Nature Can be changed?!

Picture this: a man who has decided to end his life goes up to the top of the Empire State Building (Tower) in New York and… jumps. While falling, he turns to the law of gravity and begs for forgiveness. “I won’t ever do it again,” the man promises; indeed, his repentance is serious and wholehearted, as he promises not to repeat what he did. Every intelligent person knows that the law of gravity will continue to pull the man down to the ground, and he really won’t ever repeat the mistake…

This is the mindset in which our early ancestors lived, from Seth to Methuselah and Noah, Shem and Eber.

Is there anything we can do in the face of the laws of nature? Can they be changed?!

If once every 1,656 years, there’s a huge flood in the world, the only way to save yourself is to build an ark, like Noah did, or build a tower that will hold up the sky so it won’t collapse again, like the Generation of Disunity attempted to do (see commentary of Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, Genesis 11:1).

That’s pretty logical.

This week [12/16], we again heard about an earthquake in faraway New Zealand. This time, thankfully, no injuries were reported. Four years ago, however, over 130 people were killed in the same place. But did anyone think of “asking the earth to shift more gently” in order not to hurt people?! It’s crazy to think so, and if we saw someone praying like that, we would hospitalize him…The laws of nature cannot communicate with us. They are fixed and exact, and over the generations, various scientists have been explaining them to us. Today, our knowledge of physics follows Newton and Einstein; in the past, it followed Aristotle, and even earlier, various astrologers.

This is based on healthy logic. If God created the world with set laws, that is apparently His will – and there is no reason to ask that these laws change. There is only possible result every time. These are laws, and it can’t be any other way! Jumping from the roof? The law of gravity kicks in.

When our forefather Abraham came on the scene, he recognized his Creator (Tractate Berachot 7b), the “One who spoke and the world came into being,” the One who made the laws of nature and can also change them.
This is the meaning of the commentary of the Hebrew sages in their explanation of God’s words to Abraham: “Abandon your fixedness – Abram cannot bear children, but Abraham can bear children!” (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, Genesis 15:5). Until this point, everyone in those times thought that determinism prevailed and that it was impossible to deviate from/break the laws of nature. However, this is not the case – it is possible to speak to the Creator and change nature! 

Therefore, Abraham approaches God and prays, asking God to judge the people of Sodom favorably. He realizes that their destruction is not the result of cruel laws of nature that will devastate the place described as being “like the garden of God.” It is based on a decision that can be changed via prayer.

Later in the Bible, when Avimelech becomes ill, the verses explicitly state:

“Now, return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet and he will pray for you, and you shall live” (Genesis 20:7). The Hebrew sages explain: “You are a prophet; you are not an astrologer…” (Genesis Rabba 44:12). You, Abraham the prophet, who speaks to and knows the Creator of the world, the One who decided these laws, know that it is possible to ask and pray. Every time, at every point in history, the prophet sees two options; if he merits, things will happen one way, and if not, things will happen differently.

The Hebrew sages explain that the forefathers founded our prayers. Abraham was the first person to pray. He gave this gift to his sons and the members of his household. This includes his son, Ishmael, and the Muslims who continue Ishmael’s legacy, as well as his grandson, Esau (and his descendants – Christianity). Abram, whose name initially represented the fact that he was the father of Aram, becomes Abraham – the father of many peoples.

[These ideas are in memory of Rabbi Ashkenazi, these ideas are based on his writings.]