Testimony of a Former Bnei Baruch Student on Sexual Abuse by Michael Laitman in 2014

source:
https://www.the7eye.org.il/465082

Michael Laitman

Katya’s Story: Testimony of Sexual Abuse by Michael Laitman

How Laitman Turned Me Into His Victim

  1. In 2011 I was living in France. I came across Michael Laitman’s courses online and fell into his trap. He gave answers to all my questions, exploiting my spiritual vulnerability. I felt I had been searching all my life for paths to the Creator, and he was the first to say exactly what I wanted to hear. I began listening to his lessons intensively, not realising this was part of his manipulative system.

  2. For the first few months I only listened to the classes online. All my free time was spent watching lessons on kab.tv and attending online courses. When Laitman was the Kabbalah lecturer, I could not help listening to him — he had created an addiction in me. At the same time, none of the other Bnei Baruch teachers had such an effect on me, because they did not use the same manipulative techniques.

  3. After a few months I felt a need to meet people who were also studying in the group, especially since Laitman always said in his lessons that one can only feel the Creator through interaction with the group, with “one’s own”. This was a classic technique of isolating the victim.

  4. I began attending meals at our centre, “mirror” congresses and holiday gatherings of the Bnei Baruch group in France. Every event was part of a control system.

  5. I also joined a “virtual group” in my country; the group received instructions from a Bnei Baruch member in Petah Tikva, Jacques Douieb and his wife Noam Douieb, who coordinated between the inner group and our group. These people knew what they were doing — they were part of Laitman’s exploitation machine. The general group met for a (virtual) gathering once a week. We also worked in the new-student reception department and the book committee, which we likewise met virtually for during the week.

  6. Jacques Douieb simultaneously translated Laitman’s morning lessons… I listened to the morning lesson on the Kabbalah-Media site every day, not in real time (at night) but during the day. Douieb was one of those who knew about Laitman’s behaviour but continued to work for him.

  7. I decided to devote all my time to translating Bnei Baruch texts (books, websites, Laitman’s blog, etc.) into French so that lecturers could read them. I worked for free, not realising I was serving a self-serving organisation.

  8. My husband was also interested in Kabbalah. Despite that, he never respected either Bnei Baruch or Laitman. He did not like that I spent so much time volunteering. I could not accept his criticism of Bnei Baruch — Laitman had already succeeded in isolating me from my loved ones.

The Beginning of Manipulation: Visit to Israel

  1. Laitman manipulated us by claiming that the Creator is inside the group. Sometimes he would ask the group a question and tell us not to use our minds but to connect with the group and find what was needed. He repeated that we must return to the centre of the group during seminars. I felt the group was simply repeating Laitman’s words, and I was not sure about this spiritual development. But at the time I did not dare criticise him; I thought to myself that Laitman was close to the Creator and could not be wrong. This was part of his thought-control system.

  2. When I approached Laitman and we began to communicate personally (below), he told me: “I am the only one who will lead you to the Creator.” However, he sometimes said: “without me you cannot feel the Creator” or: “I am inside you, because I am on a higher spiritual level, and you can only feel the Creator through me.” He said he was my guide to the Creator. This was a classic technique for creating dependence.

  3. When I listened to his voice in the lessons, his voice made me very calm and peaceful. I experienced a feeling of pleasure. Laitman is very self-assured and charismatic, and when he spoke I felt he had answers to all my questions. Sometimes, when he called me on Skype (below), my hands would tingle. He used his voice as an instrument of manipulation.

  4. In 2014 I came to Israel for the Zohar congress. Until then I had not known Laitman personally, but I was already his victim.

  5. I felt I adored him and he was my teacher, but I did not know him. I did not know he was a rapist and manipulator.

  6. During the congress Jacques Douieb invited Bnei Baruch students from France — there were about eight members of the virtual group — to the stage, as well as to a private meeting with Laitman at his apartment in the Bnei Baruch centre in Petah Tikva. During the meeting we gathered for a group photo, and Laitman nodded his head as if inviting me to stand next to him. Douieb knew what he was doing — he was part of the victim-selection system.

Meeting with Laitman

  1. During the congress there was talk that another Bnei Baruch congress would be held in Europe in a few months.

  2. When I returned home, at the first work meeting after the congress he announced to us that the next congress would be held in my country of residence! Our task was to organise the conference: find a venue, arrange transport, catering, etc. This was no coincidence — he was planning to use the congress to seduce me.

