Faith, Effort, and Overcoming Arrogance
We promised you yesterday that we'd talk about the topic of
pride and realizing Hashem is in charge—not just when it comes to money, but
also when it comes to our strength and our wisdom.
Physical Strength and Health
Let's take strength first. A person exercises and loses
weight. He thinks, "I lost the weight. I am healthy because I work out,
take my medicine, and stay hydrated."
What does that have to do with God? You might say, "Okay,
God gave me the idea to exercise. Very nice." But it goes much deeper
than that. Your exercise and efforts can backfire if Hashem doesn't make them
succeed. You are not making it happen. Ultimately, your health is God's decree
because you prayed well on Rosh Hashanah.
Our physical efforts are just hishtadlut—a natural
cover-up for the divine decree. Every action does not guarantee a reaction. A
person could ride a bicycle for his health, hit a bump in the road, break his
elbow, or worse. Cause and effect do not rule the world.
Reb Moshe Feinstein noted that before the Surgeon General
determined that smoking was dangerous, it did not make people sick in the same
way. Why? Because illness comes when a person fails to protect their health
according to the Torah's command in Mesillat Yesharim: Ushmartem
me'od l'nafshoteichem ("Take extreme care of your lives"). When
someone acts out of a duty to care for the body God gave them, their effort is
fulfilled. Reb Yitzchak Kaduri lived to 102 while smoking because he was
unaware of its modern medical diagnosis.
You put in your effort, and Hashem causes the weight loss.
Many people exercise and never lose weight, while others lose weight without
exercising at all. You could work out, get dehydrated, spike your heart rate,
and end up harming your health. You are not in charge of your health.
Wisdom and Human Capability
Next case: wisdom. Someone thinks, "I'm a smart guy.
I prepare great classes because of my intellect."
What do we say in the Musaf prayer (Ochila La'El)?
"The preparations of the heart belong to man, but the
answer of the tongue is from Hashem."
Man can organize his thoughts—ma'archei, like setting
the Shulchan Aruch—but Hashem directs the words that leave his mouth.
None of the words you speak come purely from your own power.
Someone once asked: "Are you trying to tell me that
when I dribble a basketball and shoot it through the rim, God is in my
arm?"
Absolutely. God is in your arm. In the piyut recited on the
second day of Rosh Hashanah (Shacharit), written by Reb Yehuda HaLevi,
we say v'hakoach miyadecha—the strength in your hand is from Him. The Chovot
HaLevavot discusses this in Sha'ar HaBechina as "the secret of
movement." Nothing moves on its own. The atoms, the molecules, the forces
of motion—God is behind all of it.
There is no "automatic pilot" in this world. The Aruch
notes that the word automatos comes from Greek philosophy, which viewed
the universe as running on self-sustaining mechanics. In reality, a living
Pilot drives every detail.
The Illusion of Control
People often think, "Of course God can interfere—I
could slip while shooting the ball, or tariffs could ruin my business."
Reb Matisyahu Salomon shared a story about observing a
businessman who prayed with intense kavanah (devotion), yet was known to
be cutthroat in business. When asked about this contradiction, the man replied:
"I know God can interfere. Ships can sink, or tariffs can rise. So I
pray: 'God, I know what I'm doing in business—just don't interfere.'"
That is entirely the wrong attitude. Everything that happens
comes directly from Hashem: Koach miyadecha.
The Tomer Devorah elaborates on this when explaining
the thirteen attributes of mercy (Mi Kel Kamocha). Who is like God, who
displays ultimate savlanut (patience)? Even when a person sins, God
continues to pump life energy into that individual's limbs at that exact
second.
Consider this parable:
A man lets his neighbor plug a party sound system into his
home electrical outlet, requesting only that the music stop by 10:00 PM so his
baby can sleep. Midnight arrives, the music is blasting, and the baby is
crying. What does the homeowner do? He pulls the plug!
Hashem does not pull the plug. He continues to sustain the
breath and strength of a person even while they misapply those gifts.
Our thoughts, speech, and ideas originate from God.
Preparation is our hishtadlut, but the final outcome remains in His
hands. A single slip of the tongue can alter a career; without divine
protection, human effort quickly stumbles.
From Tisha B'Av to Neilah
Our High Holiday season serves as a direct rectification for
the spiritual drop of Tisha B'Av. Tisha B'Av represents the concept of the Gid
HaNasheh—the sinew of forgetting.
What causes us to forget God? Arrogance in our wealth,
strength, and wisdom.
We rectify this by progressing through the Days of Awe until
reaching Neilah on Yom Kippur. According to Shmuel in Masechet Yoma,
the core essence of Neilah is encapsulated in these words:
Ma anachnu? (What are we?)
Ma chayenu? (What is our life?)
Ma chasdenu? (What is our kindness?)
Ma tzidkotenu? (What is our righteousness?)
Ma kochenu? (What is our power?)
Ma gevurotenu? (What is our strength?)
"Behold, all the mighty men are as nothing before
You."
Rav Yerucham Levovitz once cited the story of a famous Jewish
strongman who could bend steel bars. Targets of antisemitic hostility in Europe
spiked his bed of nails with poison. A tiny prick infected him, and he rapidly
deteriorated and passed away. Rav Yerucham remarked: Look at this powerful
man—one microscopic point on his back, and he falls.
The Transience of Human Fame
Anshei Hashem—people of renown and wealth—pass away and are quickly
forgotten:
- Hathaway
Avenue (Deal, NJ): Named after William Hathaway, a prominent 19th-century hotel
proprietor who purchased the land in 1854 and hosted Deal's incorporation
gala in 1897. Today, few who drive down the street know his story.
- Carnegie
Hall: Andrew
Carnegie financed its construction in 1891. Decades later, public speaker
Dale Carnagey intentionally changed the spelling of his last name to
"Carnegie" as a marketing move to associate himself with
Andrew's colossal wealth. Today, people routinely confuse the two.
- Historical
Magnates:
Prominent leaders, such as Ishaia Angel of Damascus or the Farhi family of
Syria, held vast influence in their time. Yet across generations, earthly
prominence fades into history.
"The wise are as without knowledge, and the
understanding as without intellect. For all our deeds are emptiness, and the
days of our lives are vanity before You. The preeminence of man over beast is
non-existent, for all is vanity."
Conclusion
This clarity is the goal of Neilah: replacing the
self-reliance that leads to spiritual decline with the absolute awareness that
everything originates from God.
Rabbeinu Bachya notes on the command lo tira mehem
("do not fear them") that those who harbor genuine reverence for God
feel no fear of man. Embracing this perspective during the Yamim Noraim
restores our focus, clears away false pride, and anchors our ultimate
connection to Hashem.
