Shalom Arush () is an Israeli

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

and the founder of Chut Shel Chessed Institutions. Arush works to spread the teachings of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, both among Jews and non-Jews, through books and spoken performances. In his lessons, he consistently emphasizes the importance of faith and joy, which form the foundation of Breslov Hasidism. Arush is the composer of the song " Tamid Ohev Oti", which gained popularity after it was released by Yair Elitzur in 2024.

Personal life

Arush was one of nine children born to his parents in the town of

Beni Mellal Beni Mellal () is a city in north-central Morocco. It is the capital of the Béni Mellal-Khénifra Region and has a population of 192,676 (2014 census). It sits at the foot of Jbel Tassemit (2247 m), next to the plains of Beni Amir. The modern ...

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

. He learned in the local Jewish Alliance school and studied

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

in the evenings. His eldest brother married and

immigrated Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

to Israel before the rest of the family; Arush, his parents, and other siblings immigrated to Israel when he was 13. Inside cover text The family settled in

Petah Tikva Petah Tikva (, ), also spelt Petah Tiqwa and known informally as Em HaMoshavot (), is a city in the Central District (Israel), Central District of Israel, east of Tel Aviv. It was founded in 1878, mainly by Haredi Judaism, Haredi Jews of the Old Y ...

, where his parents enrolled Arush in a state-religious school; he later attended a secular high school. In 1970 he joined the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

as an airborne

combat medic A combat medic is responsible for providing emergency medicine, emergency medical treatment at a point of wounding in a combat or training environment, as well as primary care and health protection and evacuation from a point of injury or illnes ...

, taking part in many missions, including missions during the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...

in 1973. During that time, five of his closest friends were killed in a

helicopter crash A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which Lift (force), lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning Helicopter rotor, rotors. This allows the helicopter to VTOL, take off and land vertically, to hover (helicopter), hover, and ...

while carrying out an army mission. This event was the catalyst for his religious transformation. Following his army service, Arush majored in economics at

Tel Aviv University Tel Aviv University (TAU) is a Public university, public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Located in northwest Tel Aviv, the university is the center of teaching and ...

. He was introduced to his wife, Miriam, on a

shidduch The ''Shidduch'' (, pl. ''shidduchim'' , Aramaic ''shidduchin)'' is a system of matchmaking in which Jewish singles are introduced to one another in Orthodox Jewish communities for the purpose of marriage. The practice In the past and until t ...

, and the newlyweds moved to

Moshav A moshav (, plural ', "settlement, village") is a type of Israeli village or town or Jewish settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists between 1904 and 1 ...

Chazon Yechezkel. Later he moved to

Bnei Brak Bnei Brak ( ) or Bene Beraq, is a city located on the central Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean Israeli coastal plain, coastal plain in Israel, just east of Tel Aviv. A center of Haredi Judaism, Bnei Brak covers an area of 709 hectares (1,752 acre ...

to join Berland's new yeshiva there, and when the yeshiva moved to Jerusalem, he and his family followed.

Career

Arush attended several yeshivot before meeting

Eliezer Berland Eliezer Berland (; born December 26, 1937) is an Israeli Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish rabbi, convicted sex offender and fraudster affiliated with the Breslov (Hasidic dynasty), Breslov Hasidic Judaism, Hasidic movement in Israel. He is ros ...

, who appointed Arush as his personal assistant and protégé. Arush also studied with Levi Yitzchok Bender and . In 1985, upon the directive of Berland, Arush opened his own yeshiva, Chut Shel Chessed. Initially he had 15 students; a year later, he had 80 students and the yeshiva moved to its present quarters in the

Musrara Musrara (, , also known by its Hebrew name, Morasha, ) is a formerly Ottoman neighborhood in what is now West Jerusalem. It is bordered by the Israeli neighborhoods of Mea Shearim and Beit Yisrael to the north, by the Russian Compound and Kik ...

neighborhood of Jerusalem. Chut Shel Chessed sukkah

Today, Chut Shel Chessed Institutions includes an elementary school, a high school, a yeshiva, and a

kollel A kollel (also kolel) (, , , , a "gathering" or "collection" f scholars is an institute for full-time, advanced Torah study, study of the Talmud and rabbinic literature. Like a yeshiva, a kollel features Shiur (Torah), shiurim (lectures) and ...

. According to the school, it "has built a reputation for helping hundreds of people from some of the worst situations to dramatically turn their lives around. Some students have become well-respected rabbis in their own rights, while others have become some of Israel’s top writers, actors and musicians." Alumni include actor Shuli Rand. Yair Elitzur has said that Arush inspired his hit single '' Tamid Ohev Oti'' (2024). In 1998 Arush opened a branch of Chut Shel Chesed in

Ashdod Ashdod (, ; , , or ; Philistine language, Philistine: , romanized: *''ʾašdūd'') is the List of Israeli cities, sixth-largest city in Israel. Located in the country's Southern District (Israel), Southern District, it lies on the Mediterranean ...

and appointed Lazer Brody to head its rabbinic ordination program. In 2006, the Ashdod branch merged with the Jerusalem yeshiva and Brody became its mashpia (spiritual guide), as well as the translator of Arush's books into English. Arush has continued to support

Berland Berland is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *André Berland (1940–2025), French historian and biographer *Bjørn Berland (born 1977), Norwegian footballer *Eliezer Berland (born 1937), Israeli Breslov rabbi *François Berléan ...

throughout his trial and conviction for multiple rapes, as well as a separate conviction for fraud and an ongoing murder investigation. Brody left Arush in 2019 and now follows Naftali Moskowitz of Ashdod.

Works

Arush has authored many works, which have been translated from

into English,

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

, French,

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, Portuguese, and

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

. Brody claims that, combined, they have sold more than a million copies. His works available in English are: * ''Garden of Yearning: The Lost Princess'' (2007) * ''Garden of Peace: A Marital Guide for Men Only'' (2008) * ''Garden of Emuna'' (2009) * ''Garden of Riches: A Guide to Financial Success'' (2021) * ''In Forest Fields: A Unique Guide to Personal Prayer'' (2022) * ''Women's Wisdom: Garden of Peace for Women'' (2023) * ''Garden of Gratitude'' (2023)

References

External links

Breslev Israel (official site)Teachings of Rebbe Nachman - Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arush, Shalom Breslov rabbis Israeli Hasidic rabbis Sephardic Haredi rabbis in Israel Moroccan emigrants to Israel 20th-century Moroccan Jews Baalei teshuva 20th-century Israeli rabbis People from Beni Mellal 1952 births Living people 21st-century Israeli rabbis