The Power of Prayer and Faith: How Judaism Teaches That Destiny Can Change

The first fundamental principle of our Jewish faith is this: “I believe with complete faith that the Creator, blessed be His Name, exists, watches over all, and is the Creator and Guide of all beings; He alone made, makes, and will make all things.”

As science has discovered, matter has no inherent necessity to exist. Even the most basic laws of nature could, in theory, disappear or change. This means that everything that exists, and everything that happens, takes place as a kind of miracle — without any logical or scientific necessity that compels its existence. The necessary conclusion is that God, blessed be He, sustains us at every single moment by His will, and that nothing in reality happens on its own.

Why Despair Is a Mistake

This introduction is important because there is a serious mistake made by those who fall into despair, and stop praying for salvation because they think that their fate has already been sealed and cannot be changed.

They do not realize that the calculations and gifts of the Holy One, blessed be He, cannot be fully understood: “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Book of Yeshayahu 55:8–9).

The Holy One declared in His holy Torah: “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy” (Book of Shemot 33:19). This means that in this world we cannot fully understand the calculations of Heaven, the paths of spiritual repair for souls, or their possibilities. Of course, we know that God does everything for our good, but we do not know in what way He will grant that good, or how and when.

The Power of Prayer, Charity, and Repentance

At the same time, our sages taught us: “Rabbi Elazar said: Three things cancel a harsh decree: prayer, charity, and repentance.” (Jerusalem Talmud, Ta’anit 2:1)

Imagine a person to whose house a prophet comes in order to announce a death sentence, directly from the mouth of God. Who would continue praying then, and not despair?

This is exactly what happened to King Chizkiyahu (Books of Kings, chapter 20). Yet the king said to the prophet: “This is the tradition I have from the house of my forefathers: even if a sharp sword rests upon a person’s neck, he should never withhold himself from mercy.” (Talmud Bavli, Berakhot 10a)

Indeed, through his repentance and prayers, King Chizkiyahu merited to overturn the harsh decree, and the prophet declared that he would live another fifteen years.

A Time to Strengthen Hope

We see from here that despair is a counsel of the evil inclination. A believing Jew always prays. Whether he receives what he asks for or not, he continues to pray humbly with faith that this itself is his spiritual service and part of the repair of his soul, and with the clear knowledge that everything is in God’s hands and that He can change a person’s fate.

Our sages revealed to us that Israel stands above mazal, above fate and the stars, and can change its condition through prayer, charity, and repentance. They also taught us through the Torah tradition that Rosh Hashanah is a special time for changing one’s destiny.

God’s ears are especially attentive to those who pray and repent during this time, and therefore it is fitting to make use of the moment. It is also an important time to pray for the safety of Israel’s soldiers and the people of Israel, and for the redemption that, with God’s help, may come upon us soon.