  3. The France group was considered one of the worst Bnei Baruch groups — it had a high dropout rate, there were few participants, we could not hold events as expected of us. It was very difficult for us to prepare the Bnei Baruch congress. We talked about it but knew it was unrealistic.

  4. I took an active part in organising the congress, not realising it was a trap.

  5. While preparing for the congress, Jacques Douieb told all group members that I had the honour of being Laitman’s assistant at the congress. I was very excited and happy. The chance to meet and serve the rav was like a dream come true. Douieb knew Laitman had not chosen me at random — he had seen my photo and decided to make me his victim.

  6. As Laitman’s personal assistant, I was tasked with preparing his table during the conference — bringing him water, making tea, bringing him everything he needed. I also organised his cottage where he stayed (brought water, yoghurt, etc.) together with N. Before his arrival. Before the congress, an assistant named R., who was the assistant to the Bnei Baruch European group centre, sent me a list of Laitman’s requirements — everything that had to be prepared for him (yoghurt, some water, etc.). I remember Laitman’s assistant S. asked for mineral water of a type that was not available in France, and I was very embarrassed that I could not meet Laitman’s requirements (Laitman himself later told me he did not care about the type of mineral water). I remember discussing this with group members, and one of the families living near the border offered to go to a neighbouring country to buy the water he wanted. It never occurred to us not to meet the slightest requirement. All these assistants — R., S., and others — knew about Laitman’s behaviour but continued to work for him, creating conditions for his crimes.

  7. We were all ready to do anything for Laitman, because we were grateful to him and thought he would teach all humanity how to connect with the Creator. We did not know he was using us to satisfy his perverted needs.

The Congress as an Instrument of Seduction

  1. As part of the conference preparation we booked accommodation in a kind of cottage on the congress site. Laitman was placed in a cottage with his bodyguards — Michael Sanilevich, his daughter’s husband, and a guy named Arie Makarevich. These “bodyguards” were not protectors but accomplices to his crimes.

Meeting with Laitman

  1. When they arrived at the congress, he asked for the bodyguards to be placed in a separate room, next to his room. This was done deliberately so he could act without witnesses.

  2. When Laitman arrived at the congress venue, I showed him his room (and the yoghurt, water, etc.), and he began asking me questions about myself. It was the most exciting moment of my life. The person I admired most in the world was talking to me for 15 minutes! I did not realise this was part of his plan.

  3. Then we all went to his lecture. My duties during the lecture included bringing him something to drink when needed. After the lecture there was lunch. After lunch I approached him and asked if he needed anything else. He asked me if I had any questions about Kabbalah. I said of course I did (to me he was the person who could answer all my questions!). Then he said I could come to his room that evening to ask him questions. It was a direct invitation into the trap.

  4. I was stunned. I told a female friend from the group that Laitman had invited me to his room. She was stunned and said to me: “If this is what I think it is, I intend to leave this group.” She advised me not to go to his room. She understood what was happening, but I was too blinded.

  5. I agreed with her because I did not want to know if what I feared was true. I could not afford to be disappointed in him. I told myself I might be wrong about his intentions. But even if there was a small risk I was right, better not to take it. I did not even dare say to myself directly what I was afraid of.

  6. The next morning, when I was in the congress hall and saw him and offered him coffee, he replied aggressively: “I don’t need anything from you!” His reaction was so sharp I almost stumbled. It was manipulation — he was punishing me for refusing.

  7. Noam Douieb, Jacques’s wife, came up to me and asked what had happened, because the rav had told her he no longer wanted me to make him coffee, and that he wanted Noam to make him coffee from now on. I said I did not know the reason and started crying. I sat during the lesson and cried. I could not explain to Noam why Laitman was angry with me. I think in some sense I understood why he was angry, but I also could not fully admit it to myself. Noam Douieb knew what was happening — she was part of the system that covered up Laitman’s crimes.

