4 Seder Cups & 1 Yiddishe Cup

(Insights for Passover)

THE 4 CUPS OF… MILK?

What does it mean for a person to possess a “Yiddishe Cup” (a “Jewish head” or “Jewish way of thinking” – which, by the way, does not necessarily imply that every Jew thinks this way or that Jews have a complete monopoly on thinking this way!)? The following story on the four Seder cups can fill us up with a truly liberating lesson on this always timely topic.

A woman once approached the Rabbi of the city of Brisk, Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, with a strange question. She wanted to know whether one could use milk instead of wine for the four cups of the Seder, since she simply couldn’t afford the wine. He responded by giving her a large amount of money. Asked the Rabbi’s wife, “I understand you gave her money because she can’t afford the wine, but why so much?” The Rabbi explained, “If she wants to drink milk at the Seder, it is obvious she has no meat for Pesach” (since there is a Rabbinic prohibition against eating meat and milk together at the same meal). “So I gave her enough to buy wine and meat for the entire holiday.”

THE WISE SON & “WARM” REASONING

In my humble opinion, we have just read a classic story about what it means to be the Wise Son. The Rabbi in this story is known to have been a great Jewish scholar, who gained a masterful mental dexterity through his immersion in Talmudic thinking. Now the Talmud is famous – among many other things – for beckoning its explorers to recognize subtleties and fine distinctions, engage in solid logical deductions, and attune themselves not only to what is being said but even to what is not being said.

The question is, when people subject themselves to careful, calculated reasoning, how will that analytical power translate into human interactions? Will it lead them to coldly react to another person’s plight through a flight of philosophical fancy, or will it lead them to find resourceful ways of warming to the task?

THINKING OUTSIDE THE VOICE BOX

Our well-rounded Rabbi of Brisk has elegantly pointed us down the path that true wisdom should lead us to follow. Delving into the depths of Torah and Talmudic waters can elevate us in an infinite number of ways. But among the top priorities of its refining power is that it can teach us to hear what people are truly saying behind their words – thereby enabling the listener to discern the speaker’s true needs and respond accordingly with acts of kindness.

When wisdom is used to serve the purpose of kindness, then the primary goal of wisdom is achieved. When the mind passes its knowledge through the channels of the heart, then a primary goal of humanity is achieved. In light of these concepts, we are now equipped to address our original query: who is the one with the true “Yiddishe Cup”? The one who uses his or her chachmah for chesed (wisdom for kindness)!

Have a Wonderful & Liberating Pesach! Love, Jon & The Chevra

Text Copyright © 2009 by Jon Erlbaum and Torah.org