8 Elul 5770
If it's looking like there's a theme to this year's posts, it's purely by coincidence. But it is important, I guess, to define basic concepts before going on to more difficult ideas.
Perhaps the most misunderstood concept in Judaism is Davening. Most people think of Davening as "Prayer." After all, that's how we've been translating it for decades. The problem is that the word "prayer" gives off the wrong connotations - in fact, almost pagan connotations.
Thinking of Davening as "Prayer" implies that you're begging God for something. And if you don't tell Him about it, you won't get it, because He won't know what you want. It's much better to pray in a minyan, because the more people storm the heavens with their grovelling, the more likely it is that God will listen. After all, He probably won't care about you all by yourself, but if enough people inform Him they want something, He might change His mind. And by the way, who in the h-e-double-hockey-sticks do you think you are, asking God for stuff? He's freaking G-o-d; if He wanted something to happen, He would do it. If He decided to make someone sick, what, just because you ask Him, He's going to change his mind? He already decided to make them sick! What are you trying to accomplish, begging God to heal this person?
And if I don't tell God about what I want - which, by the way, happens to be the exact same thing, three times a day, every day - I won't get it. Sure, I couldn't care less about having Jewish judges, or bringing the lineage of David back to the throne of Israel - but I'll throw it in there just for kicks, just to make sure God likes me and will listen to my pleading for a livelihood.
Sound familiar, right?
I bet you're feeling a little meek right now. Maybe a little red in the face. Because that's how most of us view davening. AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHY MOST OF US HATE IT. What, you want me to beg for stuff from a God Who won't end up telling me whether I'm going to get it or not? And what do I need half this stuff for? Of the nineteen brachos in Shemonah Esrei, how many do you actually relate to? Eight? Ten? Twelve max, and if you think it's more, you're lying to yourself.
Think about it. The above definition of Davening is ridiculous. God knows all. He is all-powerful. He doesn't need us to inform Him of our desires. He knows our innermost thoughts and feelings. In fact, the whole concept of prescribed prayer is ridiculous if you think of davening as begging. What, the rabbis need to script my prayer? I know what I need - what do I need to use a siddur for?
That last line is the key; remember it and we'll come back to it. By now you've probably realized that Davening is not Praying, and that God does not need to hear our tefillos to know what we want. But then, who are our tefillos for? What IS davening?
Regarding this most basic question, I was enlightened by Rav Binny Freidman and Rav David Aaron of Isralight and Orayta.
The Hebrew word for "to daven" is להתפלל. If you know a little about Hebrew grammar (and I don't, really), that word is in the reflexive form - hitpa'el. This is key - words in that hitpa'el form mean to do something to yourself. It is reflexive - the doer is doing an action to his or herself.
Now, the verb in question here is פלל. What does that word mean? Going back to the first time we see that word - Yaakov Avinu uses it when he is about to bless Yosef's sons in Parshas Vayechi. After twenty-two years of being apart, Yaakov says ראה פניך לא פללתי. I did not "pilel" to see your face. What does pilel mean?
Rashi defines "Pilel" as (using Artscroll Rashi English translation): My heart did not fill me to think the thought. The word "pilalti" denotes "thinking," like the verse, "produce an idea, do some thinking."
Therefore, the word "pilel" means to think. In reflexive tense, you do something to yourself, so the word "להתפלל" means "to think about yourself."
And, by now, the meaning of Davening should start to become clearer. If God doesn't need to know about what we want, because He is all-knowing, why are we saying it?
The answer is: of course God doesn't need to hear it. We need to hear it. This is what we should be doing when we pray - thinking about ourselves. Do I really want to see Yerushalayim and the Beis HaMikdash rebuilt? That is a seriously intraspective question. If the answer is no, why not? Do we care about having Jewish judges? If we don't, why not? And on and on and on. The Anshei Kneses HaGedolah set up nineteen brachos, nineteen basic spiritual tenets that we should think about every time we daven.
Finally we can begin to understand how some people take five, ten, even fifteen minutes to say Shemonah Esrei. They're not begging God with all their hearts - they're thinking about their own hearts and what they should want from God.
Since this is a difficult and perhaps provocative redefinition of Davening, I'll let you guys ask questions about anything I may have left out or left unexplained. Then I'll continue next week and hopefully answer those grey areas. Ask away!
Hatzlacha Raba!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
A Little Group Therapy
5 Elul 5770
The last topic in yesterday's parsha (שופטים) discusses the concept of an egla arufa. In a nutshell - if a dead body is found between two cities and nobody knows who he is or who killed him, the elders of the closest town go out to a dried up riverbank and do a whole ritual that includes breaking a young calf's neck.
The elders (i.e. rabbis) then say a few phrases as indicated by the Torah. One of those phrases is
ידינו לא שפכו את הדם הזה - translated loosely, we didn't kill this guy. Which is a very curious thing - do we really suspect the rabbis of the closest town of murder? We can't find the guy who killed him, so we're gonna point the finger at the nearest beis din?
The gmara itself asks this question, in Maseches Sotah (מו). The gmara explains that this was never our suspicion. Rather, the elders are somewhat at fault here, because they did not send out this traveler with proper accompaniment as he left town. In other words, no one walked him out to say goodbye.
Now, maybe I'm not getting it, but what does that have to do with anything? The village wasn't hospitable enough to escort a visitor out of town, and that got him killed?
Explains the Maharal, yes. There are two types of סייעתא דשמיא in this world, says the Maharal. One for the individual, and a more powerful one for the Klal, the Tzibur, the congregation. If that person had been escorted to his destination, his Mazel would have been different. He would have gone from being a yachid (individual) to a rabim (group). That, perhaps, would have spared him his life.
We see this concept of the power of a tzibur in many areas. An obvious one is davening - chazal say that the tefillos of a minyan are more powerful than of those praying without a minyan. Another proof is the realm of war. The pasuk promises us in Bechukosai ורדפו מכם חמשה מאה ומאה מכם רבבה ירדפו. Five of you will pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you will pursue ten thousand. Rashi points out the discrepancy in the math - five chasing a hundred is 1:20, a hundred chasing ten thousand is 1:100. How does that work?
Rashi explains that spiritual math works differently than physical math. Spiritual math says that when you increase the number of Jews doing something holy (like fighting a war that God commanded), they can do more than a smaller number of Jews doing the same thing.
This is the power of a group. Humans have a great propensity to gather in numbers. We feel the need to congregate, to socialize. This koach, like all kochos that Hashem gives us, can (and should) be used to our benefit.
We all know that it's easier to be "frum" (whatever that means) when we're in a group. When everyone else is interested in growth, then it's easier to grow. When everyone else is not interested in growth, that's where it's especially challenging to get closer to God. Let's use our friends to our advantage. Getting together in a religious setting - whether to learn, daven, or just schmooze about life - can be the difference between incredible growth or ח"ו a stagnated summer. Next time you're in the mood to learn, go out to the beis instead of your dining room. That way, it'll be easier to do it again the next time, because you'll have chevra in place who can help you.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
What is Teshuva?
2 Elul 5770
Many of us know that Elul is a time for Teshuva. Unfortunately, many are missing a minor detail - what exactly is Teshuva?
Let's look at what חז"ל say, and then we'll sum it up into something we can take with us.
The Rambam introduces Hilchos Teshuva with the following phrase:
מצות עשה אחת (הוא מצות תשובה), והוא שישוב החוטא מחטאו לפני ה' ויתודה
According to the Rambam, Teshuva is a positive commandment to: a) repent, b) admit your sins before God. Then, throughout the first halacha in Hilchos Teshuva, the Rambam goes on to emphasize this concept of וידוי, of admitting your sins before God. He writes phrases like: כל המרבה להתודות ומאריך בענין זה הרי זה משובח - anyone who goes on at length with his וידוי is praiseworthy.
What is the big deal about וידוי? Why is it so important for someone to "admit his sins before God?"
Let's think about this rationally. God is all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-adjective. He is, for lack of a better term, The Man. היה הווה ויהיה, HKB"H knows all.
Why, then, are we telling Him about everything we've done wrong? Was He not aware that we skipped maariv last week? Stole twenty bucks from our parents' stash in their sock drawer a month ago? Cheated on our finals in June? What can God possibly gain from us listing off every time we've screwed up - does He really enjoy making us feel so terrible about ourselves?
The answer, of course, is that וידוי is not for God. Hashem is not some human king who needs to be informed by his subjects about all that's going on in His kingdom. He knows already. But we are the ones who need to know. We are the ones who need to be informed. And the only person who's going to be able to tell us about our own shortcomings is ourselves.
You all know how well we take criticism. It's usually received with defensive, angry, uncooperative feelings and emotions. Even if it's constructive criticism. But when we criticize ourselves, when we catch ourselves doing something wrong, we stop and listen. When we hear about our חטאים from our own mouth, there is a chance we will take it to heart. There is a chance we will think about it, because it's not someone else expressing their superiority by pointing out our faults. It's coming from us.
That's what so huge about admitting our sins. The best platform we have to receive criticism about our actions is from our own mouth. So when we enumerate the things we have to work on, we are able to think - with a clear head - about actually improving those areas.
More on this later on.
What Elul is Not
1 Elul 5770
A lot of people dislike Chodesh Elul for the following reason. To most, Elul is a time to feel bad about yourself. To search for regret about past misdeeds. To wonder how you can attain forgiveness in a month or so. To admit your own shortcomings. And hovering over all these negative feelings is the huge shadow (כביכול) of a God Who's about to exact His revenge on His unloyal subjects.
The reality, in fact, could not be further than the truth.
One of the acronyms for Chodesh Elul is:
אני לדודי ודודי לי
I am to my beloved, and my beloved is to me.
