Torah and Tefillah: Natural Remedies

By Rabbi Moshe Krieger, Yeshivas Bircas Hatorah (www.bircas.org)

After Miriam died, the Jews had no water to drink. Until then, they had drunk from a miraculous well that had existed near the camp in Miriam’s merit. Moshe and Aharon were commanded to speak to a rock, which would then bring forth water. The commentators explain that there was some confusion at the scene, and Moshe hit the rock instead of speaking to it. Waters sprung forth and quenched the nation’s thirst.

For this sin, Moshe and Aharon were not permitted to enter Eretz Yisrael. The question is, why? What difference did it make if the rock was hit or spoken to? Either way, the nation saw that Hashem had made a miracle for them.

To be sure, Moshe had not obeyed Hashem’s command. Still, that is not the reason that Hashem gave for his punishment. The passuk states (Bamidbar 20:12), “Because you did not believe in Me to sanctify Me in the eyes of the nation.” Clearly, some element of sanctification of Hashem’s Name could have been caused but was not. What was lacking? The spectators had seen a miracle—surely that was indeed a sanctification of his Name. Why was Moshe’s punishment so great?

In order to understand Moshe’s error, we must first understand what he was expected to say to the rock. The Yalkut Shimoni (Chukas 20) explains that Moshe was to say perek echad, halachah achas (one paragraph, one law). Teaching halachah at the rock in the presence of the nation would bring water.

Rav Yechiel Michel Feinstein explains the connection between teaching Torah to the masses and bringing forth water, through a principle in Chovos HaLevavos (Sha’ar HaBechinah 4). The entire natural world exists only to serve the Torah, just as a slave exists to serve his master. By teaching Torah to the nation in the presence of the rock, the power of the entire nation’s Torah study would have elicited water from the rock to quench the thirst of those learning Torah. This should have been the lesson of the rock. Hitting the rock was tantamount to performing a familiar sort of miracle, at least for that generation. It was nothing that would show Torah study’s power to direct the natural world.

This is a critical lesson. In times of distress, our natural response should be to apply ourselves to Torah study. The Chazon Ish was known to say that a person who can learn Torah can make no greater contribution to our nation than applying himself to his learning. He would say, “Sometimes, a single Tosfos has the power to annul many evil decrees.” This is one expression of the power that Torah study has to direct the natural world.

The Netziv has a different approach to understanding what Moshe should have said: Hashem’s command to talk to the rock meant that he was to lead the nation in prayer. The water would come forth through the power of tefillah of the masses.

Prayer also has the power to direct the natural world. Our first recourse when encountering difficulties should be prayer. This was the lesson that Hashem wanted Moshe to teach at this time. If the nation resorted to prayer and received the water that they needed, they would learn to use prayer to solve their problems. Moshe’s punishment was a result of failing to teach this critical lesson.

We can better understand this principle from an episode in the Gemara (Kiddushin 29b). A demon had been harming the people of Abaye’s town. When Rav Acha bar Yaakov was passing through the area, Abaye instructed the townspeople not to take him in as a guest. This was so that he would be forced to lodge in the building where the demon was.

That night, Rav Acha bar Yaakov found himself facing a seven-headed demon. He began to pray. The Gemara relates that each time he bowed his head [in prayer], one of the demon’s heads fell off. Finally, after seven bows, Rav Acha was able to go to sleep.

The Maharshah asks, what right did Abaye have to place Rav Acha bar Yaakov in danger by not giving him any other choice? What about the rule that one may not rely on miracles?

The Maharshah answers with the principle that we learned above. Tefillah is a natural form of accomplishing things in this world. Being answered is not a miracle, but rather a natural consequence.

The Chazon Ish would often tell people seeking his guidance to daven with all their hearts. He would tell them that this is the best method for accomplishing things. In a letter, he wrote to a sick person that davening “will be a help for you and a frequent remedy, gladdening your heart and enlightening your eyes.”

Once, a man suffering from a serious medical condition came to the Chazon Ish to discuss it with him. While waiting to be let in, he met a rav who would visit weekly to talk with the Chazon Ish. The rav asked him why he had come, and he told him about his medical condition.

“I know exactly the right doctor for you,” said the rav, and he gave him the doctor’s address. The man left and went to meet with this doctor.

When the Chazon Ish learned of this, he rebuked the rav. “This man had come to me so that either he or I would daven for him. Davening should be the first step for healing him. Why did you tell him to try secondary efforts like a doctor first?”

May we be zocheh to use Torah and tefillah as natural remedies for our problems!