Shmuz on the Parsha: Parshas Ki Sisah

“HASHEM said, ‘I shall make all My goodness pass before you, and I shall call out with the Name HASHEM before you; I shall show favor when I choose to show favor, and I shall show mercy when I choose to show mercy.” – Shemos 33:19

The Jewish people had worshiped the golden calf, and Moshe Rabbeinu petitioned HASHEM to save them in the merit of the Avos. Rashi explains that not only was he successful in his mission, he also found great favor in HASHEM’s eyes.

HASHEM then said to him that He was going to reveal one of the great secrets of Creation: “You prayed to Me in the merit of the Avos because you assumed that is the most powerful merit in existence. You should know that if the Jews ever sin and the merit of their fathers isn’t sufficient to save them, there is another method that can carry the day. Teach them to call out the Thirteen Attributes of HASHEM’s mercy. By their mentioning My compassion, I will answer them.”

This Rashi is very difficult to understand. HASHEM is teaching Moshe a system for the Jews to save themselves when things are very bleak. Clearly, we are dealing with a serious moment in history, a time when the Klal Yisrael has fallen so low that even their prayers and the merit of the Avos aren’t sufficient to save them. If the prayers of the Jewish nation aren’t enough, and even the merit of the Avos have been used up, how could simply saying thirteen words change the judgment?
How tefillah works

The answer to this question lies in understanding how prayer works.

From an objective standpoint, one of the most basic questions that a person can ask himself is: why daven? “I accept that HASHEM is more merciful and loving than any creation. I accept that HASHEM loves me ten thousand times more than any human being is capable of and that HASHEM only wants what is best for me. So why do I need to daven? If what I am davening for were in my best interests, HASHEM would have granted it to me. If HASHEM didn’t grant it, it must be that it isn’t for my best. If so, why pray?”

The answer to this question is that there are three systems to davening, each providing a separate mechanism through which tefillah works.
#1 The growth system

The first system of davening is the “growth system.” By davening, I change. By reaching out to my Creator, I reach a different perspective and understanding, and the tefillah makes me into a different person. Before I davened, I might not have deserved what I was asking for. HASHEM might have wanted to give it to me, but justice demanded that I could not receive it. Now, after months and months of begging, beseeching, and imploring, I have changed. The person standing at the beginning of this process didn’t deserve what he was asking for, but through the tefillah I grew and am now worthy of what I asked for. This is the first system of davening, where davening changes me.

#2 The Merit System

The second system of davening is the “merit system.” HASHEM judges a person based on many factors. It could well be that if judged on my own accord, I might not merit that which I need, but the merit of others can come to my aid.

Imagine that I cause others to change, and because of me, they grow. That merit can help me. If I am sick, and two hundred people gather together, reach deep into their souls and connect to HASHEM, then much good has been brought into the world because of me. That is attributed to me and can help sway the balance. It isn’t that I changed through the process of tefillah, but rather there are certain merits that come to my aid.

This system of davening helps us understand how my tefillah can work for you. If the only way that tefillah works is by changing me, how can you daven for me? I didn’t change. I might not even be aware that you are davening for me. I might be sound asleep in bed.

The merit system can work even if he wasn’t the cause of it

This system can work even if I wasn’t the cause of the merit. Imagine that a scoundrel is brought before the king. His guilt is evident, and his crime egregious. The king is about to pass a severe punishment on this person when he looks over and says, “Wait! Aren’t you the son of so-and-so?” It turns out that the young man is the son of a long-time friend of the king, someone who served the king faithfully for many years. The king may well judge this person differently, not because of anything that he did, but in the merit of his father.

That is the second system of tefillah. Whether my tefillos are accepted has nothing to do with me or even others. Simply because I am a son of Avrohom, Yitzchak and Yaakov, I will be treated differently than someone else. We ask HASHEM not in our merit, but in the merit of the Avos to have mercy and judge us favorably.

The third system of tefillah

There is a third system of tefillah. It has nothing to do with changing me, and it has nothing to do with the merit of others. It has to do with HASHEM.

HASHEM created the human and put him in a place where there are many things that pull at him. To allow for free will, HASHEM made the balance between good and evil very finely pitched. Man can just as easily turn to good as to bad. Life is a fierce battle, with every situation hand-crafted to challenge man. When man chooses good, it is he who shapes himself into what he will be for eternity. If he succeeds, he is credited with his growth; if he fails, it was he who brought it about.

This situation is fraught with danger. Man can and will slip. It is almost inevitable. For that reason, HASHEM in his infinite mercy created a failsafe plan. If all else fails, pull this lever and you will be safe. That system is the third system of davening.

It isn’t based on changing the person praying, or on the merits of others. It is almost a safety hatch that HASHEM created, which changes the system of judgment. It moves the slide-rule from the middah of justice to the middah of mercy. It works only under certain conditions and with specific criteria, but when they are met, say these words and the judgment will change.

This seems to be the answer to the question. It was as if HASHEM was saying to Moshe, “If it ever turns out that the Jewish nation fails and there is no hope left, when even the merit of their fathers is no longer sufficient, I want you to know that there is a third system. It is a safety hatch. It isn’t based on them or the merit of any person; it is based on the mercy of HASHEM. Say these words, and it will move the system of judgment from strict justice to mercy.

Understanding how davening works is essential for us to appreciate its impact and how much it can affect our lives and those that we care about.

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