This is a pasuk from Shir HaShirim, expressing the love and intimately fierce connection between HKB"H and Am Yisrael. The fact that it is used to describe Chodesh Elul means that the month is not a time to be afraid of God, but to get close to Him. To realize that HKB"H loves us very much. Elul is a time to re-experience the closeness of a God who cares about every single thing we do.
This month, don't feel threatened by HKB"H. Feel loved. Try to understand what it means to live a life of closeness to God. Realize that Hashem is not out to get you. He's not trying to force you against your will to live a strangled, boxed-in lifestyle. He's trying to help you live the best possible life in His world.
Elul is about rediscovering who we really are. If we have that frame of mind, the whole process doesn't only become less arduous, it becomes exciting.
More on this later on.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Getting in the right frame of mind
27 Av 5770
Shabbos Mevarchim for Chodesh Elul
The pasuk tells us in this week's parsha:
(דברים יא:כו)
ראה אנכי נותן לפניכם היום ברכה וקללה
Behold I place before you today a blessing and a curse.
There is a similar phrase in Parshas Nitzavim:
(דברים ל:טו)
ראה נתתי לפניך היום את החיים ואת הטוב ואת המות ואת הרע
Behold I have placed before you today life and good, and death and evil.
Why does the Torah switch from blessings and curses to life and death? What is the pasuk in Nitzavim adding? We already know the formula from Parshas Re'eh: mitzvos=blessings, aveiros=curses. What more do we need to know?
The משך חכמה refers us to the few psukim earlier in Parshas Nitzavim. There Moshe Rabbeinu discusses the concept of Teshuva for the first time. Bnei Yisrael are introduced to the idea of a second chance; if at first you don't succeed, try try again. And again. And again. All the way up until the day of your death.
Now, explains the משך חכמה, we can understand what happened between Parshas Re'eh and Parshas Nitzavim. Blessings and curses are things that come in the future, and Moshe is foretelling the potential judgment based upon this year's actions. By Parshas Nitzavim, we've already been introduced to the concept of Teshuva, and we're already at the life and death stage. Either a person chooses life, or he chooses death ח"ו, both in this world and the next.
Rav Mordechai Willig once pointed out that Parshas Re'eh and Parshas Nitzavim always bookend Chodesh Elul in some form or another. This year Re'eh was Shabbos Mevarchim. Sometimes it's the first shabbos in Elul. But whatever the case, these pesukim really get us focused on the proper mindset for the month. During the year we have earned Brachos and Klalos. We have future reward or ח"ו punishment ahead of us. Now we have a month to think about that. We have a month to focus on Teshuva. And at the end of that month, we will have furthered our choice, and now the stakes will be even higher. Did we choose life? Or ח"ו death?
Now is the time to choose. You can't just wake up Rosh HaShana morning and say, okay, time for Teshuva. It has to begin now. May הקב"ה give us all the strength to analyze our actions and change them for the better, אמן כן יהי רצון.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
The Elephant of Tisha B'Av
9 Av 5770
The big elephant in the room when it comes to Tisha B'Av is simply this:
Who friggin' cares?
We get it. There used to be a big building. In place of that hideous gold dome. The Temple. And every year we mourn the destruction of said Temple, the annihilation of a lot of people, the exile of our forefathers, yada yada yada.
How does this impact ME?
After all, I live a good life. I live a religious life. I love God, He loves me, I am frum, I am happy. Baruch Hashem. What do I need the friggin' Temple for?
This is the elephant in the room. We kind of go through the motions on Tisha B'Av - saying kinos, reading eicha, wearing uncomfortable shoes, not eating - but when it comes down to it, not very many people care that there's no animal sacrifice nowadays. We all think it - why should I care - but no one dares voice it, because that would make you a loser or an apikores or something.
But what is the answer to that question?
I'd love to hear what you have to say; and I daresay that it's an important issue that requires thought and discussion. But if you're in the mood not to think, and you want to hear what I think, then by all means, keep reading.
I'd love to hear what you have to say; and I daresay that it's an important issue that requires thought and discussion. But if you're in the mood not to think, and you want to hear what I think, then by all means, keep reading.
Being a Jew is hard. Keeping halacha is hard. Keeping a connection with the Ribono Shel Olam is hard. Feeling good about ourselves in a spiritual way is hard. You all experienced it during your shana alef, you experience it now, and you will experience it for the rest of your lives. It is increasingly difficult, every day it gets worse, to be a frum Jew in the modern world.
When we had the Beis HaMikdash, it was so much easier to connect to spirituality in this world. Think about it - every yontif, we didn't go to see Aunt Matilda in Monsey or Teaneck - you went to see GOD in the Beis HaMikdash (not literally, but you know what i mean). If you ever did an aveirah that you didn't know was assur (i.e. you did it b'shogeg) - like tying your shoelaces in a double-knot on shabbos - if you learned afterwards that it was assur, you brought a korban chatas to the Beis HaMikdash. I mean, I would've been there like every week with my shogeig aveiros! Or at least every other week.
Think about it. Three times a year, and probably many more, you visited with God in His House. How much more focused was the davening of that generation? How much more intense was their learning? If you were chilling on Ben Yehuda and you had a nisayon to touch or look at a girl, all you had to do was look at the skyline - the friggin' Beis HaMikdash towered over the city! Imagine if the Train Bridge that you can see from all of Yerushalayim, imagine if that Bridge reminded you of HKB"H (which it does, kind of, with a finger pointed at the sky). Spirituality would be so much easier. A connection with the Ribono Shel Olam would be so much more attainable. Deep down happiness - being happy with who you are; i.e. a soul and a guf - would be more readily accessible.
This is what we're mourning. Not some random building that burned down two thousand years ago. It's the loss of a lifestyle that was an amazing way to lightningrod (if I can use that as a verb) our connection to HKB"H. It's the fact that we lost the ability to connect to God in an easier/simpler/better way, and now we have to struggle and fight our way through the muck of this generation's challenges. Because life may be good for our guf, but it's pretty tough on our neshamah.
This Tisha B'Av, think about your own struggles. Think about how hard it is to connect to Hashem, how far away you are physically, mentally, and spiritually. And then resolve to get closer. Resolve to put in a little more effort. Because nowadays that's all we got. We can put our work in, and then it's up to HKB"H to take us the rest of the way. As you know I love quoting the gmara in Makkos, בדרך שאדם רוצה לילך מוליכין אותו. Down the path a person wants to go, that's where Hashem takes him. If we want to get closer to HKB"H, then He will help us get there.
May we all have a meaningful fast.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
The Power of our Actions
17 Elul 5769
My apologies for the lack of posting - last week was a crazy week. iyH I will try and make it up this week.
Very often, we do things without giving them much thought. We brush our teeth in the morning, we eat lunch, we drop some tzedaka in a pushka - most of our actions are not done with great concentration. Nor do we consider the effects of our actions. I'm not saying this is necessarily a bad thing, I'm just pointing out what is.
If we truly realized the impact of our actions, both good and bad, it would change our avodas Hashem in a radical way. Rav Yisrael Salanter is quoted as explaining that sins are like stars. Stars, to our eyes, are very small specs of light. But in reality they are enormous balls of gas and energy, far larger than we can even comprehend.
Sin is like that, too. We don't think of a sin as being a huge deal - otherwise, we'd take more care in avoiding it. But in reality, sin is enormous.
The same can be said of a mitzvah. We do not realize how powerful our mitzvos are. If we did, we would take more care in performing them.
Rav Chaim Volozhener wrote a sefer called the Nefesh HaChaim. It's basically a sefer on mussar through kabbalah; very deep stuff. And in the first few chapters, Rav Chaim explains the following:
The pasuk tells us that we are created "b'tzelem Elokim," in the likeness of God. Now, that doesn't mean that God has a body, or that He looks like something and we were created in its image. Rather, that means we are comprable to God in some way. In what way could we possibly be compared to the Almighty?
Explains Rav Chaim, we have the power to affect worlds. Our actions down here on this earth affect what goes on in the Upper realms, in other worlds. HKB"H literally gives us the power to create and destroy worlds with our actions - do a good deed, and worlds are created. Do a bad deed, and worlds are destroyed.
Now, a full discussion of that concept is beyond the point of this blog, and I encourage you to search out further understanding of that idea. But our actions also affect what happens in this world. Chazal tell us that when Bnei Yisrael would go to war, they would send 12,000 soldiers out to the battlefield, and have 12,000 corresponding Jews davening for those soldiers. Because our koach is not in physical might, but in spiritual might. The next time you are about to do an aveirah, or the next time you are about to do a mitzvah, think about the power that you have. You are literally a superhero, with the ability to change the world. May Hashem give us the strength to change the world for the good and not the bad, kein yehi ratzon.
Hatzlacha Raba!
My apologies for the lack of posting - last week was a crazy week. iyH I will try and make it up this week.
Very often, we do things without giving them much thought. We brush our teeth in the morning, we eat lunch, we drop some tzedaka in a pushka - most of our actions are not done with great concentration. Nor do we consider the effects of our actions. I'm not saying this is necessarily a bad thing, I'm just pointing out what is.
If we truly realized the impact of our actions, both good and bad, it would change our avodas Hashem in a radical way. Rav Yisrael Salanter is quoted as explaining that sins are like stars. Stars, to our eyes, are very small specs of light. But in reality they are enormous balls of gas and energy, far larger than we can even comprehend.
Sin is like that, too. We don't think of a sin as being a huge deal - otherwise, we'd take more care in avoiding it. But in reality, sin is enormous.
The same can be said of a mitzvah. We do not realize how powerful our mitzvos are. If we did, we would take more care in performing them.
