In this week's parasha, the Torah tells us that Avraham and Sarah were childless, so was our אמהות Rivka and Rachel. חז"ל  teach us that the reason for this is that HaKadosh Baruch Hu desires the prayers of the צדיקים. I once heard an additional, deeper insight into this: Avraham’s father, Terach, was an idol worshiper, and Rivka and Rachel came from families steeped in deception—Bethuel and Lavan.

If the אמהות had given birth naturally, their children might have inherited the "genes" and traits from their family backgrounds, which could include undesirable character traits. Therefore, Hashem made them barren so that they would pray fervently, bringing children into the world through the power of תפילה, beyond the realm of nature. In this way, their children were born as a miracle, disconnected from the inherited limitations of their ancestors, growing up in purity and holiness.

We can see a similar idea with Chana, who was barren and vowed that her child—Shmuel HaNavi—would be entirely consecrated to Hashem. Because Shmuel was born against the natural order, he is considered to be "of Hashem," a pure soul unconnected to any inherited genetic traits.

May we all merit to see our תפילות answered with miracles, and may we all have a peaceful Shabbas!