Be the Sixth Child - Pesach 5786 (2)
We are in the Monsey NY area with our daughter Menucha Klyne and her husband Rabbi Mendy, who had a son BH the day before Pesach, so I had the opportunity to sit back and listen to the local Rabbi speak on Yomtov. (I am indebted to Rabbi Zalman and Devorah who are so ably leading Chabad Palo Alto.) Rabbi Yosef Ives is from Stamford Hill London where I grew up. He gave a fascinating talk about the importance of the Four Sons in the Haggadah and their relevance to us. We face many challenges as Jews, in general and in living our lives according to Torah and living up to our purpose and mission. The child who “doesn’t know to ask” is the Jew who is totally not involved. He knows nothing about his Jewish identity and is clueless about any issues with Jewish life. The simple child who says “what’s this” recognizes the challenges but has no idea how to deal with it and throws up his hands and gives up. The Rasha who says “what is this service to YOU” is t...