Rav Chaim Volozhener wrote a sefer called the Nefesh HaChaim. It's basically a sefer on mussar through kabbalah; very deep stuff. And in the first few chapters, Rav Chaim explains the following:
The pasuk tells us that we are created "b'tzelem Elokim," in the likeness of God. Now, that doesn't mean that God has a body, or that He looks like something and we were created in its image. Rather, that means we are comprable to God in some way. In what way could we possibly be compared to the Almighty?
Explains Rav Chaim, we have the power to affect worlds. Our actions down here on this earth affect what goes on in the Upper realms, in other worlds. HKB"H literally gives us the power to create and destroy worlds with our actions - do a good deed, and worlds are created. Do a bad deed, and worlds are destroyed.
Now, a full discussion of that concept is beyond the point of this blog, and I encourage you to search out further understanding of that idea. But our actions also affect what happens in this world. Chazal tell us that when Bnei Yisrael would go to war, they would send 12,000 soldiers out to the battlefield, and have 12,000 corresponding Jews davening for those soldiers. Because our koach is not in physical might, but in spiritual might. The next time you are about to do an aveirah, or the next time you are about to do a mitzvah, think about the power that you have. You are literally a superhero, with the ability to change the world. May Hashem give us the strength to change the world for the good and not the bad, kein yehi ratzon.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Live in the Now
11 Elul 5769
Last week's parsha discusses the Ben Sorer U'Moreh, the rebellious son. Rashi quotes the gmaras that explain that this 12 year old is killed because of what he will do in the future. He's stealing money from his parents today to buy meat and wine? Says Hashem, I'm enough of an expert on human psychology to know that this kid is headed down the wrong road. Kill him now to make sure he will die without sin on his hands, because if you leave him alive, he will die with terrible blemishes on his soul.
Many commentaries point out a glaring contradiction in Hashem's logic. In parshas VaYeira, Avraham sends away Hagar and Yishmael. After Hagar and Yishmael spend days in the desert, Yishmael takes ill. Chazal explain how Hashem was judging Yishmael at that point, whether he should die or live. The angels were saying: Hashem! Yishmael's descendants are going to kill tons of Jews! Why not kill him now and save Bnei Yisrael all the tzaros? Answers HKBH, I will not kill Yishmael now, because at this point, he is a tzaddik. That's the meaning of the words Ba'asher Hu Sham - seemingly extraneous words that appear in the story of Yishmael which literally mean "And that he was there." Meaning, Yishmael, at the point where he was, at that moment, he was a tzaddik.
Ask Chazal, what's the difference between Yishmael and the Ben Sorer U'Moreh? Both are destined for terrible things. And Yishmael survives, but the Ben Sorer U'Moreh gets killed? Explains the Mizrachi, Yishmael was a tzaddik at that point. The Ben Sorer U'Moreh was not - he started down the slippery slope already. He was stealing from his parents to eat meat and wine. If he started already, then he will continue. But Yishmael was a full tzaddik at that moment, so Hashem judged him according to how he was at that point and time.
Chazal explain that the reason we read the parsha of Yishmael on Rosh Hashana is because during these days of Teshuva, we have the koach of a Yishmael. We are not judged on future misgivings, we are not wholly judged on past misgivings - HKB"H looks at us as we are right now, Ba'Asher Hu Sham. Are we trying to do teshuva? Are we attempting to get closer to Hashem, to repent on past deeds, to pledge to move forward? If we are doing that, then Hashem accepts us Ba'Asher Hu Sham, as a complete tzaddik at this point and time. If we put in the effort, even just a small effort, to return to Hashem, then HKBH will see it and help us. May we all have the koach to get closer to Him.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Last week's parsha discusses the Ben Sorer U'Moreh, the rebellious son. Rashi quotes the gmaras that explain that this 12 year old is killed because of what he will do in the future. He's stealing money from his parents today to buy meat and wine? Says Hashem, I'm enough of an expert on human psychology to know that this kid is headed down the wrong road. Kill him now to make sure he will die without sin on his hands, because if you leave him alive, he will die with terrible blemishes on his soul.
Many commentaries point out a glaring contradiction in Hashem's logic. In parshas VaYeira, Avraham sends away Hagar and Yishmael. After Hagar and Yishmael spend days in the desert, Yishmael takes ill. Chazal explain how Hashem was judging Yishmael at that point, whether he should die or live. The angels were saying: Hashem! Yishmael's descendants are going to kill tons of Jews! Why not kill him now and save Bnei Yisrael all the tzaros? Answers HKBH, I will not kill Yishmael now, because at this point, he is a tzaddik. That's the meaning of the words Ba'asher Hu Sham - seemingly extraneous words that appear in the story of Yishmael which literally mean "And that he was there." Meaning, Yishmael, at the point where he was, at that moment, he was a tzaddik.
Ask Chazal, what's the difference between Yishmael and the Ben Sorer U'Moreh? Both are destined for terrible things. And Yishmael survives, but the Ben Sorer U'Moreh gets killed? Explains the Mizrachi, Yishmael was a tzaddik at that point. The Ben Sorer U'Moreh was not - he started down the slippery slope already. He was stealing from his parents to eat meat and wine. If he started already, then he will continue. But Yishmael was a full tzaddik at that moment, so Hashem judged him according to how he was at that point and time.
Chazal explain that the reason we read the parsha of Yishmael on Rosh Hashana is because during these days of Teshuva, we have the koach of a Yishmael. We are not judged on future misgivings, we are not wholly judged on past misgivings - HKB"H looks at us as we are right now, Ba'Asher Hu Sham. Are we trying to do teshuva? Are we attempting to get closer to Hashem, to repent on past deeds, to pledge to move forward? If we are doing that, then Hashem accepts us Ba'Asher Hu Sham, as a complete tzaddik at this point and time. If we put in the effort, even just a small effort, to return to Hashem, then HKBH will see it and help us. May we all have the koach to get closer to Him.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Friday, August 28, 2009
Defining Good and Bad
8 Elul 5769
Obviously, the basic premise behind Teshuva is doing good and avoiding evil. This assumes, however, that a person knows the difference between good and evil.
But wait, you say. Of course I know the difference between good and evil! Well, to tell you the truth, those lines are much more blurred than you might think.
What would you say, for example, about killing somebody? That surely must be a heinous, evil act, right? Well, that may be so, but then why do we have a mitzvah to kill everybody in the nation of Amalek? Or a mitzvah to kill a Rodef, someone who's trying to murder you? Or a mitzvah to wipe out the seven nations of Eretz Yisrael - you know, the Chittie, the Prizi, the Yevusi, etc. How can we possibly have a mitzvah of genocide? That's right - we have a mitzvah to wipe out Amalek. Almost every Jew knows this. If murder is such an evil act, how can we have such a mitzvah?
Or take, for example, the idea of chessed, of doing kindness for someone. That surely is a good deed, isn't it? Well, this week's parsha (Ki Seitzei) discusses a Ben Sorer U'Moreh, a rebellious son. The next discussion right after that talks about someone who does an aveirah which makes him liable to the death penalty - ki yih'yeh b'ish chet mishpat mavet. Rashi on the spot explains why the two topics are back to back: because if the parents of a Ben Sorer U'Moreh have mercy on their son, and they extend kindness to him and don't bring him to Beis Din, he will end up performing a sin that will cause him to be liable to get misas bet din.
What's going on over here? I thought it's good to be merciful, it's good to do kindness! How can doing kindess be something that's frowned upon?
So you may have guessed the answer already. Good and evil is not defined by one singluar action. It's all based on context - what were you doing when you performed the act? Were you killing a fellow Jew, or killing an Amaleki? Were you doing chessed for your next door neighbor, or for a mass murderer? (For more on how perverted chessed can be, check out the following article on Aish - apparently the Scottish government just released the guy who killed 300 people by bombing an airplane twenty years ago. http://www.aish.com/ci/s/54944532.html)
And what is the moral compass by which we use to judge each context? The Torah. Not Western morals, not Christian morals, not Arabic morals. The Torah is what tells us what is good and evil. If we are able to take this to heart, that it is not our own moral compass that determines right and wrong, but the Torah HaKedosha, then iyH we will be zoche to be matzliach in our Teshuva efforts.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Obviously, the basic premise behind Teshuva is doing good and avoiding evil. This assumes, however, that a person knows the difference between good and evil.
But wait, you say. Of course I know the difference between good and evil! Well, to tell you the truth, those lines are much more blurred than you might think.
What would you say, for example, about killing somebody? That surely must be a heinous, evil act, right? Well, that may be so, but then why do we have a mitzvah to kill everybody in the nation of Amalek? Or a mitzvah to kill a Rodef, someone who's trying to murder you? Or a mitzvah to wipe out the seven nations of Eretz Yisrael - you know, the Chittie, the Prizi, the Yevusi, etc. How can we possibly have a mitzvah of genocide? That's right - we have a mitzvah to wipe out Amalek. Almost every Jew knows this. If murder is such an evil act, how can we have such a mitzvah?
Or take, for example, the idea of chessed, of doing kindness for someone. That surely is a good deed, isn't it? Well, this week's parsha (Ki Seitzei) discusses a Ben Sorer U'Moreh, a rebellious son. The next discussion right after that talks about someone who does an aveirah which makes him liable to the death penalty - ki yih'yeh b'ish chet mishpat mavet. Rashi on the spot explains why the two topics are back to back: because if the parents of a Ben Sorer U'Moreh have mercy on their son, and they extend kindness to him and don't bring him to Beis Din, he will end up performing a sin that will cause him to be liable to get misas bet din.
What's going on over here? I thought it's good to be merciful, it's good to do kindness! How can doing kindess be something that's frowned upon?
