Timeless Torah

Four sons implies four brothers. Flesh and blood sharing a common heritage, background, and even the same parents. Yet they are all so very different. One of them turns out wise, the other wicked, one simple, and one who can’t even ask. The author of the Haggadah has no further to look thanour weekly Torah portion to see the individuality of each child and the chasm that separates them.

The notoriously wicked son is described in this manner: “It shall come to pass, when your children will say to you, ‘What is this service you do?’ And you shall answer, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to G-d, who passed over the houses of the Children of Isarel in Gypt when he struck the Egyptians, sparing our homes.”

At first glance, this passage doesn’t sound particularly wicked. Instead, what it portrays is an intelligent chilld coming face to face with a new, puzzling religious ritual, and responding in a normal fashion - he asks a question.

In fact, at the opposite end of the spectrum, the wise son is represented by the Torah in a remarkably similiar way: “When your child asks you tomorrow, ‘What mean the testimonies...which the L-rd, our
G-d has commanded you?’”

Although there are a variety of answers offered by the commentaries, each one analyzing the diferent nuances of each sons’ words which uncover their particular personalities, there is one specific approach I would like to share.

The wise and wicked son contrast each other, not because of what they say, but how they say it. Examine the precise phraseology used by the Torah, and ypu will note that while the wise son “asks”, the wicked one “says”. In other words, he has no sincere query. His question is rhetorical, since he has already made up his mind. So while the wise son genuinely wants to know, the evil one feels he is already privy to all the answers.

And yet these two are part of the same family. Two sons and two brothers inextricably connnected by more than just common parentage or background - but by the Torah itself. The mere fact that they all hold a place in the Torah ultimately means that the Torah reserves their status as an intrinsic part of the family. They themselves might not be aware of the fact. The might even deny the connection. But it is there. It is why they are all G-d’s sons and we are all brothers.