Our parasha, Bo, ends with one of the most important topics in Judaism! The transmission of knowledge in the family. The transmission of tradition from father to son, an action that occurs on the night of the Seder in every Jewish home.
“And you shall tell your son on that day” – “When your son will ask you tomorrow, ‘What is this?’ and you shall tell him, ‘God redeemed us from Egypt, from the house of slaves.’”
The power of speech is not an accidental ability; it has a purpose, a function. The ability to speak, to convey a message, to tell stories, is an ability that helps us preserve memory.
This matter is not self-evident, especially in the age of electronic communication, which replaces speech. Many of us – are communicating through our fingers, but what about the tone of speech? What about its rhythm? What about the tone of voice?
A voice can express anger that a thousand printed exclamation marks would not express. A voice can express sadness and embarrassment that even if we type three periods at the end of every electronic sentence, we would not be able to convey. And a voice can create intimacy, closeness: “And you shall tell your son”. A man sits with his family. A grandmother sits with her grandson. An aunt is talking with her niece. A son listens to his father’s voice. And they speak. They create a world and a whole with their words, like God who also created the world, with His speech.
The first duty of parents is “And you shall tell your son”. There is no right to educate. There is an obligation to educate. If we are not educating, we will raise people who are culturally and morally mute.
The Passover Haggadah, which says “And you shall tell your son,” also teaches us that there are different ways to speak to our sons. There are different types of boys and girls, and it is our duty to find the way to everyone’s heart, even to the heart of the wicked, even to the heart of the one who does not know how to ask. As it is said in Proverbs: “Train up a boy according to his way.”
Speech, conversation with the next generation, is a duty. They express the parents’ recognition of the right they were given to pass the story on, a right that deserves to be respected and cherished.
Through speech, conversation, a connection is created. A connection is created between a person and a friend, communication is created between the generation of parents, grandparents, and the generation of sons and daughters. God taught us that speech has a creative power, a real creative power. We speak to HIM and pray that He will hear our voice, and when we raise our heads from the siddur – what voice do we have? What awareness do we have of the voice that comes out of our mouths, and of the words that are spoken?
The voice, the words, create the nature of the relationship, they determine the communication that will exist between us and our son or daughter, they inspire us with motivation or instill despair in us. They have a healthy capacity. Let us not underestimate them.
But in the commandment “And you shall tell your son” there is more than that, more than words or voice. There is a commandment, first of all, to speak to our sons and daughters.
We are ashamed to raise our voices and to sing. We are afraid to start a conversation that might be difficult. We prefer to “not speak so as not to get into trouble.” We remain silent, because perhaps what we say will not sound wise enough, or impressive enough, or witty enough.
The commandment “And you shall tell your son” calls us to overcome the embarrassment, the resounding silences, the barriers. Simply to speak.
When we sit down, take time, tell the historical story of the Exodus from Egypt, tell a personal story too. A story that builds a connection between us and our descendants.
We emerge from exile to redemption. From the distance, from the desolation of muteness and silence, into the infinite space of words, words spoken aloud.
This is our own little Exodus from Egypt. Not tomorrow, not later, but as it is written in the parasha “On this very day.”
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Refael Cohen