So you may have guessed the answer already. Good and evil is not defined by one singluar action. It's all based on context - what were you doing when you performed the act? Were you killing a fellow Jew, or killing an Amaleki? Were you doing chessed for your next door neighbor, or for a mass murderer? (For more on how perverted chessed can be, check out the following article on Aish - apparently the Scottish government just released the guy who killed 300 people by bombing an airplane twenty years ago. http://www.aish.com/ci/s/54944532.html)
And what is the moral compass by which we use to judge each context? The Torah. Not Western morals, not Christian morals, not Arabic morals. The Torah is what tells us what is good and evil. If we are able to take this to heart, that it is not our own moral compass that determines right and wrong, but the Torah HaKedosha, then iyH we will be zoche to be matzliach in our Teshuva efforts.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Who is Hashem?
6 Elul 5769
Before we get back to the topics we discussed two posts ago (ayein sham), an important word of introduction. I want to dispel a notion that I think is very prevalent amongst Jews nowadays. If you would ask your average Jew on the street "Who is Hashem and how does this teshuva thing work?", the answer would probably be something along the lines of the following:
Hashem is an all-powerful being, up in the sky. Invisible, of course, and everywhere - because, after all, He's God. Hashem has super powers - you know, like Superman - to do just about anything He wants. He sits up in heaven, on His throne, with a book open in front of him. Do a good deed, you get a check mark on the right side of the page. Do a bad deed, and you get an X on the left side of the page. When the checks outnumber the X's, you get reward. Yippee. When then X's outnumber the checks, you get punished. Which means Hashem is basically a super-accountant, keeping tabs on a world-ful of people, making sure everybody gets their just reward or due punishment. Now, that reward or punishment can be swayed by begging - a whole lot of begging - during the month of Elul and the first few days of Tishrei. Finally, after Hashem listens to more than a month of endless nagging, He decides to either change His mind, or not change His mind.
Sound familiar? Is that your basic idea of Hashem and how the Yamim Noraim work?
Well, no offense to public opinion, but that is a horrible and tragic perception of what's going on. Let's start with the first part of that paragraph, and we'll move onto the rest of it tomorrow (or the next day).
Hashem is not some great being up in the sky. That's Zeus. Zeus is up there (well, not really), hanging out with his pals, throwing lightning bolts at whomever he chooses like he's Amon Goeth in Schindler's List. My friends, that is not Hashem. Hashem is Ein Od Milvado - simply put, Hashem is this world. He is the source of this world's existence, the whole reason why it exists, the whole reason how it exists. This is a much longer discussion that needs to be explored in far greater depth, but let's tackle one concept within this idea right now.
When Moshe asked Hashem what His name was, so that Moshe could report it back to Bnei Yisrael, Hashem replied "Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh" - or, "I will be what I will be." Meaning, Hashem is beyond time: the past, present, and future are all the same in front of Him. For example, picture in your mind a huge mosaic, the mosaic of world history. We are but ants on one small stone; we have a tiny limited viewpoint. Hashem can see the whole mosaic, the whole of history. He transcends time completely.
So Hashem is "I will be what I will be." In other words, Hashem is the ultimate Be-er - that's what He does. He exists; in the past, present, and future. So if Hashem is a Be-er - watch this, follow carefully - then we are human be-ings. Just like a painter makes a painting, a builder makes a building; the ultimate Be-er made a be-ing. That's us. Banim Atem LaShem Elokeichem - we are children of Hashem. We are creations of Hashem. We are the be-ings of the ultimate Be-er.
When you have that perspective, things start to get a little bit more rosy. How does a painter feel about his work? Or how does an architect feel about his work? If you've ever spent a lot of effort to create something, think about how you felt about that work. You love it to death. You cringe every time the table shakes, lest it fall off a table and shatter. You jump every time a baby goes near it, lest he spit up on it or something. You worry about it constantly, making sure it has a good spot in the house where both everyone can see it and nobody can damage it.
That is how Hashem feels about us. We are His children, his be-ings. And He loves us.
You hear that? Hashem LOVES us. We will discuss how this impacts our work in Elul in the next post, but for now, stop feeling bad about yourself and get your self-esteem out of the gutter. HASHEM LOVES YOU. HE CARES ABOUT YOU. HE IS WATCHING YOU - not with the angry glare of a taskmaster, but with the genuine love of a parent who watches his son/daughter. If you can internalize that, then you're well on your way towards true teshuva.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Before we get back to the topics we discussed two posts ago (ayein sham), an important word of introduction. I want to dispel a notion that I think is very prevalent amongst Jews nowadays. If you would ask your average Jew on the street "Who is Hashem and how does this teshuva thing work?", the answer would probably be something along the lines of the following:
Hashem is an all-powerful being, up in the sky. Invisible, of course, and everywhere - because, after all, He's God. Hashem has super powers - you know, like Superman - to do just about anything He wants. He sits up in heaven, on His throne, with a book open in front of him. Do a good deed, you get a check mark on the right side of the page. Do a bad deed, and you get an X on the left side of the page. When the checks outnumber the X's, you get reward. Yippee. When then X's outnumber the checks, you get punished. Which means Hashem is basically a super-accountant, keeping tabs on a world-ful of people, making sure everybody gets their just reward or due punishment. Now, that reward or punishment can be swayed by begging - a whole lot of begging - during the month of Elul and the first few days of Tishrei. Finally, after Hashem listens to more than a month of endless nagging, He decides to either change His mind, or not change His mind.
Sound familiar? Is that your basic idea of Hashem and how the Yamim Noraim work?
Well, no offense to public opinion, but that is a horrible and tragic perception of what's going on. Let's start with the first part of that paragraph, and we'll move onto the rest of it tomorrow (or the next day).
Hashem is not some great being up in the sky. That's Zeus. Zeus is up there (well, not really), hanging out with his pals, throwing lightning bolts at whomever he chooses like he's Amon Goeth in Schindler's List. My friends, that is not Hashem. Hashem is Ein Od Milvado - simply put, Hashem is this world. He is the source of this world's existence, the whole reason why it exists, the whole reason how it exists. This is a much longer discussion that needs to be explored in far greater depth, but let's tackle one concept within this idea right now.
When Moshe asked Hashem what His name was, so that Moshe could report it back to Bnei Yisrael, Hashem replied "Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh" - or, "I will be what I will be." Meaning, Hashem is beyond time: the past, present, and future are all the same in front of Him. For example, picture in your mind a huge mosaic, the mosaic of world history. We are but ants on one small stone; we have a tiny limited viewpoint. Hashem can see the whole mosaic, the whole of history. He transcends time completely.
So Hashem is "I will be what I will be." In other words, Hashem is the ultimate Be-er - that's what He does. He exists; in the past, present, and future. So if Hashem is a Be-er - watch this, follow carefully - then we are human be-ings. Just like a painter makes a painting, a builder makes a building; the ultimate Be-er made a be-ing. That's us. Banim Atem LaShem Elokeichem - we are children of Hashem. We are creations of Hashem. We are the be-ings of the ultimate Be-er.
When you have that perspective, things start to get a little bit more rosy. How does a painter feel about his work? Or how does an architect feel about his work? If you've ever spent a lot of effort to create something, think about how you felt about that work. You love it to death. You cringe every time the table shakes, lest it fall off a table and shatter. You jump every time a baby goes near it, lest he spit up on it or something. You worry about it constantly, making sure it has a good spot in the house where both everyone can see it and nobody can damage it.
That is how Hashem feels about us. We are His children, his be-ings. And He loves us.
You hear that? Hashem LOVES us. We will discuss how this impacts our work in Elul in the next post, but for now, stop feeling bad about yourself and get your self-esteem out of the gutter. HASHEM LOVES YOU. HE CARES ABOUT YOU. HE IS WATCHING YOU - not with the angry glare of a taskmaster, but with the genuine love of a parent who watches his son/daughter. If you can internalize that, then you're well on your way towards true teshuva.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Learn from Our Mistakes
4 Elul 5769
I just moved apartments, and my house currently consists of boxes, suitcases, and more boxes. But I wanted to get in a quick thought - don't worry, I will deliver on my promise to discuss what Elul is all about in a few days. Just as soon as life gets back to normal :).
I heard the following idea from a Rav Zecharyish, rav of the shul Ahavas Shalom in Ramat Bet Shemesh:
In last week's Pirkei Avos, we learn the following: (loosely translated)
- There were ten generations between Adam and Noach. Hashem showed His incredible mercies by delaying their punishments. Then they were all destroyed in the Mabul.
- There were ten generations between Noach and Avraham. Hashem showed his incredible mercies by delaying their punishments. Then Avraham came (and saved them), claiming the reward of all ten generations in the process.
Naturally, there are many things we can learn from this mishna. But consider the following: Which set of ten generations were worse? The ones who were wiped out by the flood, or the ones whose reward Avraham got all to himself?
At first glance, you might think that the first set was worse. After all, they got destroyed! But upon further examination, the opposite is true. The only reason the second set of ten generations were not destroyed, after all, is because Avraham saved them. Had Avraham lived ten generations earlier, the Dor HaMabul might've been saved. Make no mistake - the second set of ten generations were far worse, because they saw what a life of partying and aveiros got the first set of ten - and didn't take heed at all.
Rabosai, we have a month to reflect on the past year. Let's say we take the time, a few minutes a day - heck, a few minutes the whole month would be more than most people. But if we don't act on such reflections, what good does it do us? We have to figure out our weaknesses, yes, but then we have to set aside time to improve them, or in some cases, eradicate them.
May we all have the strength to not only recognize our faults, but to have the courage and the strength to act on them and improve them.
Hatzlacha Raba!
