God answers prayer through the change within us that the act of praying creates.
God answers prayer through the change within us that the act of praying creates.

I wish I had come up with this statement, but the quote comes from an unknown source. A few years ago, Rabbi Lynn Lieberman taught a class in which I took copious notes and this quote was in there. Later when I quoted this back to her, she denied having said it, but agreed to be the “source” of it, as she also found it to be a great statement.

So, what does it mean?
God answers prayer through the change within us that the act of praying creates.

It means that the act of praying - in itself - has a powerful impact upon us. It is not a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde type of change, but a slower, more gradual transformation. The act of praying, as well as meditation allows you to slow down, reflect and to examine yourself, in a way that, hopefully, will have an effect on your day, your week, and potentially even on your life.

Yes, I do believe God answers prayer through the change within us that the act of praying creates. But No, I don't think it pertains to prayers for a new job, a new house, winning the lottery or for a new car (although that may depend on what Make and Model you pray for).

I think, however, that it is true when you ask for inner stability, inner peace, or for one of the many translations of the word Shalom, namely wholeness, in all those cases I believe it is true.

Also, if you pray for integrity, for courage, for overcoming your fears, for overcoming the temptation of Lashon Hara, the evil tongue, that is, maybe the greatest of all sins, namely gossip, if you pray for the ability to ask others for help when you need it, if you pray for finding direction and meaning in your life, for love and patience, then, Yes, I do believe God answers those prayers.

HOWEVER, , there's always a HOWEVER, and as always when five Jewish people gather in a room, there are at least 6 opinions. So, if anything being said here upsets you, just remember, it only proves that you are in a Jewish setting.

However, there are other views, and ONE of them can be illustrated by the story of Rabbi Elimelech. The story is told of unsuccessful merchant who, after repeated prayers, approached Rabbi Elimelech and demanded to know why God didn't answer him. The Rabbi replied, "God has answered your prayer. The answer was 'No!'.

In other words, praying in itself does not guarantee a positive divine response.

I am sure all of you have asked yourselves these questions: how can I express myself with words that I didn’t write? And why do I read the fixed prayers, the ones that are the same, over and over again?

There are many answers to these questions. One of the better answers to the first question is to compare it with the expression “I love you”. I doubt that anyone here actually composed that phrase but it doesn’t mean that when you say it, you don’t mean it, although it certainly can be said carelessly. We can undoubtedly say “I love you” and mean it, in spite of the fact that we actually plagiarized that expression. But it is only when our actions reflect these words that they ring true by themselves.

The other question: reading the same prayers over and over again. As your life evolves and you get older - and even if not wiser – but definitely filled with more experience and more points of reference, the words of the prayer may take on a new meaning. It requires that you reflect on what you actually are reading. There is an interaction between the words of the prayer and the events in my life. Reciting these words – composed so many years ago – is like looking in a scrapbook of my life. Or so, at least, writes Rabbi Paula Reimers, a California based JTS-graduated Rabbi.

So the words alone are no guarantee that they will be received the way you intended. It is the action that goes hand in hand with the words and the interaction between the words and the events of your life that matter.

I mentioned that one type of prayer that I believe God does answer is praying for personal integrity, being honest.
And, of course, our Torah, the book that I would like to call The Source of Creative Inspiration, of course our Torah addresses this.

This week's parashah, is called Mattot-Mase'ei. It is a double portion and it is the last parashah of Bamidbar, Numbers, and it reads ---- in Chapter 30, verses 2 and 3 ---- :
Moses spoke to the heads of the Israelite tribes, saying: This is what the Lord has commanded:
“ If a man makes a vow to the Lord or takes an oath imposing an obligation on himself, he shall not break his pledge; he must carry out all that has crossed his lips”.

Not surprisingly, the Torah spells out, in detail, the key importance of trying to attain integrity. If you say that you will be taking on a project and you don't have a compelling reason for not fulfilling this vow, then you, quote, "must carry out all that cross" your "lips".

