Q&A: Prayer
Prayer
Question
Hello Rabbi,
If in practice the requests in prayer don’t change the statistics and aren’t answered, then why is there any point in asking for the sick and things like that?
Answer
Are you asking why the Sages instituted this? Either because in their time it was more effective (in the biblical period there were miracles), or because they misread reality and thought it was effective (there are some fairly clear mistakes by the Sages in this area).
The more important question is what we should do today and why. On the one hand, there is a binding rabbinic enactment that includes requests as well (as in the Amidah, not only for the sick). On the other hand, I have come to the conclusion that it probably does not help. If I were convinced that it does not help, I would not say it, as emerges from the Talmud in Yoma 69b:
Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Why were they called the Men of the Great Assembly? Because they restored the crown to its former glory. Moses came and said, “the great, mighty, and awesome God.” Jeremiah came and said, “Foreigners are ravaging His Sanctuary; where are His awesome acts?” so he did not say “awesome.” Daniel came and said, “Foreigners are enslaving His children; where are His mighty acts?” so he did not say “mighty.” They came and said: On the contrary, this is His mighty act, that He conquers His inclination and is patient with the wicked; and this is His awesomeness, for were it not for the fear of the Holy One, blessed be He, how could one nation survive among the nations? And how could the rabbis do this, uprooting the enactment instituted by Moses? Rabbi Elazar said: Because they knew of the Holy One, blessed be He, that He is truthful, therefore they did not speak falsely about Him.
You see that despite the boldness and the deviation from the wording established in the Torah itself (!!!), a person should not say things he does not believe. The Holy One, blessed be He, expects us to be truthful. Certainly when the text was established by the Sages and not in the Torah. The Sages were human beings and could also make mistakes; certainly they could say something that was true for their time and later changed.
But I cannot be completely certain that it does not work anywhere and for anyone. That is indeed the usual situation, but there may be sporadic exceptions. Therefore, in those requests I intend that the Holy One, blessed be He, help someone who is in great need and has no other (natural) solution. Either it will help or it won’t. In any case, I do not usually ask for more than what is required by the prayer text. I understand that it is possible that if I were to find myself in a situation with no natural way out, I would behave differently (I have not yet been in such a situation).
I explained all this at length in the second book of my trilogy.
Discussion on Answer
There are many. The shape of the earth and the path of the sun around it (with implications for washing the hands at the end of a meal), statements by medieval authorities about the Pythagorean theorem in Bava Batra 102, the assumption that the sex of the fetus is determined in the middle of pregnancy, and more.
See here in the section that used to be about prayer:
The idea that prayer changes God’s will and that He is some kind of ATM working for us is childish.
Usually people stop asking this question around ages 14–15, no offense.
It’s really baffling to see someone who has studied so much Torah still asking, “Why pray if my personal requests aren’t fulfilled?”
I recommend reading the following article by Rabbi Yair Strauss:
https://www.kipa.co.il/%D7%99%D7%94%D7%93%D7%95%D7%AA/%D7%94%D7%90%D7%9D-%D7%94%D7%AA%D7%A4%D7%99%D7%9C%D7%94-%D7%9E%D7%A9%D7%A0%D7%94-%D7%90%D7%AA-%D7%A8%D7%A6%D7%95%D7%9F-%D7%94/
Here is a relevant quote (it’s recommended to read the whole thing from the beginning):
“Rabbi Kook argues that faith in God is the understanding that all reality, external creation and human life, are part of the divinity projected toward us. The meaning of this is that reality as a whole expresses a single organic unity among all its parts. According to this view, there are not really separate objects or a personality and will separate from divine existence; our whole material and fragmented perception of reality as a collection of separate particulars is a great illusion in which we live. The goal of serving God is to become aware of the divine unity that underlies the forces that exist around us.
Following from this, one can also speak of human personality and will as part of a single spiritual existence that is present in all humanity and even in the entire universe. A person’s will is not an isolated detail but part of a larger fabric of general and all-encompassing will that operates in all creatures in the world. A person experiences his will as something private and partial, but he must be aware that there are hidden influences and connections between his will and the will of all other people, and even of all other creatures in the world. Reality as a whole is divine unity, and one broad and all-encompassing divine will operates within it, like a great river containing many currents of individual wills flowing within it.”
“You misread reality and thought it was effective (there are some fairly clear mistakes by the Sages in this area).”
Could you give examples?