I just moved apartments, and my house currently consists of boxes, suitcases, and more boxes. But I wanted to get in a quick thought - don't worry, I will deliver on my promise to discuss what Elul is all about in a few days. Just as soon as life gets back to normal :).
I heard the following idea from a Rav Zecharyish, rav of the shul Ahavas Shalom in Ramat Bet Shemesh:
In last week's Pirkei Avos, we learn the following: (loosely translated)
- There were ten generations between Adam and Noach. Hashem showed His incredible mercies by delaying their punishments. Then they were all destroyed in the Mabul.
- There were ten generations between Noach and Avraham. Hashem showed his incredible mercies by delaying their punishments. Then Avraham came (and saved them), claiming the reward of all ten generations in the process.
Naturally, there are many things we can learn from this mishna. But consider the following: Which set of ten generations were worse? The ones who were wiped out by the flood, or the ones whose reward Avraham got all to himself?
At first glance, you might think that the first set was worse. After all, they got destroyed! But upon further examination, the opposite is true. The only reason the second set of ten generations were not destroyed, after all, is because Avraham saved them. Had Avraham lived ten generations earlier, the Dor HaMabul might've been saved. Make no mistake - the second set of ten generations were far worse, because they saw what a life of partying and aveiros got the first set of ten - and didn't take heed at all.
Rabosai, we have a month to reflect on the past year. Let's say we take the time, a few minutes a day - heck, a few minutes the whole month would be more than most people. But if we don't act on such reflections, what good does it do us? We have to figure out our weaknesses, yes, but then we have to set aside time to improve them, or in some cases, eradicate them.
May we all have the strength to not only recognize our faults, but to have the courage and the strength to act on them and improve them.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Friday, August 21, 2009
Back for a Third Season
1 Elul 5769
Shalom Aleichem Rabosai! It looks like another Elul is upon us. I pray that this will be the Elul where all of Klal Yisrael return fully and wholly to Hashem. And to help facilitate that, this blog will be back for a third season, giving semi-daily (i.e. 3-5 times a week) teshuva-oriented blurbs that will hopefully aid the Teshuva process through the long month of Elul and Aseres Yimei Teshuva.
And away we go...
For me, Elul is the hardest time of the year. Because every year I go through the following thought process (and I would assume that you do too): I know I have sinned, I know I'm probably slated for some kind of punishment, and I know that if I do Teshuva, I can avoid said punishment.
But all of that is very: a) depressing, and b) theoretical. It's depressing in the sense that I feel like I have a debt that's unrepayable, and that's a pretty horrible burden to carry around. It's theoretical in the sense that I cannot possible grasp how many sins I've committed, nor what the punishment will be for those sins. And do I know that I'm definitely going to get punished? How bad is that punishment going to be? Maybe the sins are worth it? Or maybe the punishment is so great that I can't possibly do Teshuva for it? Everything is extremely esoteric.
We'll get to all of the above questions in due time. Al regel achas, don't ever feel that you can never do Teshuva for your sins - the Torah is clear and adamant that we can always do Teshuva, even for a lifetime of sins. But let's work with one part of the above statement for a second: How do you know that if you sin, you're going to get punished?
So in reality, this is not a concept found in Chodesh Elul. Elul teaches us that we can return to Hashem, no matter how terrible our predicament. But how do we know that we need to return to Him? What proves to us that there is a concept of sin, and for that sin there is punishment?
This is what Chodesh Av teaches us. The horrible experiences that us Jews have suffered in Chodesh Av - on both a national and personal level - teaches us about the consequences of sin. We read the Kinnos, Megillas Eichah, the Haftorahs of Chodesh Av, the parshiyos of Chodesh Av - all of these writings illustrate the following simple equation: sin=punishment. Period, end of story. So if we're having a hard time conceptualizing the idea that our sins are going to land us in hot water, just take out that Kinnos or Megillas Eicha that you put away behind the Haggadahs for next year. Or simply read through Moshe's speeches in the first few parshiyos of Sefer Devarim. They're eye-opening reminders.
Now, as I mentioned before, all this is extremely depressing. What, then, is Chodesh Elul all about? Is it about depressing ourselves to the point where we feel that we have to do Teshuva? Does Elul make us focus on our iniquities so much so, so that we feel insignificant and terrible? Chas VeShalom. Elul is something much greater, much more exciting. But that's for another day, and another post. Until then, I wish you much siyata d'shmaya in all your endeavors.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Shalom Aleichem Rabosai! It looks like another Elul is upon us. I pray that this will be the Elul where all of Klal Yisrael return fully and wholly to Hashem. And to help facilitate that, this blog will be back for a third season, giving semi-daily (i.e. 3-5 times a week) teshuva-oriented blurbs that will hopefully aid the Teshuva process through the long month of Elul and Aseres Yimei Teshuva.
And away we go...
For me, Elul is the hardest time of the year. Because every year I go through the following thought process (and I would assume that you do too): I know I have sinned, I know I'm probably slated for some kind of punishment, and I know that if I do Teshuva, I can avoid said punishment.
But all of that is very: a) depressing, and b) theoretical. It's depressing in the sense that I feel like I have a debt that's unrepayable, and that's a pretty horrible burden to carry around. It's theoretical in the sense that I cannot possible grasp how many sins I've committed, nor what the punishment will be for those sins. And do I know that I'm definitely going to get punished? How bad is that punishment going to be? Maybe the sins are worth it? Or maybe the punishment is so great that I can't possibly do Teshuva for it? Everything is extremely esoteric.
We'll get to all of the above questions in due time. Al regel achas, don't ever feel that you can never do Teshuva for your sins - the Torah is clear and adamant that we can always do Teshuva, even for a lifetime of sins. But let's work with one part of the above statement for a second: How do you know that if you sin, you're going to get punished?
So in reality, this is not a concept found in Chodesh Elul. Elul teaches us that we can return to Hashem, no matter how terrible our predicament. But how do we know that we need to return to Him? What proves to us that there is a concept of sin, and for that sin there is punishment?
This is what Chodesh Av teaches us. The horrible experiences that us Jews have suffered in Chodesh Av - on both a national and personal level - teaches us about the consequences of sin. We read the Kinnos, Megillas Eichah, the Haftorahs of Chodesh Av, the parshiyos of Chodesh Av - all of these writings illustrate the following simple equation: sin=punishment. Period, end of story. So if we're having a hard time conceptualizing the idea that our sins are going to land us in hot water, just take out that Kinnos or Megillas Eicha that you put away behind the Haggadahs for next year. Or simply read through Moshe's speeches in the first few parshiyos of Sefer Devarim. They're eye-opening reminders.
Now, as I mentioned before, all this is extremely depressing. What, then, is Chodesh Elul all about? Is it about depressing ourselves to the point where we feel that we have to do Teshuva? Does Elul make us focus on our iniquities so much so, so that we feel insignificant and terrible? Chas VeShalom. Elul is something much greater, much more exciting. But that's for another day, and another post. Until then, I wish you much siyata d'shmaya in all your endeavors.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Closin' up shop
30 Tishrei 5769
With my sincerest apologies, it looks like my time constraints are going to prohibit me from continuing to post reliably and regularly on this blog. iyH we will resume again next year, although if the Mashiach comes before then, we probably won't need to - Hatzlacha Raba!
With my sincerest apologies, it looks like my time constraints are going to prohibit me from continuing to post reliably and regularly on this blog. iyH we will resume again next year, although if the Mashiach comes before then, we probably won't need to - Hatzlacha Raba!
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
The Symbolism of a Succah
17 Tishrei 5769
We say in Maariv, "Hashem, spread out your Succah of peace over Bnei Yisrael." Rav Eliyahu Dessler asks in Michtav Me'Eliyahu - what does a succah have to do with peace?
Rav Dessler explains the following: a succah is a temporary dwelling. This temporary dwelling reminds us of a much greater temporary dwelling - namely, our existence in this world. Chazal tell us that this world is merely a corridor to the next; this world is a temporary dwelling for our neshamah. When we sit in the succah, a temporary dwelling, we are reminded that our existence in this world is merely temporary, as well.
Most arguments are built off of material things - money, power, fame. (Very rarely does an argument get started for purely spiritual reasons; and that is l'shem shamayim, something that is praiseworthy). Explains Rav Dessler, if we would be able to internalize this message of the succah, that we're all on this earth for a temporary time period, we wouldn't fight about trifle, physical pleasures. We would realize that these material goals are temporary, as well, and we'd look towards the future, towards the next world, with our pursuits. This would lead to Peace. Nobody would be fighting over money, possessions, or things of the like. So we daven every day: please Hashem, help us internalize the message of the succah. Help us realize that this world is only a corridor. Help us have peace between each and every one of us.
This also answers the question as to why Succos is placed right after Yom Kippur. As you may know, the miracle of Succos - whether it was the Clouds of Glory or actual physical booths that Bnei Yisrael sat in when they left Mitzrayim - that all happened in Nissan, right after Pesach. Why do we celebrate Succos now, in Tishrei? There are many answers, but one of them is this idea - we need a chag like this to steer us through a long winter. There aren't many holidays to remind us of the spiritual highs of the Yamim Noraim. How can we maintain the holiness, the pledges, the way of life that we chose during the Aseres Yimei Teshuva? How can we keep that going through the cold, dark winter? The holiday of Succos is a great way to kick us into that next level - we have more than a week of dwelling in a small hut, to remind us that this world is also a temporary existence. With Hashem's help, this chag we will internalize this message, and we will live this year with a constant remembrance of what this world truly is - a corridor to the next.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Keeping It Going
11 Tishrei, 5769
Okay, so Yom Kippur is over. You had a great davening, your tefillos were answered iyH, you feel great. The question now is: how do you keep that going?
