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RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL:SUKKOTH:USHPIZIN:Simchat Bait ha Sho'eva
SELECTED READINGS:
LEVITICUS 22:26-23:44
NUMBERS 29:12-16
ZECHARIAH 14:1-21
I KINGS 8:2-21
RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL
"Little Houses Made of Ticky-Tacky"
SYNOPTIC ABSTRACT:
This Shabbat we begin the celebration of Sukkoth, the feast of booths.
The special readings from Numbers and Leviticus give the laws of the
holiday. The chapter in Kings tells us how King Solomon celebrated
Sukkoth, while the chapter in Zechariah uses the "booth" as an analogy
to God's rescuing and sheltering us from warring neighbors. To read more
about this holiday and why we are commanded to spend seven days in huts
made of "ticky- tacky," please read on.
The Torah in Leviticus 23:39 says, "on the fifteenth of the seventh
month, when you gather in the crop of the land, you shall celebrate God's
festival for a seven day period: the first day is a rest day and the
eighth day is a rest day. You shall take for yourselves on the first
day, a fruit of a beautiful tree, the branches of date palms, twigs of a
plaited tree, and brook willows, and you shall rejoice before your God
for a seven day period...it is an eternal decree. You shall dwell in
booths for a seven day period; every native in Israel, shall dwell in
booths. So that your generations will know that I caused the children of
Israel to dwell in booths when I took them from the land of Egypt..."
As we can read in the above, traditionally we celebrate Sukkoth to be
reminded of how God provided shelter for us during our 40 years of
wandering in the wilderness. Sukkoth is the time to rejoice in our well
being and to give thanks to God. It is sometimes called the "Jewish
Thanksgiving." Some historians have written that the Pilgrim fathers of
our United States of America fashioned their first Thanksgiving feast
after this Biblical holiday. Sukkoth is also called "chag ha asif" (the
harvest festival). But it is the only holiday called "ziman
simchatanu"(the time of our joy). The summer's produce is gathered, so
therefore we know we can physically go on eating and living. The High
Holy days are over, and we know that our lives, traditionally speaking,
have been granted to us for another year by God.
The Midrash and Talmud, as we have seen with all holidays described in
short verses in the Torah, expand the rules. Most important to them, the
rabbis write pages on how to construct a sukkah. They discuss the minimal
number of walls, the height and thickness of the walls, the construction
of the roof, and the materials to be used. They determine that this
unspecified "fruit from a beautiful tree" must be a citron ("etrog" in
Hebrew). This is a lemon-like fruit. They say that the four species
mentioned symbolize the unity of us as individuals. The etrog symbolizes
the heart. The lulav (palm branch) is the spine. The hadasim (myrtle
leaves) are the eyes. The aravot (willow branches) are the lips. When we
hold all four together, we are reminded that all parts of us must be
integrated to lead ethical lives.
The Midrash gives another lesson. It says that the etrog, which tastes
and smells pleasant, symbolizes one who studies and does good deeds. The
lulav, whose fruit, the date, tastes good but has no aroma, is like one
who studies but does not do good deeds. The myrtle, which has no taste
but smells good, is like one who does not study but does good deeds. The
willow has neither taste nor smell. It symbolizes one who does neither
study or good deeds. The Midrash teaches that we hold these all together
to remember that everyone is beloved by God and that a loving community
is made up all of sorts of people.
When you are physically in a sukkah at night and your body lacks the
comforts you are used to inside your home, it is very easy to ask what
the crucial lesson is of being told to leave the security and protection
of our homes and go into this hut . The Talmud Bavli in Tractate Sukkah 11B
says that these booths serve to remind us of two things: either the
temporary dwellings in which we lived in the desert, or the Clouds of
Glory that protected us in the desert. By building flimsy booths covered
with roofs that one can see through made with "schach ," we are reminded
of the fragility of our existence and how lucky we are to have shelter
that we sometimes take for granted. In a modern spiritual and renewal Jewish, tikun olam
(repair of the world) sense, this may be a good time of year to remember
the homeless in our cities who have no shelter and would look at our
ticky-tacky huts as luxury dwellings.
The Talmud states that the roof must be made of loose earth-grown
materials. However, the walls can be made of anything and can be
completely enclosing. Rabbi Samson Hirsch, of 19th-century Germany, says
that even though a rich man's walls may be built with metal and the poor
man's wall built with old wooden boards, they are both subject to the
same weather from above. These booths remind us that the comfortable
walls we build for ourselves, as well as the titles and material wealth
that we collect, are all just illusionary, false securities. It takes a
lot of faith for a modern, soft suburbanite Jew to sleep in a sukkah,
fending off humidity, rain, and bugs if one lives down south, or
suffering through the autumn chills of night if one lives up north.
The Talmud also teaches that one must build a new sukkah each year. This
is to remind us that the world is constantly undergoing renewal.
Everything is always new and we should never take any condition for
granted, but learn to adapt. The schach must be porous so that one can
see the stars through it. But it has to be more unporous than porous.
This is so that one does not clearly look at the constellations (mozel)
and think that luck (as in mozel tov,commonly used Hebrew-Yiddish
expression for good luck) will see him through these seven nights.
