Teϔillah at the Beginning of the Year
The Aruch L'Ner writes that throughout the year, our tefillos are generally answered, but sometimes they aren't. However, tefillos said at the beginning of the year are always answered.
A kehillah ordered a prefab beis medresh. A crane came to the site, and as the crane operator was lowering the beis medresh with a remote control, some members of the beis medresh who were there were directing the operator exactly where to lower the structure. They were saying, "Right... A drop left. Go back a bit. No, now come forward..." until it was placed precisely where they wanted it. Mission accomplished (and money collected), the crane and the construction crew left. The shul members went inside to celebrate the new beis medresh when they realized they had made a grave error. They shouted, "The beis medresh is backward! The aron kodesh is on the wrong side!"
A child asked, "What's the problem? Just say, 'Right, left, front, back', like you said before, and the problem will be solved." The adults patiently explained that saying "right and left" only helps when the crane and the workers are there, not after they've left.
The nimshal is that the beginning of the year is an eis ratzon, and our tefillos are answered. Our tefillos aren’t as potent the rest of the year. Although the mashal isn’t entirely accurate because tefillah helps the entire year, there is indeed an extraordinary power to tefillos said at the beginning of the year.
Reb Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld zt'l wouldn’t consider shidduchim offers for his children unless he davened for their shidduch during the yomim noraim. Once, a shidduch was suggested for one of his children, and he didn't want to consider it because he hadn't prayed for that child's shidduch on Rosh Hashanah. But a lot of pressure was placed on him to consider the shidduch, so he looked into it. The shidduch transpired, but unfortunately, the marriage didn't last long, rachmana litzlan. This is because success, for all matters, needs tefillos, and ideally, the tefillos said at the beginning of the year. (This isn't halachah l'maasah. Reb Yosef Chaim, with his high level, didn't want to make shidduchim without the tefillos of the yamim noraim, but this doesn't apply to all people. Nevertheless, it teaches us the importance of tefillah, especially during these days.)
As a child, Reb Yitzchak Tuvyah Weiss zt'l (the gavad of Yerushalayim) lived in a city some four kilometers from Pressburg. When the Germans entered his city, they ordered all the Jews to board trains. The Germans said they were taking them to a work camp, and whoever disobeyed would be shot. The Jewish community didn't know whether to believe the Germans or if it was a ruse to send them to the gas chambers. The rabbanim and community leaders didn't know whether to encourage the people to cooperate with the Germans or to hide and escape.
Reb Tuvyah Weiss (still a child) was sent to Pressburg to seek counsel from the הקהל ראש of Pressburg. The rosh hakahal replied that their lives were in grave danger either way, and he didn’t know what to advise them. The rosh hakahal added that the king of England had arranged a children's transport to save one thousand children and bring them to England. The rosh hakahal said, "I have some tickets to the children's transport, but I don't know who to save and who has precedence over whom. Since you came here, here's a ticket. Go and save yourself."
Reb Tuvyah relayed the bleak report to his city’s community leaders, then he went home to pack his bags quickly and to say goodbye to his parents, and then he left on the transport. His mother's parting words were that he should never forget that he's a Yid. Soon, he was safe in England, with a thousand other children. A short while later, the king of England requested to see the thousand children he had saved. The children stood respectfully on either side of the road as the king drove between them. Suddenly, one of the children, a courageous young boy, jumped forward and asked to speak to the king. The king's servants wanted to shoo him away, but the king stopped and called over the boy. The child thanked the king for saving him and the other children, "But it upsets me that the king's compassion isn't complete because I left my parents and family behind. How can I be happy with my freedom when I'm worried about the safety of my parents and family?" The king asked him for his parents' address. Two weeks later, his parents and extended family arrived in England.
Reb Tuvyah Weiss zt'l recounted this episode and said, "There were another 999 children there. None of us thought of coming forth to beg the king to save their families. Only this boy did, and he benefited so much from that. Let this be a reminder to take advantage of the opportunities that come our way."
For our topic, let's take advantage of our power of tefillah, especially at this time of year. The King is present, as it states בהמצאו 'ה דרשו. If we call out to Him, He will answer us and grant our requests.
