Tefilla

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about what prayer really is. In Hebrew the word for prayer is lehitpallel which means to change yourself. In Judaism we have the concept that we recieve answers to our prayers from Hashem not because he grants everything we ask for but because by praying we elevate ourselves and grow in our relationship with Hashem. Now we are on a higher spiritual level we can now also receive the blessing due to that level. Prayer changes the world because it changes us. The world is Hashem’s divine plan but at the same time we have free will. These contradictions also seem oresent in prayer. Hashem has the power to grant whatever is right so why do we ask have to ask in first place? In essence Judaism is all about one very special relationship, between us and Hashem. This partnership can be seen throughout the Torah. For instance the make up of the Torah outlines our partnership in Hashem’s creation. For instance, why do we have the written and the Oral tradition? The written Torah is fixed and given by Hashem but the oral Torah is fluid and we add to it over time. This is our chance to be partners in creation with Hashem.

We can see then that we are just as fundamental to prayer as Hashem. Our actions, intentions and thoughts count just as Hashem’s blessings do. This being the case it is vital to consider how we approach prayer. The Chief Rabbi talks extensively about how we as Jews must have high expectations for ourselves, in fact he claims that the secret to our historical success is that we perform well because Judaism has high expectations of us! In short, “we are as big as the ideals by which we live.” If we live by the highest ideals for ourselves and then that will be what is open to us. Our Rabbis teach us that nothing is beyond Hashem’s capability – he can split the sea and destroy our enemies – but it is for Hashem to decide what is necessary; not what is impossible.


We are taught throughout the Torah to have the highest of all aspirations of ourselves – to eminate Hashem’s ways. The gemara quoted above reveals to us God's ways in the covenant of the Thirteen Attributes: "The Holy One wrapped himself like a shaliach tzibbur." The gemara continues with a practical instruction: "Let them perform this order before Me". God revealed the Thirteen Attributes in order that we may learn from them about His ways, that we may learn how to act.
We should learn from this covenant that every one of us must radiate kindness, mercy and other positive attributes, but his inner essence should remain "enwrapped." A person's presence should be felt: he need not nullify or hide himself; he must act and achieve, but he should do so without advertising his own self, his personality. When a person sins, when he feels depressed or despairing, "Let them perform this order before Me" – every person should consider himself a shaliach tzibbur, and radiate a sense of emulating God's attributes.

A fundamental character trait mandated in Judaism is always judging one's fellow man favorably - being "dan le-kaf zechut". According to many commentators, this is explicitly commanded in the Torah: "Judge your fellow righteously" (b'tzedek tishpot amitecha - Vayikra 19:15). It is also mentioned in Pirkei Avot (1:6): "Tilt the scales of judgment in every man's favor" (heve dan kol adam le-kaf zechut
Some Hasidic literature emphasizes a further aspect of the "tikkun" or rectification implicit in positive judgment. Rav Nachman of Breslav says: "Even someone who seems (God forbid) to be completely wicked, we have to seek in him a little bit of goodness, one aspect of his being in which he is not wicked. And by virtue of this, that he finds in him some good and judges him favorably - he in fact elevates him to a favorable judgment, and can bring him to full repentance this way!" (Likutei Etzot, Tochecha p. 16).

This seems quite strange - how can we bring anyone else to full repentance? As a rule, one has not done "teshuva" until he fully recognizes his transgressions. Indeed, for this reason the Rema writes that a doubtful transgression is more serious than a certain one; since a person is not convinced that he acted improperly, he is unlikely to repent adequately (Orach Chaim 603:1). Yet Rav Nachman informs us that we bring about full repentance by mitigating the offender's transgressions in our own minds!
The simple "psychological" understanding of Rav Nachman's words is that a person has no incentive to repent if he is convinced that he has a wicked nature. "Teshuva" means "Returning," and therefore it may be appropriate only for a righteous person who lapsed and wants to "return" to his true self. By convincing the transgressor that he is not so bad after all, we give him the appropriate motivation for changing his behavior. But the emphasis of Rav Nachman is not on convincing the sinner - Rav Nachman stressed the need to convince ourselves! How is this supposed to elevate the actions of the wicked?

The answer to this question can be related to the solution of another puzzle. The past is irrevocable, so it should be impossible to change our past actions. Yet our sages inform us (Yoma 86b) that repentance can transform one's sins into merits. While we can understand that God will "wipe the slate clean" for someone who has sincerely repented, how can we say that God will transmute bad into good?
One possible answer is that the idea of "sin" or "merit" is not limited to the narrow calculus of whether the action is permissible or forbidden, but to the much larger question of whether it is ultimately a constructive or destructive act. This depends in part on our perception; the same act viewed as negative from one perspective may, from a different point of view, appear positive. And positive consequences of an act may far outweigh its direct destructive influences.
Part of positive judgment, and part of teshuva, involves the creation of a new outlook on past actions, as well as molding future behavior. Past misdeeds should be assimilated and reconciled until they are conceived as part of the process which led to the current state of loving God. Ideally, the new outlook not only accepts that "everything is for the good", but is also able to perceive that "good is in everything".