  8. I was very embarrassed, because I felt immense admiration for him.

  9. His “bodyguard” Arie Makarevich came up to me and asked what had happened. I said Laitman was angry with me. He invited me for a walk and began to say that Laitman is married, but sometimes when he sees another woman he likes, he can sleep with her and that’s normal. He hinted to me that a married man can sleep with other women. He also said that Laitman had looked very angry that morning when Makarevich saw him, and that he had never seen him in such a state before. Makarevich was a direct accomplice — he knew about Laitman’s behaviour and helped him seduce women. He was part of the “enterprise of lies” system.

  10. I suspected something in his words and that he was really hinting to me that if I slept with Laitman it would be a completely normal thing — but I could not believe it could be true because of my respect for Laitman. I hoped it was a mistake. Makarevich told me Laitman had chosen me as his assistant at the congress because he had seen my photo. He said Laitman had chosen me and did not want N. to make him coffee because she had dark hair and Laitman likes blondes. It was an open admission that Laitman selected victims by appearance, and Makarevich knew it.

  11. I told Makarevich I was married. He did not answer me and did not say outright that Laitman wanted to sleep with me, but he hinted at it. It did not matter to him that I was married — he knew that did not stop Laitman.

  12. I was afraid to approach Laitman, so I asked Makarevich to tell him that I had not come at night to talk to him because I did not want to endanger Laitman’s status, so he would stop being angry with me. Makarevich passed on this message, knowing it was part of Laitman’s game.

  13. By evening I saw Laitman smiling at me. I approached him and he asked me if I had really not come to him so as not to harm his status. I explained, yes, that I had not come to him so as not to endanger his status, because there were many of his students in the complex who might think inappropriate thoughts — the complex was small and full of group members, I did not want people to think… I was too afraid to try to find out if my fears were true. He used my naivety against me.

  14. In the evening group members brought him gifts — sweets and the like. Laitman wondered where to put the gifts, and I suggested putting them in my car, since the congress hall was far from the cottage. Makarevich came up to me and ordered me to bring the sweets to Laitman’s room at night. Makarevich was again helping Laitman create a situation where I would end up in his room.

  15. At night I went to his room with the gifts and knocked very quietly, hoping he would not hear. I thought to myself: this way I can say tomorrow that I came and you didn’t open. He did not hear and did not open, and the next day he left for Israel. It was his revenge for my refusal.

  16. On the last day of the congress I asked Laitman if I could come to Israel for a few weeks in the summer to volunteer at the centre. I felt a need to contribute to Bnei Baruch and my group. He answered positively. He knew this would give him another chance.

  17. After returning to Israel, Laitman began to behave as if he had fallen in love with me. He started calling me on Skype and sending me emails. He told me he liked calling me on Skype and looking at me on the video camera. It was part of his manipulative strategy.

  18. I felt enormous joy. I did not find him attractive as a man: he is old and unattractive. However, I loved him as my teacher and as a connection to the Creator. He told me I had special spiritual qualities, that I was special and that he would help me develop spiritually. He used my spiritual aspirations against me.

  19. Laitman made me feel special and important. He said I could be very helpful with translation at the Bnei Baruch Centre. I began to consider coming to the Bnei Baruch centre in Petah Tikva. My dream was to work at the centre. That was because at the time I believed that outreach work in Bnei Baruch was the best way to serve the Creator. I did not know the centre was a place where he committed his crimes.

  20. I still felt gratitude and admiration for him as a spiritual teacher. He was the most important person in my life. I did not know he was a rapist.

  21. I flew to Israel in 2014. I arrived in Petah Tikva from the airport around one in the morning. A friend from Bnei Baruch came to pick me up from the airport. Laitman called me after I landed and invited me to come and say hello right away. I was staying with group members near the Bnei Baruch centre. When I arrived, I asked my escort, V. L., to show me where the centre was, because I wanted to say hello to Laitman. V. told me Laitman was asleep now and it was impossible. I told him the rav was expecting me. He did not believe I had such a personal connection with the rav, but eventually he was convinced and took me to the centre. V. L. knew what was happening — he was part of the system that covered up Laitman’s actions.

  22. When we arrived at the rav’s apartment (in the centre), Laitman was no longer asleep and was waiting for me. Laitman told him that now he and I had to work. V. was to stay at the centre and wait for me in case I wanted to go home. V. L. stayed, knowing what Laitman was going to do to me, but did not intervene.