Words are essential in Judaism. Formulated by Rabbi Elazar Ben Shamma approx. 1900 years ago, a midrash says that at Mount Sinai "a book and a sword descended from heaven together." What God meant to say by this set of symbols was twofold: "If you abide by this written Torah, it will protect you from the sword. If you don't, the sword will smite you."
That is, the word is the mightiest weapon of all.

Which means that these laws – that we read about in today’s Parashah - are as binding as any other commandments in the Torah.

In the Talmud, a portion of tractate Bava Metzia deals with the laws of fraud in sales. The Gemara writes that someone who makes a promise to purchase something, having fulfilled the proper acts of acquisition, but now reneges on the deal, is subject to the following curse (Bava Metzia 47b): "God who punished the generation of the flood, will punish anyone who does not stand by his word."
And King Solomon wrote: "It is better for one not to vow at all, than for him to vow and then not fulfill" The sages extended the law of vows beyond promises made to God to include vows made to other humans. Among them are all binding oaths and promises in civil law. The Torah prohibits the practice of not fulfilling promises by stressing that one should not take on too much responsibility, by promising to fulfill an obligation, unless one is sure that it can be followed through. Now, there are always unforeseen circumstances that change the situation. The Torah, however, is speaking of making promises that one has no intention of fulfilling.

So, the bottom line, God tells Moses that it is vital to keep your word.

What is strikingly different in this portion, writes Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetsky, is the way God's words were transmitted. Normally, the Torah does NOT talk about the teaching of the law to the heads of the tribes. Instead Moses talks to the “entire” people of Israel.
But here he talks to the heads of the tribes, which corresponds to the elder of the community, directly. Rashi explains that Moses honored the elders and the leaders because they play a vital role in the laws of vows.
Rabbi Kamenetsky writes that "The Torah transmits the laws of oaths through the heads of each tribe because it wants to reiterate to them the importance of a leader's adherence to commitment. The eyes of the nation are focused on their words, their promises and their commitments. It is only fitting that those who bear the tremendous responsibility of assuring their tribes their needs and requests, should be the very ones that transmit those laws".

However, politicians are not always to be trusted. Abba Eban once said: "It is our experience that politicians do not always mean the opposite of what they say".

The Torah hands the responsibility of the burden of words upon those who are faced with the greatest challenge to meet their commitments. Leaders should personify the commitment "all that crosses his lips he shall keep"

Another commentator, Rabbi Warshauer emphasizes that it is also important to remember the concept of wordiness.

He equates Wordiness to honesty.
The more details one gives of an event, the more believable it is. Not always true, but often. Sweeping generalizations should not be trusted.
A case in point: The opening verses of Parashat Masei, [the second of the two Torah portions we read today] which are a recap of the journeys of the children of Israel in the wilderness. Each stop they made along the way is mentioned.

The detailed, written exposition of these events in the Torah is reliable testimony, according to Maimonides, that these miracles actually occurred.

Whatever historical comments one may make about that statement by Maimonides, the point is clear:
details, like the listing of the stops the Children of Israel made in Sinai, often reflects honesty and more often comes closer to the truth.

The opposite also holds true: sweeping generalizations, may, in fact, be an attempt to mask the actual facts of an event.

And that is true in our own lives today as well. Often, not always, the more details of an event you hear, the more likely that that account is true.

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Integrity, telling the truth is so important. Like our Rabbi Miller has said many times: Everything between you and your fellow human being, and everything between you and God is a question of contracts or deals. If I do this for you, can you do that for me?
So, when I pray to God and in the process change my ways, God honors that deal by answering YES to my prayer.

And as we end one of the Books of Torah today, we say:

CHAZAK! CHAZAK! V’NITCHAZEIK!
BE STRONG! BE STRONG! AND GROW IN STRENGTH!

Shabbat Shalom!

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