Shabbat ha-Gadol

Written by Rabbi Professor Marc Saperstein Thursday, 17 April 2008

It is a tradition going back to the rabbinic period that on Shabbat ha-Gadol, the Sabbath immediately preceding Pesach, rabbis would preach on a topic relating to the festival. I follow that tradition in this D’var Torah. 

The Leo Baeck College is an institution profoundly committed to education. The Department of Education and Professional Development and the Department of Rabbinic and Higher Jewish Learning are deeply involved in education on all levels, from the Story Garden programme of DEPD aimed at children in nurseries and the lowest levels of elementary schools, to courses for the MA and even supervision of PhD research. This makes Pesach an especially relevant holiday for the work of the College.

It is no secret that the Pesach Seder, scripted by the Haggadah, is in its essence a paradigm of the educational enterprise. The historical memory of Pesach is bound up with enslavement and liberation. But the traditional observance of the Seder is not (as sometimes maintained) a re-enactment of the events from the past; rather it is about transmitting memory from generation to generation. The meaning of the Hebrew word haggadah is ‘telling’, or narration. But it is a narration performed on different levels, through various media.

The text of the Haggadah is not a simple telling of a story. It is a document so complex that it has inspired almost as many commentaries as has the Bible. In some families, in-depth discussion of the text continues long into the night of the Seder. At the same time, there are elements of every Seder intended primarily for the children, giving them something for them to do (the “Four Questions”, hunting for the afikomen), providing something to which they can look forward (‘Had Gadya’ at the end).

The passage that most succinctly encapsulates a philosophy of education is that introduced by the statement,  כנגד ארבעה בנים דברה תורה, ‘The Torah expressed itself with four (kinds of) children in mind: one wise, one wicked, a third simple, the fourth, who does not know how to ask.’ An appropriate response is provided for each.

This teaches us that education should be universally accessible. In the ancient world, throughout most of history, in much of the world today, education is intended only for the first category, those who have unusual capacity for learning. According to the Haggadah everyone must be included, whatever their intellectual ability, whatever their temperament, whatever their attitude toward Judaism or religion in general. All must be provided an opportunity to learn.

Secondly, it tells us about diversity in the student body. This passage may be the first historical evidence of a streaming system, recognizing that students come with different backgrounds, different motivations, different questions. To put them all in a large lecture hall and subject them to the same lecture will probably not produce the best results. We need to pay attention to individuality, to provide answers geared specifically to the needs of different groups.

As for the specific characteristics of each, it is important to note that the child described as “wise” is not one who already knows the answers. Rather, it is a child who asks a good question, a question reflecting knowledge of the diversity within the tradition (“What is the meaning of the testimonies, statutes, and ordinances that God has commanded?”). The mark of wisdom is seeking to build upon knowledge already acquired, recognizing that there is always something more to learn.

The child described as “wicked” asks, “What is this service to you?” Unlike the previous question, God is left out. This child has no sense of anything sacred about the tradition; it seems to be nothing more than a burden, to be held up to ridicule. And so that child withdraws from the community: ‘to you’. Indeed there are students like this, or students who go through this stage during a period of their lives. They are not to be beaten or expelled from the educational arena; they are to be answered firmly, yet given an answer. They too are part of the Jewish people.

The third child, described as ‘simple’, asks a question that is not informed and penetrating like that of the first child. The question reflects not knowledge, but sincerity and good will. It is a child who wants to know, but is not yet capable of asking a sophisticated question. For such children, a straightforward answer is in order, communicating the essence without too many details: ‘God’s power made possible our liberation from slavery.’ The rest is commentary, let us study together.

And finally, the child who is unable to ask. This has usually been understood to apply to one so small there are no articulate questions, one for whom everything is strange, inspiring wonder. How important it is to include these children, from the earliest age, not to wait until they are 9 or 10 years old before exposing them to the richness of the Jewish tradition. The rhythms and rituals of Jewish life should be part of their earliest memories, to be performed and explained even before the questions are asked.

It is the challenge of the Leo Baeck College, of synagogue schools and day schools—indeed, of every Jewish family—to provide answers for all types of questions, asked by all types of children and adults—with patience, understanding, and love, so that we may properly say the line that introduces the entire passage in the Haggadah:

 :ברוך המקום שנתן תורה לעמו ישראל

Blessed is the Omnipresent One, who has provided Instruction to His entire people Israel.