05/29/2026
Mazal Tov to our daughter Henya on her graduating 8th grade at the Hasten Hebrew Academy ! Enjoy Henya's Speech composed by Henya:
Almost a week ago, we celebrated the holiday of Shavuos. On Shavuos, we are commemorating the giving of the Torah. According to a Medrash, when the Jews came before Har Sinai (mount Sinai), Hashem (G-d) asked them for a guarantor to ensure that they would keep the Torah. First, they offered their fathers, but Hashem did not accept this. Then they offered the prophets, but this, too, Hashem rejected. Finally, they offered the children. Hashem replied, “Indeed these are good guarantors. For their sake I will give it to you.”
At first glance, this seems ridiculous. Would a bank accept a young child as a guarantor? And why are children better guarantors than the fathers or prophets? After all, the Torah is worth much more than any money in the world.
The first question can be answered with a story. There was once a girl named Sherry who was not very observant, but she went to a Jewish school. She left the school after fifth grade, but one lesson from her fourth grade teacher stuck with her. Her teacher who was Morah Schusterman, who happens to be my grandmother (and taught at the Hebrew Academy in Orange County in California) would often tell her students that, when they grow up and have a family, they should make sure to send their children to a Jewish school. After leaving the school, Sherry moved on, and eventually married and had kids. At this point, she and her husband David were living in Indiana. When Sherry told him that she wanted to send their kids to a Jewish school, they looked around, and found HHAI. As their children grew older and started coming home with the lessons they learned in school, Sherry and David started practicing Judaism more and more. Today, they are living a fully Jewish lifestyle in Israel. This story goes to show how much children can affect their parents.
The second question was why children are better than fathers or prophets. The answer is that Hashem wanted the Torah to be studied by everyone, which could only happen if the children were the guarantors.
First the Jews offered the fathers. They meant that when their parents grew old and had nothing to do, they would study Torah to keep busy. Hashem did not accept this since, with only old people learning, not much would be accomplished.
Next, the prophets were offered. The Hebrew word for a prophet is “navi,” which comes from “niv sefatayim,” or speech of the lips. When the Jews offered the prophets, they meant that they would hire rabbis as orators, and everyone else would be free to do as they wished. Wanting everyone to study the Torah, Hashem rejected this as well.
Finally, the Jews offered the children. They may have meant that they would study in Yeshivah when they were young, and then go on to businesses when they got older. However, Hashem knew that once the children experienced the sweetness of Torah, they would not want to leave it. In addition, like our previous story showed, children can have major impacts on their parents and cause them to learn Torah and practice Mitzvos. For these reasons, Hashem accepted the children as the guarantors, despite the intentions of the Jews.
Today, as we move on to a new stage in our life, I hope we can remember this lesson. The Torah is not something just for Rabbis or old people. It is for everyone, even–or especially–the children. Although we will be taking different paths in the future, we were all lucky enough to be the guarantors. Each of us has continued an unbroken chain from over three thousand years ago. I hope we can remember this, and when we have children of our own, we send them to a Jewish school like ours. Our actions will not just affect ourselves, but all of our descendents forever.
Wishing you a meaningful and peaceful Shabbos,