Many of us know what it's like to make a New Year's Resolution. No, not the ones you make on January 1st - the ones you make during עשרת ימי תשובה. You want to daven better. You promised not to say Lashon Hara for ten minutes a day. Maybe you even decided to work out twice a week, to stay in better shape and help you observe the mitzvah of ושמרתם את נפשותיכם. How do you make sure you're not back to your old ways by the end of Succos?
Before we get to that, if you do happen to get back into your old habits, you shouldn't feel bad about it. Human beings are creatures of habit - Rav Yisrael Salanter is famous for saying that it's easier to keep 613 mitzvos than to change one character trait. So don't get down - get back up and try again.
But how do you avoid that first failure? Well, there are no surefire secrets, but here are a few methods that might help you keep that New Year's Resolution for a month or two, until it's ingrained in your being and you don't even have to think about it anymore because you do it so readily:
1) Write it down. Sounds 5th-grader-ish, I know, but it works. When you write down your two or three middos/mitzvos a day, it keeps you focused on it. Mark off whether you were successful or not. That way, you can literally see your progress as you grow.
2) Don't pick too many. Keep it simple - one, two three - but not more. If you finish these, you can move on to other things.
3) Grasp inspiration from somewhere else. The Shofar, the Selichos, the fasting, the tefillos - all these are great reminders of the need to grow and improve our neshamas. During the year, we lack these reminders. Pick out one or two religious items that will spark your neshama and inspire you to grow. A suggestion, if you need - Mezuza. You see one every time you walk into a room, and Rav Eliav Silverman pointed out that the Rambam kinda compares Mezuza and Shofar - by both he has a לשון of עורו שנה משינתכם, wake up from your slumber.
If anyone has any other suggestions, I'd love to hear them - please feel free to post underneath!
Also, if people are interested in this blog running through Hoshana Raba, or throughout the year (that'd probably be once a week), please feel free to post and let me know. Thanks!
הצלחה רבה!
Okay, so Yom Kippur is over. You had a great davening, your tefillos were answered iyH, you feel great. The question now is: how do you keep that going?
Many of us know what it's like to make a New Year's Resolution. No, not the ones you make on January 1st - the ones you make during עשרת ימי תשובה. You want to daven better. You promised not to say Lashon Hara for ten minutes a day. Maybe you even decided to work out twice a week, to stay in better shape and help you observe the mitzvah of ושמרתם את נפשותיכם. How do you make sure you're not back to your old ways by the end of Succos?
Before we get to that, if you do happen to get back into your old habits, you shouldn't feel bad about it. Human beings are creatures of habit - Rav Yisrael Salanter is famous for saying that it's easier to keep 613 mitzvos than to change one character trait. So don't get down - get back up and try again.
But how do you avoid that first failure? Well, there are no surefire secrets, but here are a few methods that might help you keep that New Year's Resolution for a month or two, until it's ingrained in your being and you don't even have to think about it anymore because you do it so readily:
1) Write it down. Sounds 5th-grader-ish, I know, but it works. When you write down your two or three middos/mitzvos a day, it keeps you focused on it. Mark off whether you were successful or not. That way, you can literally see your progress as you grow.
2) Don't pick too many. Keep it simple - one, two three - but not more. If you finish these, you can move on to other things.
3) Grasp inspiration from somewhere else. The Shofar, the Selichos, the fasting, the tefillos - all these are great reminders of the need to grow and improve our neshamas. During the year, we lack these reminders. Pick out one or two religious items that will spark your neshama and inspire you to grow. A suggestion, if you need - Mezuza. You see one every time you walk into a room, and Rav Eliav Silverman pointed out that the Rambam kinda compares Mezuza and Shofar - by both he has a לשון of עורו שנה משינתכם, wake up from your slumber.
If anyone has any other suggestions, I'd love to hear them - please feel free to post underneath!
Also, if people are interested in this blog running through Hoshana Raba, or throughout the year (that'd probably be once a week), please feel free to post and let me know. Thanks!
הצלחה רבה!
Sunday, October 5, 2008
The Mashiach is Still Coming
8 Tishrei 5769
My previous post discussed something very real. We are living in historic times. One only needs to open his/her eyes, to behold the world through Jewish glasses, to understand that there are forces at play here beyond our understanding.
Just this past month saw the near-collapse of the American economy. It is not hard to imagine that if a few more banks go under, the near-collapse will be come a true and definite collapse (the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has already predicted that more banks will fail in 2009). What will happen then? If one looks at history, it's not hard to figure out - most often, the country in question blames the Jews. Most recently, it happened in Germany, where an economic collapse led to the rise of the Nazi regime. It has happened in every country throughout our Galus. And it can happen in America. We often have the illusion of safety in our lives - we have a secure job, a wonderful home, a great life. What could possibly go wrong? The thing is, history has a habit of changing in an instant - an attack on 9/11, a drop of an Atom Bomb, a Six-Day War. Things usually do not take too long to swerve in a totally different direction.
But forget history. Look at the present - look at last week. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who is accepted everywhere when he shows up in the US, literally proved my point straight out. The following is taken from Ahmadinejad's speech, to which there has been barely any Jewish response or outcry whatsoever:
"The dignity, integrity and rights of the American and European people are being played with by a small but deceitful number of people called Zionists. Although they are a miniscule minority, they have been dominating an important portion of the financial and monetary centers as well as the political decision-making centers of some European countries and the US in a deceitful, complex and furtive manner. It is deeply disastrous to witness that some presidential or premiere nominees in some big countries have to visit these people, take part in their gatherings, swear their allegiance and commitment to their interests in order to attain financial or media support. This means that the great people of America and various nations of Europe need to obey the demands and wishes of a small number of acquisitive and invasive people. These nations are spending their dignity and resources on the crimes and occupations and the threats of the Zionist network against their will."
The United States and Israel walked out before Ahmadinejad's speech, but the rest of the nations applauded him. He got a hug from the Master of Ceremonies, or whatever that guy is called. He was invited to appear on American TV shows, to speak at colleges, to further his agenda. This guy is given free reign in this country when he openly speaks of genocide and nuclear proliferation.
It is not a stretch by any means to imagine the United States becoming another anti-Semitic blip on the radar of history. Spain, Germany, Russia, France - everyone has had a turn. If the economy goes bad, people will look for a scapegoat, and the anals of history tells me that it's not hard to predict who the scapegoat will be.
Why am I telling you all this? So I can say "I told you so" when it all happens? Chas Veshalom. I am telling you this to strengthen your resolve to do Teshuva, to get closer to Hashem during these uncertain days. If Hashem is truly bringing about the Mashiach, which I feel certain that He is, we mustn't waste any time in getting as close as possible to Him. If we are to merit seeing the redemption, we have to be on a level that will enable us to experience it! With Hashem's help, will be able to reach the appropriate level, and reach our own potentials in life. In that way, we will rejoice in the rebuilding of Jerusalem, train and all, במהרה בימינו, אמן!
הצלחה רבה!
My previous post discussed something very real. We are living in historic times. One only needs to open his/her eyes, to behold the world through Jewish glasses, to understand that there are forces at play here beyond our understanding.
Just this past month saw the near-collapse of the American economy. It is not hard to imagine that if a few more banks go under, the near-collapse will be come a true and definite collapse (the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has already predicted that more banks will fail in 2009). What will happen then? If one looks at history, it's not hard to figure out - most often, the country in question blames the Jews. Most recently, it happened in Germany, where an economic collapse led to the rise of the Nazi regime. It has happened in every country throughout our Galus. And it can happen in America. We often have the illusion of safety in our lives - we have a secure job, a wonderful home, a great life. What could possibly go wrong? The thing is, history has a habit of changing in an instant - an attack on 9/11, a drop of an Atom Bomb, a Six-Day War. Things usually do not take too long to swerve in a totally different direction.
But forget history. Look at the present - look at last week. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who is accepted everywhere when he shows up in the US, literally proved my point straight out. The following is taken from Ahmadinejad's speech, to which there has been barely any Jewish response or outcry whatsoever:
"The dignity, integrity and rights of the American and European people are being played with by a small but deceitful number of people called Zionists. Although they are a miniscule minority, they have been dominating an important portion of the financial and monetary centers as well as the political decision-making centers of some European countries and the US in a deceitful, complex and furtive manner. It is deeply disastrous to witness that some presidential or premiere nominees in some big countries have to visit these people, take part in their gatherings, swear their allegiance and commitment to their interests in order to attain financial or media support. This means that the great people of America and various nations of Europe need to obey the demands and wishes of a small number of acquisitive and invasive people. These nations are spending their dignity and resources on the crimes and occupations and the threats of the Zionist network against their will."
The United States and Israel walked out before Ahmadinejad's speech, but the rest of the nations applauded him. He got a hug from the Master of Ceremonies, or whatever that guy is called. He was invited to appear on American TV shows, to speak at colleges, to further his agenda. This guy is given free reign in this country when he openly speaks of genocide and nuclear proliferation.
It is not a stretch by any means to imagine the United States becoming another anti-Semitic blip on the radar of history. Spain, Germany, Russia, France - everyone has had a turn. If the economy goes bad, people will look for a scapegoat, and the anals of history tells me that it's not hard to predict who the scapegoat will be.
Why am I telling you all this? So I can say "I told you so" when it all happens? Chas Veshalom. I am telling you this to strengthen your resolve to do Teshuva, to get closer to Hashem during these uncertain days. If Hashem is truly bringing about the Mashiach, which I feel certain that He is, we mustn't waste any time in getting as close as possible to Him. If we are to merit seeing the redemption, we have to be on a level that will enable us to experience it! With Hashem's help, will be able to reach the appropriate level, and reach our own potentials in life. In that way, we will rejoice in the rebuilding of Jerusalem, train and all, במהרה בימינו, אמן!