  23. I embraced Laitman and felt he wanted something more than a hug. He began putting his hands on me and tried to kiss me. I was outraged and rejected him. I told him I could not do this now. He did not insist and said: “Well, you’re tired. See you tomorrow.” The session lasted about 15 minutes. I called V. and we drove home. This was the first assault, but not the last.

  24. The next day I brought him gifts I had brought for him from my country. He tried to sleep with me again, but I refused. I was not interested; I simply could not understand how a man at such a spiritual level could allow himself to violate the prohibition on sex outside marriage and adultery (since I am a married woman). I told myself that if my mission on the path of spiritual development was to sleep with Laitman, then I had to do it. I thought that if he wanted me to become his spiritual wife, he knew how to guide me correctly spiritually. Although I did not want him as a man, I was ready to make this sacrifice for the sake of the Creator. He used my spiritual beliefs to make me agree to rape.

  25. I told Laitman I did not understand how he could sleep with a married woman, and said that if he wanted to sleep with me, we had to get married. According to Kabbalah, a woman’s path to spirituality lies only through her husband. Laitman just laughed and said we would not get married. He had no intention of marrying me — he simply wanted to use me.

  26. Laitman told me he was my channel to the Creator. He used other Kabbalistic terms (a level above you), meaning my only path to spiritual elevation was through him. That is, in order to gain enlightenment (for spiritual growth) I had to serve him and nullify myself before him. It was manipulation aimed at making me agree to sex.

  27. After I rejected him and when he understood I was not ready to sleep with him, he began psychological manipulation. He ignored me, and the next day showed great affection. He understood I was dependent on him. A few days later he went to Sochi in Russia for a few days for an integral education conference. He used the classic manipulation technique — alternating punishment and reward.

  28. I was very embarrassed. But I still adored him greatly and wanted a spiritual, not romantic, connection with him. I did not understand he was using my spirituality against me.

  29. I began working on translating his lectures. The atmosphere at the centre was very different from what I had expected from Laitman’s descriptions. By Laitman’s description, I considered them my family. But when I was at the centre, I did not feel love among the friends there. I felt hatred between these people. I was very surprised. Before, it had been the best place in the world to me: a place where everyone loves and cares for each other. It’s hard to explain, but I felt rejected by other group comrades. I saw that the relationships between group members were based on hatred. I felt very alone there. I continued working on translations because I wanted to be useful. I was also very surprised by Laitman’s attitude towards the Bnei Baruch workers at the centre. He often shouted at them, swore with obscenities, etc. I felt sorry for them because they felt very humiliated. But all these workers knew about his behaviour with women — they were part of the “enterprise of lies” system that covered up his crimes. They saw how he brought women to the centre, how he manipulated them, how he used them. They knew everything but stayed silent, because they were dependent on him or afraid of him.

The Enterprise of Lies: Everyone Knows, Everyone Is Silent

All the workers at the Bnei Baruch centre in Petah Tikva knew about Laitman’s behaviour. They saw how he brought women to the centre, how he manipulated them, how he used them to satisfy his perverted needs. They knew he was a rapist and manipulator but continued to work for him, creating conditions for his crimes.

Laitman’s assistants — Makarevich, Sanilevich, the Douiebs and others — were not merely employees but accomplices to his crimes. They helped him select victims, created conditions for his meetings with women, passed on his messages, covered up his actions. They knew he used women’s spiritual beliefs to make them agree to sex, but continued to work for him.

The centre workers saw how Laitman shouted at them, humiliated them, but they continued to work for him because they were dependent on him or afraid of him. They knew about his crimes but stayed silent, because they were part of the “enterprise of lies” system.

Rachel: A Daughter in Her Father the Rapist’s System

Laitman’s young daughter Rachel grew up in this system. She saw how her father brought women to the centre, how he manipulated them, how he used them. She saw how her father’s assistants helped him select victims, how they created conditions for his meetings with women. She knew her father was a rapist and manipulator but continued to live in this system.

Rachel was friends with all the women who slept with her dad. She knew who they were, knew they were her father’s victims, but continued to be friends with them because it was part of the “enterprise of lies” system. She was raised in this system; she knew no other life; she did not understand that something wrong was happening.

Rachel was part of the system that covered up her father’s crimes. She saw how the centre workers knew about her father’s behaviour but stayed silent. She saw how her father’s assistants helped him select victims, how they created conditions for his meetings with women. She knew everything but continued to live in this system, because it was her life, her reality.

