded.
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