Davening in a time of trouble

Rabbi Yisrael Wende is former Rosh Kollel Memphis (2019-2022) and currently Rav Kehilla in Maale Adumim

A few months ago, one of the congregants in our shul complained to me about the ḥazzan. The ceasefire was still nowhere in sight and, as in many other shuls, we were saying a chapter of Tehilim after davening. In Ma‘ariv, before Aleinu, the ḥazzan (following the Sephardic custom) read Shir Ha-Ma‘alot quickly. But after Ma‘ariv, he read the same chapter of Tehilim slowly and with intention. One of the congregants argued against the ḥazzan for reading the regular Psalm, the one in Ma‘ariv, too quickly.

I answered him based on the Ramban’s approach to prayer. The Ramban holds that there is no Torah obligation to pray every day. Prayer is a privilege to ask Hashem and to stand before the King, but it is not obligatory. The Ramban continues and writes that if there is any prayer that is obligatory, it is prayer in a time of trouble.

The fixed order of prayers that we have today is a rabbinic enactment, not from the Torah. The Shir Ha-Ma‘alot that is part of the Maariv is therefore rabbinic. However, the Shir Ha-Ma‘alot added after Maariv is because of distress. According to the Ramban, it has a higher level of obligation. By saying this chapter of Tehilim, we fulfill the Torah commandment to daven in a time of trouble.

A hint to the difference between fixed prayer and prayer in a time of trouble can be found at the beginning of Parashat Toldot and in the words of the Sages about prayer.

The Talmud in Berakhot (26b) says that the Patriarchs instituted the three daily prayers. In the verses describing the prayers of the Patriarchs, there are no explicit words of prayer; the Sages interpreted the terms as referring to prayer. Abraham rose early in the morning and “stood.” Yitzhak went out “to converse,” and Yaakov “encountered” the place. The Sages understood “standing,” “conversation,” and “encounter” as forms of prayer. The prayers of the Patriarchs are not explicit, but from the special terms the Torah uses: standing, conversing, and encountering, we understand that these acts were prayers.

In contrast to these prayers, we find with Isaac a very explicit prayer. At the beginning of Parashat Toldot we read of Yitzhak and Rivkah praying for children: “And Yitzhak entreated the Lord opposite his wife, for she was barren, and the Lord granted his plea, and Rivkah his wife conceived.” (Genesis 25:21). Anyone reading the verse immediately understands that Yitzhak is praying to Hashem that Rivkah should bear a child. What is the difference between this explicit prayer and the other prayers of the Patriarchs? Why is Yitzhak’s prayer for a child not counted among the set prayers that the Patriarchs established?

The answer is simple. The three prayers of the Patriarchs are routine prayers, prayers at fixed times each day. Their purpose is to create a daily pattern of turning to Hashem, a routine of serving God. But the prayer for a child is a prayer in a time of trouble, a prayer that has no fixed time and no predefined text. Such a prayer cannot be set at a regular time because, by definition, it is not part of routine. This prayer is more explicit in the text because it carries a higher level of obligation. According to the Ramban, prayer in a time of trouble is not just a rabbinic ordinance, but a Torah requirement.

One purpose of the fixed daily prayers is to establish consistency in serving Hashem. What, then, is the purpose of prayer in a time of trouble? From the root of the word atar (“to entreat”), the Sages derived that prayer is heard only when there is peace: “How do we know that the prayer of the community is heard only if there is peace among them? As it is said, ‘And I will reveal to them an abundance (‘ateret) of peace and truth’ (Jeremiah 33:6). ‘Ateret’ refers to prayer, as it is said, ‘And Yitzhak entreated (va-ye‘etar) the Lord.’ When this entreating includes peace, it is true; but if not, it is not true.”

Times of trouble contain great potential for unity and bringing people closer together. Yet the greater the potential, the greater the risk that trouble may lead to conflict. Prayer in a time of trouble must be like Yitzhak's, he prays “opposite his wife,” the two of them together, in the same situation. When the atarah, the prayer, comes out of peace, then it is true; it is answered.

We hope to never need prayers in distress. But if we ever do find ourselves praying from within hardship, we should learn from Yitzhak and Rivkah the importance of prayer and the proper way to pray: with peace and unity