Igrot Kodesh · Letter 5438 — Faith & Bitachon
Volume 15 · Letter 113
B"H
9 Iyar 5717
Brooklyn
I bless you and greet you.
You should explain to this person's mother that one cannot adopt such an attitude toward the Holy One, blessed be He — imposing conditions upon Him, promising Tzedakah* only when a certain event will occur. The Jewish way of conduct is the opposite of this approach. First, one gives Tzedakah, and then one asks Hashem — not as something owed, but indeed as a request, for He is the Essence of Good — to fulfill what one feels in the depths of one's heart.
If one has deep trust in Him, one can indeed see with one's own eyes of flesh that it is truly so, very soon. I hope you will find the appropriate words to explain all this to her.
With my blessing to give good tidings,
On behalf of the Rebbe Shlita*,
the secretary,