Another custom is to welcome a special guest from our past on each night
of Sukkoth. We are not only taught that in the Midrash that the Divine
Presence, the Shechinah, is dwelling with us, but that She comes with
seven "faithful shepherds." These ushpizin (Aramaic for guests) come
visit us, one each night, we are traditionally taught. Who are they? They
are Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, and David. Each one of
these men left the comforts of their surroundings and lived in temporary
shelters. Kaballistically, each guest represents a character trait of God
on the "sefirot" tree. For example, Abraham is chesed (loving kindness),
Isaac is gevurah (spiritual strength), and Jacob is tiferet (spiritual
glory). For spiritual Jews, this is a significant custom as it reminds us of
the attributes we should try to emulate to become better partners with
God in Tikun Olam (repair of the world). Besides these spiritual guests,
it is customary to invite a different human guest to your sukkah each
night.
The rabbis in Tractate Avodah Zarah talk of living in a sukkah for a week
as being the ultimate test for modern man to show his faith in God. They
tell of the time of the "final redemption" when idol worshippers will
say, "Please, God, do not send us to Hell. If we were given the Torah, we
would have accepted it also!" The rabbis say that God makes a deal with
them. He says He will give them just one of the 613 commandments He gave
the Jews. If they fulfill this one mitzvah, they will enter "olam
haba"(the world to come). They are told to live in a sukkah for a week.
The Talmud says that when the noon sun beats through the schach, the idol
worshippers will "kick down the walls and flee in disgust." This story
is mentioned to help those of us modern Jews who see no benefit to the
sukkah mitzvoth to use it as a way of appreciating God's bounty and
gaining some insight into Jewish spirituality, even if it is for one
outside meal during the week's holiday.
Verse 23:37 of Leviticus mentions doing "a feast offering and its
libation." During the Temple time, a unique offering was brought to the
altar during Sukkoth. Each morning a water libation was poured over the
altar. This pouring of water was called "nisuch hamayim ." It was
celebrated with much fanfare. Masses of people would gather and dance,
sing, perform and throw precious water on each other. Special mammoth
lamps were lit so that the party could go on all night. These lamps were
great golden menorahs set on bases fifty yards high. Each menorah had
four branches which terminated in huge cups filled with oil. Four ladders
were placed against each menorah and four young priests continually
ascended these ladders to keep oil in the cups and to keep the fires
burning. The wicks were made from worn garments of the priests. The
Talmud records that all of Jerusalem was lit up by these lamps.
This celebration was done every night of Sukkoth except for Shabbat and the
first night. The rabbis wrote in Tractate Sukkoth 51A,"whoever did not see
this celebration never saw a celebration." This week-long party was known
as "Simchat Bait ha Sho'eva " (the Rejoicing of the House of the Drawing).
The prophet Amos (5:21-27) writes that he visited the Temple during
Sukkoth and the revelry that he saw made such an unfavorable impression
upon him he condemned the Temple and the entire ritual. Hosea (9:01),
another prophet, also protested the bacchanalia atmosphere. Isaiah
(28:7-8) tells us that even the priests were drunk in the sanctuary. He
writes that "they are confused because of wine, they stagger because of
strong drink." And these were the Levites and Kohanim! I leave it to the
reader's imagination to think of how the other tribes' members were
misbehaving.
Water was, and still is, a precious commodity in the Middle East. Just as
the Talmud Bavli says we are judged on Rosh Hashanah, it says the world is
judged as well (Tractate Rosh Hashanah 16A). We bring a water-offering to
ask God to give us rain for our crops. However, since we are living in
booths, it is considered a curse by God if it rains during Sukkoth
(Tractate Sukkoth 28B). During the harvest season, some farmers do
better than others. Even though Yom Kippur is only a week before Sukkoth,
some people will think they are better than others based on their wealth.
The water ceremony reminds us that we are all dependent on the same basic
things to sustain life: water, food, and shelter.
As we learn when we hold the four species, we are all interconnected and all dependent on the
same things. Even our garments that some use to separate classes were
useless during these ceremonies. People became soaking wet and frankly
their garments became see-through. As many of us know from our days in a
public high school locker room, it is very hard to act haughty when one
is naked. This is the only time the Talmud mentions that men and women
celebrated separately because of diaphanous clothing.
Rabbi Michael Cohen compares Yom Kippur with Sukkoth. He says Sukkoth
counterbalances Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur is heavy and serious. Sukkoth is
light and joyous. Yom Kippur takes place on the inside. Sukkoth takes
place on the outside. We fast on Yom Kippur and on Sukkoth we feast. On
Yom Kippur we pray with our minds. On Sukkoth we build with our bodies.
On Yom Kippur we hold a book in our hands. On Sukkoth we hold a lulav and
etrog in our hands. On Yom Kippur we are serious and reflective. On
Sukkoth we are joyful.
Isaac Luria, the 16-century Kabbalist, instructed his students that their
cultivation of joy is a prerequisite for attaining mystical illumination.
When Jews come to services only on Yom Kippur or Rosh Hashanah, they are
missing out on the joys of Judaism. Both holidays are necessary, just as
both work and play are needed in a balanced life. Sukkoth is a time of
rejoicing and being thankful for the blessings we have. As we spend time
in our booths, let us think of ways we can liberate those who are
permanently dwelling in huts, or less. The best way of saying thank you
for God's bounty is to share it with others. This is how, in the words of
the prophet Zechariah in this week's Haftarah, we can fulfill his wish of
"And the Lord shall be King over all the earth, on that day shall the
Lord be One, and his Name One"(Zech. 14:09).
Happy Sukkoth!
Shabbat Shalom,
RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL
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