הצלחה רבה!
Saturday, October 4, 2008
The Mashiach is Coming
6 Tishrei 5769
I'm not sure how the view is from Chutz La'Aretz, but over here in Eretz Yisrael it's becoming plainer and plainer that the ימות המשיח is around the corner.
Just recently, an old tzaddik in Yerushalayim - almost 100 years old, an actual talmid of the Chofetz Chaim - told his talmidim that the Chofetz Chaim appeared to him in a dream, telling him that the משיח is coming. I know Jews who have met this fellow. In addition, it was supposedly in a recent issue of Mishpacha magazine, but I didn't see that myself.
That would be a cute story, if there wasn't an accompanying rumor to it. Supposedly, Rav Shach recently came to Rav Chaim Kanievsky, שליט"א, in a dream and told him the exact same thing. As I heard the story, Rav Shach came to Rav Chaim once, and Rav Chaim dismissed it as שטויות. Rav Shach came a second time, and Rav Chaim dismissed it as שטויות. Finally, Rav Shach came a third time and said, "What is this about שטויות? The Mashiach is coming, really soon!"
Rav Yaakov Moshe Katz supposedly tells his talmidim not to worry financially about the long-term future. He feels that yes, a talmid should acquire money for the short term, but there is no point in worrying about three, four, fives years down the road because things are going to be totally different very soon.
Okay, so these are cute stories. But if one takes a look around at the world, there are clear signs that the Mashiach is coming.
My favorite is an idea pointed out by a Ben Miller, a chaver of mine over here in the Kollel. If you haven't heard, the government is building an enormous train throughout ירושלים. Upon completion, it will travel from Tel Aviv to Yerushalayim, stopping at various points in Jerusalem and winding back around and up north again. For those of us living here, it's an enormous pain - they're building the train to travel straight down Rechov Yafo - literally, right in the middle of town - and it's wrecking havoc with traffic in the City Center. (Would you ever build a train right down 5th Avenue? Of course not.) If you haven't seen the picture of the enormous suspension bridge, check it out - the thing can be seen literally for miles, stretching upwards and spreading out in a harp-like accordion, holding up the bridge that winds the train around the Tachana HaMerkazit (Central Bus Station).
For the government to break even with this endeavor, they have calculated the necessary population on the train - 75,000 people, each day, for 10 years. In the most optimistic of predictions, city officials assume that at most 25,000 people a day will use the train. Now I ask you - what event could cause the number of people travelling to Yerushalayim to triple in size? What would demand a mass-transit system that could take the place of cars and cabs? (Imagine the number of cars in Yerushalayim tripling - if you think we have bad traffic now, forget about it). What could possibly require the building of a train that literally weaves its way through the most popular streets in Yerushalayim, stopping right in front of the Old City, and moving on to every other major neighborhood within reach?
Furthermore - what event would necessitate the building of a brand-new airport in Tel Aviv, four times the size of its predecessor? What event would necessitate a new Tachana HaMerkazit, which allows Jews to travel the country with the greatest of ease? If you have taken a bus outside of Yerushalayim, you know it's the easiest thing in the world to do. I don't know if you remember the old Tachana - it was still in use during my Shana Alef - it was a dump! A small parking lot near Gan Sacher! There was no way it could hold a big increase in volume. What could be the reason for all these mass transit upgrades in the past seven years? Why would a poor city build a $300 million bridge, when its purpose could be attained with a few well-placed cement beams?
The answer, my dear dear friends, is clear as day. There is Someone Else calling the shots. The government is not thinking along this line of reasoning - it is being put in their heads. We have a new airport to handle the future immigration of thousands of Jews. We have a new Tachana to allow Jews to travel their homeland with ease. We have a huge bridge that points to the sky so that Jews in literally every corner of Yerushalayim can see something that reminds them of their Father in Heaven.
My friends, when this train is completed, it is not going to travel from Tel Aviv to Yerushalayim.
It's going to travel from Tel Aviv to the Beis HaMikdash.
(More on this tomorrow.)
I'm not sure how the view is from Chutz La'Aretz, but over here in Eretz Yisrael it's becoming plainer and plainer that the ימות המשיח is around the corner.
Just recently, an old tzaddik in Yerushalayim - almost 100 years old, an actual talmid of the Chofetz Chaim - told his talmidim that the Chofetz Chaim appeared to him in a dream, telling him that the משיח is coming. I know Jews who have met this fellow. In addition, it was supposedly in a recent issue of Mishpacha magazine, but I didn't see that myself.
That would be a cute story, if there wasn't an accompanying rumor to it. Supposedly, Rav Shach recently came to Rav Chaim Kanievsky, שליט"א, in a dream and told him the exact same thing. As I heard the story, Rav Shach came to Rav Chaim once, and Rav Chaim dismissed it as שטויות. Rav Shach came a second time, and Rav Chaim dismissed it as שטויות. Finally, Rav Shach came a third time and said, "What is this about שטויות? The Mashiach is coming, really soon!"
Rav Yaakov Moshe Katz supposedly tells his talmidim not to worry financially about the long-term future. He feels that yes, a talmid should acquire money for the short term, but there is no point in worrying about three, four, fives years down the road because things are going to be totally different very soon.
Okay, so these are cute stories. But if one takes a look around at the world, there are clear signs that the Mashiach is coming.
My favorite is an idea pointed out by a Ben Miller, a chaver of mine over here in the Kollel. If you haven't heard, the government is building an enormous train throughout ירושלים. Upon completion, it will travel from Tel Aviv to Yerushalayim, stopping at various points in Jerusalem and winding back around and up north again. For those of us living here, it's an enormous pain - they're building the train to travel straight down Rechov Yafo - literally, right in the middle of town - and it's wrecking havoc with traffic in the City Center. (Would you ever build a train right down 5th Avenue? Of course not.) If you haven't seen the picture of the enormous suspension bridge, check it out - the thing can be seen literally for miles, stretching upwards and spreading out in a harp-like accordion, holding up the bridge that winds the train around the Tachana HaMerkazit (Central Bus Station).
For the government to break even with this endeavor, they have calculated the necessary population on the train - 75,000 people, each day, for 10 years. In the most optimistic of predictions, city officials assume that at most 25,000 people a day will use the train. Now I ask you - what event could cause the number of people travelling to Yerushalayim to triple in size? What would demand a mass-transit system that could take the place of cars and cabs? (Imagine the number of cars in Yerushalayim tripling - if you think we have bad traffic now, forget about it). What could possibly require the building of a train that literally weaves its way through the most popular streets in Yerushalayim, stopping right in front of the Old City, and moving on to every other major neighborhood within reach?
Furthermore - what event would necessitate the building of a brand-new airport in Tel Aviv, four times the size of its predecessor? What event would necessitate a new Tachana HaMerkazit, which allows Jews to travel the country with the greatest of ease? If you have taken a bus outside of Yerushalayim, you know it's the easiest thing in the world to do. I don't know if you remember the old Tachana - it was still in use during my Shana Alef - it was a dump! A small parking lot near Gan Sacher! There was no way it could hold a big increase in volume. What could be the reason for all these mass transit upgrades in the past seven years? Why would a poor city build a $300 million bridge, when its purpose could be attained with a few well-placed cement beams?
The answer, my dear dear friends, is clear as day. There is Someone Else calling the shots. The government is not thinking along this line of reasoning - it is being put in their heads. We have a new airport to handle the future immigration of thousands of Jews. We have a new Tachana to allow Jews to travel their homeland with ease. We have a huge bridge that points to the sky so that Jews in literally every corner of Yerushalayim can see something that reminds them of their Father in Heaven.
My friends, when this train is completed, it is not going to travel from Tel Aviv to Yerushalayim.
It's going to travel from Tel Aviv to the Beis HaMikdash.
(More on this tomorrow.)
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Hashem Loves You
3 Tishrei 5769
Gmar Chasima Tova! I hope Rosh HaShana was meaningful for you. May Hashem bless you and your families with much bracha, hatzlacha, and siyata d'shmaya.
Now that we're getting into Aseres Yimei Teshuva, I'm sure we're all focused on how we can change ourselves. But before we get to that - a word about our relationship with HKBH.
Rav Dessler points out in Michtav Me'Eliyahu that the Western world's concept of Love is mistaken. They think that love is purely by chance - people fall in love, and they fall out of love. It has nothing to do with the effort a person puts into it.
Judaism, says Rav Dessler, dispenses with this whole notion. The word for love in Hebrew is "ahava." In Aramaic, "hav" - the middle part of "Ahava" - means to give. Explains Rav Dessler, love is created through giving. When Reuven gives to Leah, love grows inside of Reuven for Leah. This is how love works. This is why a husband and wife married for 30 years love each other more than two newlyweds. They have given for a much longer period of time. This is why parents love their kids more than kids love their parents - the parents have given to their children so much that it is nigh impossible not to love them, even when they do ridiculous things.
So giving creates love. This really requires a longer discussion, but the above paragraph will have to suffice for our purposes. Now, think about how much Hashem gives to us. He gives us everything, doesn't He? In fact, Hashem gives the whole world to us; He gives us life, He gives us existence, He gives us the enjoyment of this world and the next. What does this say about our relationship with HKBH?
My friends, this tells us that Hashem loves us. He loves us in an immeasurable way! Can you imagine how much love is generated by the amount of giving that Hashem does for us? And if Hashem loves us that much, He must care about every single little thing that we do! He cares if we get to minyan on time. He cares if we sneak a little ice cream before the 6th hour, or if we hold ourselves back until that 6:01 mark. He cares if we decide not to look as we pass by the pritzus on our streets. HE CARES ABOUT EVERYTHING! He is proud of every single nisayon (test) that you pass, every little fight against the Yetzer Hara that you win.
