R' Shmuel Luger: I Accidentally Became Rosh Yeshiva after Fighting My Addictions

Shmuel Luger started drinking at nine and things only got worse from there. He felt totally disconnected from Judaism, spiraling through heavy addictions, anxiety, and a deep sense of emptiness. Then a trip to Israel and one honest conversation flipped his world upside down. He didn’t just get sober, he built a yeshiva for guys who don’t fit the system, who are floating and forgotten. Today he has a beautiful family, he's a Rosh Yeshiva and is working on groundbreaking curriculums.

His Yeshiva: https://veshachanti.com/

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Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:08 Rabbi Luger’s Childhood

03:30 Starting to Drink at a Young Age

05:30 Getting Kicked Out of School

06:50 Going to Israel

08:48 When Things Started to Fall Apart

14:34 Drinking Becoming a Huge Part of His Life

15:52 Going Completely Off the Derech

20:24 Starting the Recovery Process

24:50 Going Back to the Party Life

26:02 A Dollar a Day with Ohr Naava

27:14 WheelsToLease

28:03 BitBean

28:57 Losing His Mother

32:40 Deciding Not to Go To LA

34:36 Going Back to Israel

38:26 Choosing the Simple Life and Making Aliyah

39:33 Getting Married

44:02 How Rabbi Luger Started His Yeshiva

47:03 PZ Deals

47:45 Adir Press and Feldheim Books

49:35 Giving His Younger Self Advice

54:02 What Values Really Make You Happy?

1:02:38 Living Life With Addiction

1:10:28 The Amazing Work His School is Doing

1:22:31 Holding a Person to the Standards of Their Dreams

1:30:24 Where to Reach Out to Rabbi Luger

1:32:07 Outro

✬ IN MEMORY OF ✬

This episode is in memory of:

• Shimon Dovid ben Yaakov Shloima

• Miriam Sarah bas Yaakov Moshe

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