{"id":57619,"date":"2025-04-09T14:35:56","date_gmt":"2025-04-09T14:35:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ou.org\/holidays\/?p=57619"},"modified":"2025-04-09T14:35:56","modified_gmt":"2025-04-09T14:35:56","slug":"what-makes-the-wise-son-truly-wise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ou.org\/holidays\/what-makes-the-wise-son-truly-wise\/","title":{"rendered":"What Makes the Wise Son Truly Wise?"},"content":{"rendered":"

At first glance, the <\/span>wise son<\/b> in the Haggadah sounds a lot like the <\/span>wicked son<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The wicked son asks:<\/span>
\n<\/span> \u05de\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d4\u05b8\u05e2\u05b2\u05d1\u05d5\u05b9\u05d3\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d4\u05b7\u05d6\u05b9\u05bc\u05d0\u05ea <\/span><\/i>\u05dc\u05b8\u05db\u05b6\u05dd<\/i><\/b>?<\/span>
\n<\/b> “What is this service to you?”<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span><\/i> He separates himself from the community \u2014 and from the tradition.<\/span><\/p>\n

But then the wise son says:<\/span>
\n<\/span> \u05de\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d4\u05b8\u05e2\u05b5\u05d3\u05d5\u05b9\u05ea \u05d5\u05b0\u05d4\u05b7\u05d7\u05bb\u05e7\u05b4\u05bc\u05d9\u05dd \u05d5\u05b0\u05d4\u05b7\u05de\u05b4\u05bc\u05e9\u05b0\u05c1\u05e4\u05b8\u05bc\u05d8\u05b4\u05d9\u05dd \u05d0\u05b2\u05e9\u05b6\u05c1\u05e8 \u05e6\u05b4\u05d5\u05b8\u05bc\u05d4 \u05d4’ \u05d0\u05b1\u05dc\u05b9\u05e7\u05b5\u05d9\u05e0\u05d5\u05bc<\/span><\/i> \u05d0\u05b6\u05ea\u05b0\u05db\u05b6\u05dd<\/i><\/b>?<\/b>
\n<\/b> “What are the testimonies, statutes, and laws that Hashem our G-d commanded you?”<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

He also says <\/span>\u201cyou\u201d<\/b>, not <\/span>\u201cus.\u201d<\/b> So what\u2019s the difference?<\/span><\/p>\n

The <\/span>Netziv<\/b> offers a beautiful insight. In Parshat Matot, Elazar the Kohen relays the laws of Kashrut to the Jewish people and says:<\/span>
\n<\/span> “<\/i><\/b>\u05d6\u05b9\u05d0\u05ea \u05d7\u05bb\u05e7\u05b7\u05bc\u05ea \u05d4\u05b7\u05ea\u05bc\u05d5\u05b9\u05e8\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d0\u05b2\u05e9\u05b6\u05c1\u05e8 \u05e6\u05b4\u05d5\u05b8\u05bc\u05d4 \u05d4’ <\/span><\/i>\u05d0\u05b6\u05ea <\/i><\/b>\u05de\u05b9\u05e9\u05b6\u05c1\u05d4<\/span><\/i>“<\/b><\/p>\n

The Netziv explains: <\/span>\u201c<\/b>Et<\/i><\/b> Moshe<\/span><\/i>\u201d doesn\u2019t mean <\/span>to<\/b> Moshe \u2014 it means <\/span>through<\/b> Moshe.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Even as High Priest, Elazar knew that he was conduit relaying the Torah that had been initially given to Moshe<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s the depth of the wise son\u2019s question.<\/span><\/p>\n

He\u2019s not excluding himself \u2014 he\u2019s recognizing that Torah comes <\/span>through his mother and father.<\/b><\/p>\n

That is wisdom.<\/span><\/p>\n

As it says in Ethics of our Father<\/span><\/p>\n

\u05d0\u05d9\u05d6\u05d4 \u05d4\u05d5\u05d0 \u05d7\u05db\u05dd \u05d4\u05dc\u05d5\u05de\u05d3 \u05de\u05db\u05dc \u05d0\u05d3\u05dd<\/span><\/p>\n

Who is the wise person? Someone who he learns from all people<\/span><\/p>\n

But what if we\u2019re not great scholars?<\/span>
\n<\/span>What if we don\u2019t know how to learn or explain?<\/span>
\n<\/span>Can we still be that link?<\/span><\/p>\n

Yes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks told a story about his father, <\/span>Louis Sacks<\/b>, a simple Jewish man from London\u2019s East End.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0He had no formal Jewish education, but when young Jonathan asked hard questions, he said:<\/span><\/p>\n

“I don\u2019t know the answers. But one day, you\u2019ll learn what I couldn\u2019t \u2014 and then you\u2019ll teach me.”<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Louis Sacks wasn\u2019t able to\u00a0 teach complex ideas and novel insights of Torah.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He taught love, validation, and faith.<\/span><\/p>\n

Faith in his son, in Torah, and (lehavdil) G-d Almighty<\/span><\/p>\n

And that was enough.<\/span><\/p>\n

Because being part of the Mesorah doesn\u2019t require being perfect.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s what the wise child sees \u2014 and that\u2019s what every one of us can pass on.<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At first glance, the wise son in the Haggadah sounds a lot like the wicked son. The wicked son asks: \u05de\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d4\u05b8\u05e2\u05b2\u05d1\u05d5\u05b9\u05d3\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d4\u05b7\u05d6\u05b9\u05bc\u05d0\u05ea \u05dc\u05b8\u05db\u05b6\u05dd? “What is this service to you?” He separates himself from the community \u2014 and from the tradition. But then the wise son says: \u05de\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d4\u05b8\u05e2\u05b5\u05d3\u05d5\u05b9\u05ea \u05d5\u05b0\u05d4\u05b7\u05d7\u05bb\u05e7\u05b4\u05bc\u05d9\u05dd \u05d5\u05b0\u05d4\u05b7\u05de\u05b4\u05bc\u05e9\u05b0\u05c1\u05e4\u05b8\u05bc\u05d8\u05b4\u05d9\u05dd \u05d0\u05b2\u05e9\u05b6\u05c1\u05e8 \u05e6\u05b4\u05d5\u05b8\u05bc\u05d4 \u05d4’ \u05d0\u05b1\u05dc\u05b9\u05e7\u05b5\u05d9\u05e0\u05d5\u05bc […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":133095,"featured_media":57622,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_cloudinary_featured_overwrite":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[350],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-57619","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-passover"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat Makes the Wise Son Truly Wise? - Jewish Holidays<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ou.org\/holidays\/what-makes-the-wise-son-truly-wise\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Makes the Wise Son Truly Wise? - Jewish Holidays\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"At first glance, the wise son in the Haggadah sounds a lot like the wicked son. The wicked son asks: \u05de\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d4\u05b8\u05e2\u05b2\u05d1\u05d5\u05b9\u05d3\u05b8\u05d4 \u05d4\u05b7\u05d6\u05b9\u05bc\u05d0\u05ea \u05dc\u05b8\u05db\u05b6\u05dd? “What is this service to you?” He separates himself from the community \u2014 and from the tradition. 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