Oh yes, the High Holy Days are full on in Israel right now. That’ll mean expensive hotels and flights, lots of closed shops and businesses at least one day a week and the kids on holiday yet again. A couple of weeks ago it was the Jewish New Year, last Monday Yom Kippur, and now it’s Sukkot, otherwise known as the Feast of the Tabernacles.
Sukkot (some will spell it Succot) is a unique holiday in which you’ll see a ton of carefully crafted, er, huts – which are known as sukkas. They might look a little ramshackle but these huts are designed to remind all Jews that they should spend a week living in a sukka to remember how their ancestors lived in huts as they made the 40 year trek across the desert from Egypt and slavery to freedom in the Promised Land.
As God put it to Moses:
You shall live in booths seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths, in order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt
And in case you were wondering, these sukkas are not designed to be rain-proof!
Oh yes, some people might sleep in them, others host dinner parties and friends in theirs, but if you get an invite to a meal in a sukka, watch out for the leaky roof! According to Jewish law, a legit sukka has to have a roof that enables its occupants to see the stars above and to feel the rain (if it comes, which it usually doesn’t at this time of year). A little protection is good, but let’s not make it impenetrable.
And who’s Tabernacles are we feasting on? Well, a Tabernacle is actually the mobile dwelling place of the holy spirit that accompanied the Jews through their desert trek from Egypt before finally ending up in the First Temple in Jerusalem. And there I was thinking it was another delicious Israeli food…
If you’re really lucky, you might even get to see some more observant Jews shaking their lulavs (part of the Four Species, an important element of the holiday for the more religious) at you. The video below shows you how to shake that lulav!
Sukkot this year started last night (Friday) and will last 7 days. Most businesses will be open during the week, though some might be operating half-days. Schools are out, so watch out for the kids!