  1. When Laitman returned from Russia, he continued to psychologically manipulate me: for several days he completely ignored me, then suddenly paid attention to me and invited me to his office (his apartment in the centre, next to his bedroom) to talk about translations. All the centre workers knew what was happening but stayed silent.

  2. When I was with him, he told me directly that he wanted to sleep with me. I hoped I could please him without sleeping with him. I offered to give him a massage. He asked me: “Do you think he has problems with women?” It was an open admission of his problems, but I did not understand it at the time.

  3. I also saw his wife once. She lived elsewhere, outside the centre. When I asked him about her, he said they had not lived together for twenty years. In the end, because of the psychological state I was in, I agreed to have sex with him. The thought of him ignoring me was too painful. I felt that if he continued to be angry with me, I would not be able to go on living. I thought to myself that if the only thing that satisfied Laitman was my body, then I had to sacrifice my body for his pleasure. I wanted to give myself (to have influence) and surrender completely. I considered sex with him an act of merging with the Creator. He used my spiritual beliefs to make me agree to rape.

  4. One evening I went to his apartment and we had sex. It was disgusting to me. I just waited for it to end. It was awful. He persuaded me not to use a condom and said: “Don’t worry, you won’t get pregnant.” Laitman has certain physical characteristics which I will not describe in detail here so as not to violate his privacy without permission, but I can describe them if asked. It was rape — he used my spiritual beliefs to make me agree to sex I did not want.

  5. The same applies to the skin condition (psoriasis) he suffers from. I prefer not to disclose details here so as not to violate his private issues, but I can provide details if needed. Laitman was very repulsive to me, his body and spirit. I agreed to sleep with Laitman only because of his spiritual status and because I saw him as my spiritual leader. I would never have agreed to it without those reasons. I did it because I admired him greatly and could not bear the thought of him being angry with me. Looking back, I feel he simply made me do it using psychological manipulation and that he took advantage of my trust in him. It was rape.

  6. The next day he invited me again. He wanted to sleep with me again, but he had no erection. He asked me to perform oral sex on him, but I could not. He got angry and threw me out of his apartment. He used me, and when I could not meet his demands, he threw me out like a used object.

  7. I went to my room and felt very bad. I developed a fever and a severe headache. I usually suffer from low blood pressure. V.'s wife checked my pressure; it was very high. I lay in bed for two days. Laitman did not contact me again. He used me and threw me away like garbage. V.'s wife knew what was happening but did not intervene — she was part of the system.

  8. I was supposed to stay at the centre for two weeks, but given what I had just been through I could not stay there any longer. I called my husband and told him what had happened, and asked him to change my flight home so I would fly back in ten days instead of two weeks. All the centre workers knew why I was leaving early but stayed silent.

After Returning to My Country

  1. After I returned home I did not understand what was happening to me. I felt completely shattered. As if I had lost everything I had, as if my life had exploded. I remember looking in the mirror and wondering how I looked whole when I was so broken inside. I had suicidal thoughts, and at the same time a strange feeling that I could not even commit suicide because I was already dead. I remember that for the first few days I was very afraid to be alone. I asked my husband to stay home with me. I felt I was in a vacuum — as if I did not know where the floor was. It’s very hard to explain this feeling in retrospect. These were the effects of rape.

  2. I told myself that perhaps there was a flaw in my behaviour and that I was somehow to blame. Kabbalah was everything to me; without it I could not imagine life. I felt I could not breathe without Kabbalah. On the other hand, I could not listen to Laitman anymore. He had destroyed my faith by using it against me.

  3. I did not tell anyone in my group why I had returned early. I said my family was worried because of the tensions in Gaza at the time. I sent an email to group members that I should distance myself from the group for a while, and thank you for understanding. I was afraid to tell the truth because I did not know who among them knew about Laitman’s behaviour and was part of the system.

  4. Of the group members I only told M. (a group member) what had really happened. She was shocked by my story. We neither of us knew what to do, since we could not separate Laitman from Kabbalah. We felt the light from Kabbalah, but Laitman was a monster. M. did not know about Laitman’s behaviour, but other group members did — they were part of the “enterprise of lies” system.

