By the Grace of G-d
Dear Friend,
Seeing something makes it very real.
Look at this picture and tell me if it looks like a car from which two adults and four children all emerged alive.
Here is what happened. After the car tumbled off the side of a canyon road in California, the father was treated for a gash on the forehead that was fixed with stitches. The mother suffered three broken ribs. The children – including two one year old twins – emerged without a scratch.
This story happened back in the summer of 2022. I remember seeing this picture just after it happened as I am friends with the father.
Fast forward to this week. I forgot about this story.
My friend came to consult with me about incorporating prayer into his daily schedule.
I was delighted by the purpose of our meeting. It is very inspiring for me to see people grow in their Jewish observance. I am humbled by the arduous journeys and great efforts that people make in advancing in their spiritual growth.
Rather than just suggesting certain prayers to incorporate into his schedule, it was a chance for me to spell out the basics of prayer.
Prayer in its purest sense is turning to G-d when in need.
Simply put, to understand that there is no other source for life, health, sustenance or money other than the Creator of the Universe.
Turning to G-d when you need something is the basis of prayer.
When you see a traffic buildup and you call out ‘Oh my G-d, please let me get home in time to meet my child when they come home from school’ this is prayer.
The most basic and fundamental form of prayer.
Sometimes people get a bit overwhelmed when they think about prayer, because they assume it must be done in a certain way and using exact words.
That is true when we refer to detailed prayer. Basic prayer is simply communicating with G-d about your needs.
When viewed from this perspective, it is safe to say that most of humanity is praying without even realizing it.
About two thousand years ago when the Jews were exiled to non-Hebrew speaking lands, they began to lose their ability to express themselves eloquently in Hebrew or in any language for that matter.
It was for this reason that the prophetically endowed sages of that time compiled prayer texts in Hebrew. This would allow even the simplest of Jews to be able to speak to G-d in the most subliminally meaningful and poetically expressive language before the Almighty.
The Siddur Prayer book gives every person the ability to pray like a professional. (And of course these days there are Siddur Apps).
Click here for extensive discussion on the development of Tefilah.
In this article let me just touch very briefly on the basic ‘form’ of prayer. The order and sequence of how ought to present their requests to G-d.
It starts with submission to G-d and praising him.
Just as if you were standing in front of a human king. You would start off by acknowledging and praising his exaltedness and greatness.
Then comes the request. You petition the king for his kindness and benevolence.
The conclusion of prayer should be with thanks and blessings of Shalom.
The beginning of our daily communication with G-d is the moment we open our eyes.
We say Modeh Ani Lefanecha … I thank you G-d for returning my soul…
The mere fact that I opened my eyes and am aware means that I am alive.
We therefore start by thanking G-d for life itself.
The more elaborate form of thanks for the gifts we are blessed with before we even do anything are the morning blessings of gratitude.
Click here for morning blessings of gratitude.
Then we ask G-d for our needs and thank Him for everything He does for us.
It was only after I finished the meeting that I was reminded that this was the very same friend who two years ago had this incredible miracle. That he and his family walked out of their totally wrecked car alive and well thank G-d.
I had been emphasizing thanking G-d as an important part of prayer and indeed the person I was meeting has so much to thank G-d for.
But not just him. So do I. So do you.
It was Divine Providence that this meeting took place this week.
At the beginning of the week, I paid a visit to Phuket with our son Leibel. It was a short stopover on our way back from Almaty, Kazakhstan.
(We had spent the weekend there, joining hundreds of Chasidim who traveled from far and wide to visit the grave of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak, the father of the Rebbe in honor of his eightieth yahrtzeit.
As mentioned in last week’s article, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak was exiled by the KGB to a remote province in Kazakhstan because of his holy work of spreading Judaism.
He is buried in a small Jewish section of a general cemetery and until very recently was too remote for many visitors. In exile during his lifetime and after passing.
A truly inspiring symbol of standing firm in commitment to G-d to the point of sacrifice).
We used the layover time in Phuket to visit the Chabad House to pray and eat something.
And for something else very touching. To visit the hotel property in Patong where our family had an accident and were saved by a miracle. It was back in 2021 during Covid when we were in Phuket as part of the Sandbox quarantine program.
(Another thing to thank G-d for. That the pandemic is over. We are able to move around freely without restrictions).
Why did we want to go back to that same site?
To bless G-d for His kindness and benevolence in making a miracle for us.
The Code of Jewish Law teaches,
When an individual sees the place where a miracle was performed on his behalf — for example, he was saved from a wall which fell on him or from a wild animal or robbers — after thirty days [of the event.], he is obligated to recite the blessing, “Blessed are You, G-d our L-rd, King of the universe, Who performed a miracle for me in this place.” This rule applies] even when there is no [specific feature or landmark] associating the miracle with that place.
Isn’t every single breath a miracle? Every sunrise, sunset, wind, rain and all the other things we call ‘nature’?
True, life itself is a miracle and a blessing. However, the regularity and predictable rhythm of nature is not by chance. It is exactly the way that G-d intended. He intentionally created the world in a way that for most part He is concealed behind the façade of the garments of nature.
When something unusual happens, those garments are moved aside for a moment. When an event occurs that naturally would have caused fatal damage and miraculously that danger is averted, this is a revelation of G-dly presence.
Upon experiencing this kind of Divine intervention, there is a special thanksgiving blessing. Praising Hashem and thanking Him for the extraordinary above-nature twist of events.
Whereas G-d chooses to remain hidden in the natural running of the world, in the case of a miraculous event, He is choosing to show His Face (so to speak) so that we can ‘see’ His presence and take that inspiration with us for the rest of our lives.
This weeks Torah portion is Reeh. See.
The first verse reads, ‘See I set before you today a blessing…’
All of us are always recipients of G-d’s blessing.
Sometimes in a most dramatic way. And with pictures that allow you to literally ‘see’ the miracle.
Like my friend who emerged from his car miraculously and has pictures to show the enormity of the miracle.
Other times they are ‘small miracles’ when things come together in a way that you would not be able to predict.
May the Almighty bless you with the gift of R’eeh – seeing His blessings to you in every aspect of your lives.
And collectively we pray, for secure peace in Israel, for our soldiers, the return of our hostages, the healing of the wounded and the ushering in of peace to the world at large.
Especially as we are about to enter the month of Elul. This week on Tuesday and Wednesday we mark the last day of Menachem Av and the first day of the month of Elul which means we are just about thirty days away from Rosh Hashana.
Time to start wishing for a Shana Tova.
Chodesh Tov
And of course, what is most immediate,
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Yosef Kantor