The Mysterious Sephardic Educator

Sometime during the 13th Century, in a private study in Barcelona, an anonymous author sat and composed Sefer Ha-Chinuch – The Book of Education. This systematic study of the Torah’s 613 commandments was written as a gift from a father to his son. In his introduction, the mysterious Sephardic educator – who chose to remain anonymous –  lovingly states that he wrote this book “to inspire the heart of my son with an accounting of the Torah’s mitzvot.” 

Humility, education and love, all wrapped up in one. 

Humility. Imagine taking upon the daunting task of writing a book explaining every commandment in the Torah, and when it’s ready to go to print, the publisher asks “We’d like to make sure to spell your name properly on the cover,” and your response is “that’s OK, leave it off. Keep it anonymous.” Humility.

Education. As parents, what is the classic “Jewish gift” we give to our children? It’s tempting to look at the newest iphone or the latest model of Tesla, but these have very limited life spans. They are fun and cool, but they are here today and gone quicker than Apple or Tesla can say “New Model.” The gift of education – reading with our kids, teaching them proper values, sending them to the best schools, deepening their Jewish identity through Torah study and trips to Israel – these are gifts that last a lifetime. Sefer Ha-Chinuch – “The Book of Education” – written as a gift from a father to his son – has been around much longer than any “high tech” gadgets. Gifts that enlighten, gifts that open our kid’s minds. Education.

Love. The mysterious author set out to “inspire the heart” of his son by teaching him the “shoresh” – “source” – for each mitzvah. This week we read about the moment when we heard “Ten Utterances” – Aseret Hadibrot – at Mount Sinai. God spoke ten of the Torah’s 613 commandments directly to us. One of these ten is “Honor your father and mother.” In explaining this commandment to his son, the Sefer Ha-Chinuch says: “It is fitting for a person to acknowledge and return kindness to people who were good to him. One should take to heart that a father and mother are the cause of one’s being in the world, and they worked hard in raising their child.” 

Working hard for raising our children – nurturing them, earning a living, providing for them, and – in the words of our mysterious author – to “inspire their hearts.” How do we “inspire their hearts”? By doing what he did. Each of us, in our own unique way, can “write” our own “Book of Education” for our children. Love.

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Daniel Bouskila is the international director of the Sephardic Educational Center.