20 Feb DAVENING FOR PEACE!

The final blessing of
Shemone Esrei is Sim
Shalom, where we ask
Hashem to “Grant us
Peace.” The Tur, zt”l,
zy”a, explains that since
right before this blessing
we say the Birkas Kohanim, of which
the Torah says, “V’samu es Shmi al Bnei
Yisroel v’Ani avoracheim – And you (the
Kohanim) shall place My Name on Yisroel
and I will bless them,” and, continues the
Tur, since the blessing of Hashem is peace,
like it says, “Hashem oz l’amo yitein,
Hashem yivoreich es amo bashalom –
Hashem grants Yisroel with strength and
Hashem blesses His nation with peace,”
therefore, it is appropriate that we follow
the blessings of the Kohanim with the
blessing of peace. The Iyun Tefila adds,
furthermore, since the last of the priestly
blessings is “V’yaseim l’cha shalom – He
should grant you peace,” it flows perfectly
that immediately afterwards we should ask
for peace.
As an aside, we cited the verse that
“Hashem grants Yisroel with strength and
He blesses us with peace.” What is the
connection between strength and peace?
In Avos d’Reb Nosson, it queries, “Eizahu

gibor? Ha’oseh misono ahavo – Who is
mighty? He who has the ability to make
from an enemy a friend.” Thus, we see that
the power of peacemaking is considered
strength and thus we see the clear linkage
between peace and strength.
The Yerushalmi in Berachos [Chapter 2,
Halacha 4] explains why we conclude the
blessings of Shemone Esrei with the subject
of peace. It comments that all blessings
conclude with the subject of peace. The
Shemone Esrei, the Birkas Kohanim, and
our Bentching all conclude with shalom.
Rashi, in Bechukosai [26:6], points out that
the blessings of Bechukosai also finish off
with the promise of peace. He explains
that peace is mentioned last because it is
shakul k’neged hakol, it equals all other
blessings put together. He brings proof
of this from the beginning of the longest
bracha in our liturgy, the blessing of Yotzer
Ohr, where we say, “Oseh shalom uvorei
es hakol – Hashem makes peace and
creates everything,” contrasting peace with
everything else, thereby showing that they
are of equal stature.
The entire Shas also concludes with the
teaching of peace! It teaches in the final
Mishna of Uktzin, “Lo matza HaKodosh
Baruch Hu klei machzik bracha ela

hashalom – Hashem did not find a vessel
that can properly contain blessing except
for peace.” Rabbi Berel Wein, Shlit”a, has
a delicious parable to illustrate what this
means. Upon his moving to Eretz Yisroel,
he went to the grocery for the first time
to stock his new home. He filled several
wagons with necessities and came to the
counter. It was only then that he found
to his chagrin that they didn’t give bags.
Here he had all of his household needs but
he had no way to take them home. Rabbi
Wein aptly declared, Peace is the bag to
contain all the other blessings of life!”
Without peace, all other blessing flounder
or, as Rashi (ibid) states succinctly, “Im
ein shalom, ein klum – If there is no peace,
there’s nothing.”
On a very practical level this means that
we should train ourselves to make many
sacrifices and overlook all trivialities in
order to maintain the peace. In a similar
vein, Rabbi Frand, Shlit”a famously
recommended that there is almost no
chumra, stringency, that is worth sacrificing
your shalom bais, marital harmony over.
This commodity is what we are asking for
in this final blessing.
The Yaros Devash suggests that in this
blessing we should pray that there should be
peace amongst Klal Yisroel. There should
be peace in our shuls, in our workplaces,
in our neighborhoods, there should be
peace between the Chassidishe and the
Litvish, between different Chassidishe
sects, and between the Chareidim and the
Chilonim. He recommends that we pray
in this blessing that we should be spared
from jealousy and hate which invariably
lead to strife. He then forcefully says
that we should pray to be free from anger
for anywhere that there is anger, peace
departs.
The Olas Tomid adds that we should
daven to be spared from death by the
sword and by wild animals. We are taught
in Masechtas Derech Eretz Zuta, in the
chapter of peace, that if Hashem didn’t
bless the world with peace we would be
ravaged by the sword and by animals.
Therefore, we ask in this blessing
that we should be spared from wars,
from terrorists, from criminals, from
antisemitism. We also pray that we should
be protected from animals with rabies,
from snakes, from infected mosquitos,
and bears and wolves. In modern times,
we should also ask for peace on the roads,
for protection from drunk drivers, from
distracted drivers, from road rage, falling
asleep at the wheel, blowouts and black
ice.
Rav Avigdor Miller, zt”l, zy”a, advises

that when we ask for peace we should
include the all-important request for
peace of mind. This includes the essential
petition for menuchas hanefesh, ease of
our souls, that we shouldn’t suffer from
depression and melancholy, and that we are
spared from the plight of feeling unfulfilled
or perpetually stressed. Likewise, we pray
to be saved from an insatiable chemdas
hamamon, the unquenchable lust for more
and more money. And here is where we
should certainly ask from Hashem that He
save us from addictions which wreck so
many lives such as the addiction to spirits
or chemical dependencies, the addiction
to gambling, the modern addiction of
computer gaming, and the insidious
addiction of forbidden images.
We should assuredly pray in this
blessing for our shalom bais, tranquility
and happiness in our homes and we
should likewise ask Hashem for a healthy
livelihood because it is only when our
financial situation is stable that peace will
reign in our homes. As Dovid HaMelech
teaches us in Tehillim, “Hasam g’vuleich
shalom, cheilev chitim yasbi’eich – He
grants in our borders peace, satisfying us
with the cream of wheat.” The Gemora
explains this to mean that if there is
sufficient wheat in our cupboard, only then
will there be peace in our borders.
In the merit of our realizing that our peace
is dependent upon Hashem’s beneficence,
may he bless us with a multiplicity of
peace, long life, good health, and everything
wonderful.