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Answering the Questions of Future Generations

TANAKH

Explaining the meaning and significance of God's commandments to future generations is crucial for maintaining religious continuity and understanding. In Deuteronomy, Moses emphasizes the importance of parental instruction in religious education, particularly in explaining the historical and theological basis of the commandments.

When, in time to come, your children ask you, “What mean the decrees, laws, and rules that our God יהוה has enjoined upon you?”

Deuteronomy 6:20

The Four Questions

MISHNAH

The emphasis on questioning during the Passover Seder highlights the importance of teaching the story of the Exodus to the next generation. Tractate Pesachim of the Mishnah, the first codification of Jewish law from the early third-century land of Israel, outlines the tradition of the son asking the father about the enigmatic ritual practices of Passover evening.

The attendants poured the second cup for the leader of the seder, and here the son asks his father the questions about the differences between Passover night and a regular night. And if the son does not have the intelligence to ask questions on his own, his father teaches him the questions. The mishna lists the questions: Why is this night different from all other nights? As on all other nights we eat leavened bread and matza as preferred; on this night all our bread is matza…

Mishnah Pesachim 10:4

The Dialogues of Rabbi Yehudah and Antoninus

REFERENCE

The intellectual exchanges between Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi and Antoninus offer a window into the intersection of Jewish and Greco-Roman thought. This text captures the dynamic dialogues where Antoninus, likely the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, actively questions and sometimes corrects Rabbi Yehudah's explanations.

Antoninus often engaged Rabbi in philosophic and religious discussions during which he asked questions such as: “Whence does man derive his soul?” or “Since when does evil nature rule humanity?” Ofttimes he was not satisfied with the replies of Rabbi Jehudah and offered his own explanations which Rabbi admitted to be correct.

The Jewish Spiritual Heroes, Volume I; The Creators of the Mishna, Rabbi Jehudah the Nasi 48

Does God Ask Questions?

SECOND TEMPLE

If God is omniscient, why does the biblical text posit that God asks questions? Philo of Alexandria, a first-century Jewish philosopher, explores the theological implications of God's question to Cain in the story of Cain and Abel.

[57] I think that I have now said enough as to those who seem to do good or evil to others. For we have found that it is to themselves that they do the one or the other. Let us investigate what follows. A question is put thus, “Where is Abel thy brother?” (Gen. 4:9). To this question Cain replies, “I know not. Am I my brother’s keeper?” (ibid.). This requires us to consider the point, whether God can strictly be said to ask a question. For he that makes an inquiry or asks a question does so in regard to matters about which he is ignorant, looking for an answer…

That the Worse is wont to Attack the Better 17:1

The Courage to Ask

MUSAR

Overcoming shame and embarrassment is crucial in the pursuit of knowledge and fulfilling commandments. The 15th-century ethical work, Orchot Tzadikim, emphasizes the importance of asking questions and seeking understanding, regardless of the perceived triviality or magnitude of the matter.

For it is clear that the servant of a king will not abandon the king's command though he bears much shame from everyone who may laugh at him for performing that which his king commanded him. And he who cannot bear the shame in performing the precept and is ashamed to fulfill the command of God — and thus forsakes the path of good out of fear of shame — this kind of shame is very evil. And thus, if he is ashamed to admit the truth, this too is an evil disease. And thus, if he is too shy to rebuke people and command them to do good…

Orchot Tzadikim 3:22

Contemplating the Divine

KABBALAH

The Jewish mystical tradition urges us to contemplate the divine works and the mystery of creation, prompting us to look upward and inquire about the Creator. The Zohar, a foundational work of Jewish mysticism, explores the wonder and awe that emerges from contemplating the created world.

No. The true meaning of the passage is that whoever desires to reflect on and to obtain a knowledge of the works of the Holy One, blessed be He, let him lift his eyes upwards and gaze on the myriads of the hosts and legions of existences there, each different from the other, each mightier than the other. Then will he, while gazing, ask, “Who created these?” Indeed, as has already been expounded elsewhere, “Who created these?” amounts to saying that the whole of creation springs from a region that remains an everlasting “Who?” (Mi?), in that it remains undisclosed.

Zohar, Pekudei 22:214

The Search for Meaning

TANAKH

The biblical book of Ecclesiastes grapples with the profound question of what value there is in human life. This ancient text, attributed to a son of King David, explores the meaning of life, futility, and purpose, often suggesting that "all is vanity."

For what does a man get for all the toiling and worrying he does under the sun?

Ecclesiastes 2:22

Consulting for Halakhic Guidance

TALMUD

The process of seeking halakhic clarification often involves consulting multiple teachers and exploring related questions to derive a ruling. In the Talmudic tractate Bava Metzia, Ravin seeks guidance from his teachers in Eretz Yisrael about the obligation to contribute financially to Temple maintenance.

The Gemara suggests: Come and hear a proof, as Ravin sent a message in his letter from Eretz Yisrael: I asked all my teachers concerning this matter, but they did not tell me anything. But there was this question concerning a similar matter that I heard them discuss: With regard to one who says: It is incumbent upon me to bring one hundred dinars for the Temple maintenance, what is the halakha as to whether they make arrangements for him? Although an arrangement is explicitly taught only with regard to the specific…

Bava Metzia 114a:3

Ensuring Justice Through Rigorous Questioning

HALAKHAH

The accuracy and reliability of testimony in Jewish courts are paramount, and the process of questioning witnesses is meticulously structured to ensure justice. In his 12th-century comprehensive code of Jewish law, Mishneh Torah, Rambam outlines the rigorous standards and specific questions required for questioning witnesses in a judicial context.

It is a positive commandment to question the witness and to interrogate them, asking many questions and weighing their replies exactingly. They should divert their attention from one matter to another while questioning them, so that they will refrain from speaking or retract their testimony if there appear to be flaws in it, as Deuteronomy 13:15 states: "And you shall inquire and research thoroughly."
The judges must show extreme care when questioning the witnesses, lest from their questions the witnesses learn to lie…

Mishneh Torah, Testimony 1:4

Issachar Ber Ryback, Deux Mondes (Two Worlds). 1935

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