Parashat Bo - It’s all about the Children:
Parashat Bo recounts the last of the ten plagues, the celebration of Pesach and the dramatic departure of the Nation of Israel from the land of Egypt.
And it also happens to be my Bar Mitzvah Parasha.
The plagues, of course, were wonders of wonders, miracles of miracles and deserve our attention.
But I would like to focus on some seemingly minor points or lessons in the Parasha.
The Parasha writes about the laws of Pesach by stating:
וְהָיָָ֕ה כִּֽי־יאֹמְר֥ ו אֲלֵי כֶ֖ ם בְנֵי כֶ֑ם מָָ֛ה הָעֲבֹדָ֥ה הַזֶ֖אֹת לָ כִּֽם ׃
וַאֲמַרְ ת ם זִּֽבַח־ פסַח ה֜וא לִַּֽיהֹוָָ֗ה אֲ שֶׁ֣ ר פָָּ֠סַָּ֠ ח עַל־בָתֵֵּ֤י בְנִֵּֽי־ ישְרָאֵ ל בְ מצְרַַ֔ ים בְ ׇ נגְפ֥ ו את־ מצְרֶַ֖ ים וְ את־בָתֵֶׁ֣ינו
ה צֶ֑יל וַ יקֹ֥ ד הָעֶָ֖ ם וַ יִּֽשְתַחֲִּֽוו ׃
And it will come to a time that your children shall ask you, “What do you mean by this service”?
You shall say, “It is the Pesach sacrifice to Hashem, for He passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt when killing the Egyptians but saved our houses”. Those assembled then bowed in respect.
To put this into perspective, Hashem has just finished, in the previous Pesukim, reiterating that the Nation shall continue the act of sacrificing a Korban Pesach as a yearly observance of Yeziyat Mitzrayim.
But in the next Pasuk, you would think that the laws of the Korban would be outlined.
But no, rather than enumerating the laws of the Korban, the Torah outlines a scenario of questions and answers- a subtle but important reference to Jewish Education.
So important is this point that the Parasha interrupts the story at hand and focuses on a possible conversation between Parents and Children. Questions and answers….
The Parasha is clearly pointing out that Hashem is found not only in the fury of our story but, we are reminded that He is found in the relationship between Parents and Child.
The task of educating our future generations is one of the most fundamental tenets of Judaism, so much so that is repeated twice daily in the Kereat Shema-
וְשִׁנַּנְתָָּ֣ם לְבָנֶֶ֔יךָ וְדִׁבַּרְתָָּ֖ בָָּ֑ם בְשִׁבְתְךָָ֤ בְבֵיתֶֶ֙ךֶָ֙ וּבְלֶכְתְךָָּ֣ בַּדֶֶ֔רֶךְ וּּֽבְשׇׁכְבְךָָּ֖ וּבְקוּמֶּֽךָ׃
You are to teach them to your children, and you are to discuss with them, when you sit at home, and when you journey on the road, and when you go to sleep, and when you rise.
There is never a time that educating, mentoring and guiding our children is to be forgotten.
Rabbi Jonathon Sacks points out an interesting relationship between Yeziyat Mizrayim and the role of Education.
He points out how Moshe, even before the Nation leaves Egypt, instructs the people to always teach and discuss their exodus with future generations, a profound understanding of their freedom. The lesson is that it is not difficult to attain liberty or freedom, but to sustain this freedom is the goal. Forget it and you lose it.
Freedom is not falling to our random urges but to be able to make choices in our lives.
Freedom, he continues, needs three components to strive: Parenthood, Education and Memory.
It is incumbent upon all Parents to teach and listen to their children. To explain that freedom is not just about the physical exodus but about having the choice to make decisions. And our role, as Parents, is to direct those decisions to help that child be the person that they are meant to be.
Freedom is highlighted in the importance of having the freedom to ask a question.
Asking questions enables a child to be part of the process of learning.
As Jews we believe that to defend a country you need an army, but to defend a civilization, like the Jewish legacy, you need education. Freedom is lost when it is taken for granted.
Unless parents’ hand over their memories and ideals to the next generation – the story of how they won their freedom and the battles they had to fight along the way – the journey falters and we lose our way.
Asking questions and seeking answers will bolster the meaning of our past while enlightening the march to the future.
May we all have the Zechoot to see Nachat from all our children and to teach them today, so that their choices will merit them as the leaders of tomorrow.