Parashat Ki Tetzeh: Keep Praying

Living Emunah By Rabbi David Ashear

This week's parasha begins with the words כי תצא למלחמה על אויבך - when you go out to war against your enemy. The sefarim hakedoshim tell us that besides for its simple explanation, this pasuk is also referring to the war against our evil inclination. The Maor V'Shemesh in parashat Ki Tetzeh writes that the main attack of the yetzer hara is to stop a person from praying properly. A person can become so close to Hashem through tefila and, therefore, the yetzer hara will do whatever is in its power to stop the person from attaining that closeness. One of the causes of people not valuing their prayers is when they see that they tried so hard to do it right and it still didn't help them get what they wanted. The Gemara says in Masechet Berachot: אָמַר רַבִּי חָמָא בְּרַבִּי חֲנִינָא: אִם רָאָה אָדָם שֶׁהִתְפַּלֵּל וְלֹא נַעֲנָה — יַחְזוֹר וְיִתְפַּלֵּל. שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״קַוֵּה אֶל ה׳ חֲזַק וְיַאֲמֵץ לִבֶּךָ וְקַוֵּה אֶל ה׳״ . Rabbi Chama, son of Rabbi CHanina, said: A person who prayed and saw that he was not answered should pray again, as it is stated: "Hope in the Lord, strengthen yourself, let your heart take courage, and hope in the Lord" (Psalms 27:14). One should turn to God with hope, and if necessary turn to God again with hope. The question has been asked, isn't that statement obvious? We know there's nowhere else in the world to turn other than Hashem. Of course we should keep praying to Him even though we haven't been answered yet. Rav Bunim of Peshischa explained, there are times when a person needs a salvation so badly. He prepares himself to pray properly. He goes to the holiest places in the world and prays at the most opportune times and then he begs Hashem for help. But after all of that, nothing changes. The person thinks to himself, if that tefila didn't get answered then I can't imagine any other one getting answered. Many times, when a person prays, he doesn't have full kavana , his heart is not into it. And he thinks, naturally, if my good prayers don't help, then how are these going to help? For this, Rabbi Chama b'Rabi Chanina comes to teach us, it's not so. It could be that even though a person's heartfelt tefila didn't get answered, a simple prayer on a regular day in a regular place will get answered. We are not capable of comprehending the ways of Hashem and therefore, although we prayed hard for something in the best place at the best time and weren't answered, that should not discourage us from praying again. One year, the Arizal prayed all of his tefilot on the Yamim Noraim with great kavana . Yet, he was shown from Shamayim that in another city there was a man whose prayers were considered better than his. The Arizal went to visit that man to see who he was. The man was a very simple Jew who didn't even know how to read Hebrew. The Arizal asked him how he prayed on the Yamim Noraim if he didn't know how to read. The man replied he was embarrassed to say it, but he didn't even know the full Aleph Bet. He only knew from Aleph through Yud. He said he walked into shul and saw everybody praying with such deep kavana and felt so bad that he couldn't do the same. So with a broken heart, he began reciting the Aleph Bet until Yud. And when he got to Yud, he started again from Aleph and he kept repeating it the entire tefila . He said to Hashem, "Master of the world, please take these letters that I am offering you and make nice words out of them and let them be pleasing to you." He was so sincere. His simple Aleph Bet accomplished more in heaven than the great kavanot of the Arizal. We don't know which prayer is more valuable than which. We don't know which times our prayers are more accepted and therefore, at all times, we always continue to pray. And even if we think the prayer will be worthless, חזק ויאמץ לבך וקוה אל ה ' we must strengthen our hearts and call out to Hashem anyway. Shabbat Shalom.