  5. I still wanted to study Kabbalah but did not know how. I had no one to talk to about it. About ten days after I returned home, I wrote to someone I knew from Bnei Baruch, P., whom I respected greatly. I wrote that I wanted to study Kabbalah but had got to know Laitman personally and that he was simply a monster. He asked me if it had anything to do with sex, and I said yes, something like that. I asked him what to do. He advised me to pay no attention to what had happened with Laitman and to continue studying, and that I would “cross the masach” if I kept studying despite what had happened to me. P. knew about Laitman’s behaviour but continued to work for him — he was part of the “enterprise of lies” system.

  6. During the first month after returning I tried to listen to Laitman’s lessons again and found I could not bear to hear that voice. I told myself the light could not come from such a bad person. I did not understand why I no longer believed his stories. I felt doubt in his words. Before what happened, I had believed in Laitman more than in myself. For the first few weeks after my return, Laitman and I did not correspond. About a month later I listened to one of his lectures and wrote to him that I seemed to have returned to Bnei Baruch. I hoped he would give me answers: I asked him what had happened and why it had turned out like that. He replied that he was very happy and that he regretted everything that had happened, that it had all been his own fault and that he hoped we would forget everything and move on. He said that in the future I would understand why everything had happened exactly as it did. I tried to take part in Bnei Baruch activities again. I listened to online lessons and helped prepare for the next European congress by translating the congress website and joining the registration team, but I was sceptical of Laitman and could now see that he was wrong in his interpretation of some Kabbalah sources. I was asked to translate a Laitman programme that had been published on YouTube on “Secrets of the Eternal Book” — I began to notice that some of Laitman’s interpretations of the Torah differed from Rabash’s interpretations. I no longer blindly believed in Laitman. He tried to draw me back into the system, but I could already see him for what he was.

Connection with M. and Leaving Bnei Baruch

  1. Some time later I met M. virtually. M. and I had long been Facebook friends, as I automatically approve friend requests from Bnei Baruch. I had about two thousand friends, most of whom I did not know. This was part of the control system.

  2. One day I came across a critical Facebook post that M. had written about Bnei Baruch. It was the first time I had seen a critical post about Bnei Baruch from a real person I could contact who did not seem crazy or unreliable, and who seemed to know what he was talking about. I got in touch with him and asked if one could study Kabbalah without Laitman. M. knew the truth about Bnei Baruch.

  3. It was the first time I had seen a critical post about Bnei Baruch. I had never seen critical reviews of Bnei Baruch from a reliable online source before. For that reason I had always felt that if I felt something in Bnei Baruch did not match reality, it was my problem and that problem was rooted in me. Laitman always said that if we detect something in the group that does not match reality, the fault lies with ourselves. This was part of his thought-control system.

  4. M. and I began to correspond. After a while I told him what had happened to me. He was the first to understand me and helped and supported me greatly. M. also studies Kabbalah without Laitman and was able to show me how to study Kabbalah without Laitman’s interpretation. M. helped me leave the system.

  5. After I left I understood that the “Bnei Baruch” group was very close to me. I understood that I had been working not for the Creator but for a self-serving organisation trying to control people, and especially for Laitman, who had used my spiritual aspirations to satisfy his carnal lusts. I felt they had abused my trust in them. Bnei Baruch is not a spiritual organisation but an “enterprise of lies” that uses people to satisfy Laitman’s perverted needs.

  6. After I lost contact with Bnei Baruch, I almost never wrote about them online. I have no feeling of revenge or hatred towards Laitman. Looking back I am glad what happened to me happened, because if Laitman had not hurt me, I would never have left that group. But I must tell the truth so that others do not become victims of this system.

Conclusion

The woman who gave this testimony was willing to testify in court; she also appeared in a programme with Raviv Drucker, but despite her confidentiality details leaked to group members who wanted to prevent her from testifying and threatened her life and her family’s life, and the woman eventually stated that she would not testify against Michael Laitman. The “enterprise of lies” system works — it covers up Laitman’s crimes, intimidates victims, protects the rapist. All the centre workers know about his crimes; everyone is silent; everyone covers for him. Even his young daughter Rachel knows what is happening but continues to live in this system, being friends with the women who sleep with her father. This is the “enterprise of lies” — a system that uses people, covers up crimes, and protects the rapist.

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