How incredibly comforting, how exciting! We don't have to feel alone when we do Teshuva this week - we can feel as if Hashem is looking down at us, arms crossed, smiling, proud of His child that He loves so much! What an encouraging thought!
If we approach Teshuva this attitude, then iy"H our Teshuva will be so much more meaningful, and it will be accepted on Yom Kippur, kein yehi ratzon.
Hatzlacha Raba!
Monday, September 29, 2008
K'siva V'Chasima Tova!
29 Elul 5768
Chazal explain there are two conflicting emotions of Rosh HaShana. On the one hand, we are being judged for whole next year, a thought that is quite terrifying. On the other hand, we are Hashem's Children, his People - we are supposed to be confident that He will recognize our attempts at Teshuva, our acceptance of Him as our King. These are conflicting feelings, no doubt, and they are emulated by the two aspects of the day - we daven until after midday, but then we go home and eat a festive meal.
These two aspects illustrate the theme of Rosh HaShana. Most people feel that Rosh HaShana is all about Teshuva. Yet there is very little mention of Teshuva in the tefillos of Rosh HaShana. Rather, the focus is on Malchus - accepting Hashem as our King, as the One who rules us, as the One who dictates our thoughts and our lives. You don't repeat your tefillos if you leave out "Teshuva, Tefillah, & Tzedakah." You do repeat, however, if you miss "HaMelech HaKadosh." We are accepting Hashem as our Ruler, and we are accepting His Torah as our way of life.
And this is what creates two different emotions. On the one hand, Hashem is All-Powerful, a King who will literally decide every aspect of our lives for the upcoming year. On the other hand, He is our King. We are the ones who are able to daven to Him on Rosh HaShana, only Bnei Yisrael are able to pray with the power that we have. I recently picked up an Israeli on a tremp, and he pointed out that Hashem first answers the tefillos of Bnei Yisrael and determines their lot, and only then does He dish out judgment for the rest of the nations, based on what Bnei Yisrael warrant. This is our zechus, this is our priviledge.
Wishing you a k'siva v'chasima Tova!!!
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
The Power of Prayer
24 Elul 5768
Very few of us appreciate the power of prayer. Let's schmooze about it for a moment.
Our relationship with tefillah is very similar to our relationship with one of those schnorrers on the streets of Meah Shearim – most of us pass right by, too busy to notice. Some of us stop, annoyed, and pull a few agurot from our pockets. Very few of us take out even a shekel, and even fewer of us take the time to say “Hatzlacha Rabbah,” or to even show a true sense of concern.
The reason we don’t show enough concern with our tefillos is because we don’t understand how powerful they are. Shimon HaTzaddik tells us in פרקי אבות א:ב that the world exists for three things – תורה, עבודה, וגמילות חסדים. Nowadays, we do not have עבודה (i.e. the sacrifices in the Beis HaMikdash). What is the substitute? So the gemara tells us in Brachos that our tefillos are substitutes for עבודה in Beis HaMikdash. They literally keep the world going.
Now, that’s very fluffy. Does that mean if you sleep through Shacharis the world is going to disappear, and it’ll be your fault? Well, maybe. And if that happens I’ll be the first to track you down in the next world and punch you in the face. But let’s talk about something that speaks to us.
There’s a very famous פסוק in Chumash, when Yaakov appears before Yitzchak wearing sheepskins on his arms, pretending to be עשו. The פסוק tells us that Yitzchak, in his confusion, said: הקול קול יעקב והידים ידי עשו.
That, say Chazal, was not just some off-the-cuff comment that Yitzchak made. Those words tell us how we can impact the world. Those words tell us what our weapons are when we go out to battle – literally and figuratively. We spoke about our weapons to fight the Yetzer Hara – tefillah is our weapon in every other realm of life.
What does prayer do? I used to think that prayer was for Hashem – we were blessing Him when we said “Baruch Atah Hashem.” Little did I know that this is what people call heresy (apikorsus). If we have to bless Hashem, that means He is less than infinite – He can gain from us. Which is ridiculous – He is all-powerful, all-worldly – he does not need our blessings. So if prayer does not impact Him, who does it impact?
Clearly the answer is us. We have what to gain from prayer. Prayer increases our awareness that we are dependant upon Hashem for everything. But where does that get us? So we recognize what Hashem does in this world. What does that do for us? That’s going to make us a better warrior? That’s going to improve my income the following year? That's going to make my relative feel better?
The answer is: YES. The רמבן at the end of בא writes that the whole purpose of creation is to: a) know Hashem runs the world, and b) to thank Him for it. So when we internalize that Hashem runs every single aspect of our lives, we grow closer to that goal. We become better people. More of our actions are performed לשם שמים. When more of our actions are performed לשם שמים, we become holier. When we become holier, Hashem is more likely to answer our tefillos in a more immediate fashion, even if they are the straight, generic nineteen ברכות of שמונה עשרה.
There many stories throughout תנ"ך that demonstrate this perfectly. One of this is the following: when בנ"י encountered עמלק right after they left מצרים, what happened? Moshe went up on the mountain to pray, and the פסוק tells us that whenever his hands were lifted in prayer, בנ"י were victorious. Whenever his hands became heavy and fell back down, עמלק started winning. What in the world does that mean? Some קישוף, some hocus pocus? So רש"י there brings down the גמ' in ר"ה – I wonder why this גמ' is there – that says that whenever בנ"י would look towards Shamayim, they would realize that Hashem runs the world, and they would start winning. Whenever they looked away from Shamayim, i.e. they started relying on their own “might,” they started losing.
This is what tefillah does, this is how it helps us. This is how we can use the tefillos on Rosh HaShana – they’re long, no doubt – but we can use them to our advantage. They can impact us, and when Hashem sees that we’re trying, He will give us siyata d’shmaya, and guide us along His path.
הצלחה רבה!
Very few of us appreciate the power of prayer. Let's schmooze about it for a moment.
Our relationship with tefillah is very similar to our relationship with one of those schnorrers on the streets of Meah Shearim – most of us pass right by, too busy to notice. Some of us stop, annoyed, and pull a few agurot from our pockets. Very few of us take out even a shekel, and even fewer of us take the time to say “Hatzlacha Rabbah,” or to even show a true sense of concern.
The reason we don’t show enough concern with our tefillos is because we don’t understand how powerful they are. Shimon HaTzaddik tells us in פרקי אבות א:ב that the world exists for three things – תורה, עבודה, וגמילות חסדים. Nowadays, we do not have עבודה (i.e. the sacrifices in the Beis HaMikdash). What is the substitute? So the gemara tells us in Brachos that our tefillos are substitutes for עבודה in Beis HaMikdash. They literally keep the world going.
Now, that’s very fluffy. Does that mean if you sleep through Shacharis the world is going to disappear, and it’ll be your fault? Well, maybe. And if that happens I’ll be the first to track you down in the next world and punch you in the face. But let’s talk about something that speaks to us.
There’s a very famous פסוק in Chumash, when Yaakov appears before Yitzchak wearing sheepskins on his arms, pretending to be עשו. The פסוק tells us that Yitzchak, in his confusion, said: הקול קול יעקב והידים ידי עשו.
That, say Chazal, was not just some off-the-cuff comment that Yitzchak made. Those words tell us how we can impact the world. Those words tell us what our weapons are when we go out to battle – literally and figuratively. We spoke about our weapons to fight the Yetzer Hara – tefillah is our weapon in every other realm of life.
What does prayer do? I used to think that prayer was for Hashem – we were blessing Him when we said “Baruch Atah Hashem.” Little did I know that this is what people call heresy (apikorsus). If we have to bless Hashem, that means He is less than infinite – He can gain from us. Which is ridiculous – He is all-powerful, all-worldly – he does not need our blessings. So if prayer does not impact Him, who does it impact?
Clearly the answer is us. We have what to gain from prayer. Prayer increases our awareness that we are dependant upon Hashem for everything. But where does that get us? So we recognize what Hashem does in this world. What does that do for us? That’s going to make us a better warrior? That’s going to improve my income the following year? That's going to make my relative feel better?
The answer is: YES. The רמבן at the end of בא writes that the whole purpose of creation is to: a) know Hashem runs the world, and b) to thank Him for it. So when we internalize that Hashem runs every single aspect of our lives, we grow closer to that goal. We become better people. More of our actions are performed לשם שמים. When more of our actions are performed לשם שמים, we become holier. When we become holier, Hashem is more likely to answer our tefillos in a more immediate fashion, even if they are the straight, generic nineteen ברכות of שמונה עשרה.
There many stories throughout תנ"ך that demonstrate this perfectly. One of this is the following: when בנ"י encountered עמלק right after they left מצרים, what happened? Moshe went up on the mountain to pray, and the פסוק tells us that whenever his hands were lifted in prayer, בנ"י were victorious. Whenever his hands became heavy and fell back down, עמלק started winning. What in the world does that mean? Some קישוף, some hocus pocus? So רש"י there brings down the גמ' in ר"ה – I wonder why this גמ' is there – that says that whenever בנ"י would look towards Shamayim, they would realize that Hashem runs the world, and they would start winning. Whenever they looked away from Shamayim, i.e. they started relying on their own “might,” they started losing.
This is what tefillah does, this is how it helps us. This is how we can use the tefillos on Rosh HaShana – they’re long, no doubt – but we can use them to our advantage. They can impact us, and when Hashem sees that we’re trying, He will give us siyata d’shmaya, and guide us along His path.
הצלחה רבה!
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