Feast of Sukkot in Jaffa and Jerusalem

The Feast of Sukkot, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles, is a joyous and significant festival in the Jewish calendar. For our Hebrew Speaking Catholic Communities, Sukkot holds a profound meaning, intertwining the rich traditions of our Jewish heritage with our Catholic faith. This festival, which commemorates the Israelites’ journey through the desert and God’s provision, invites us to reflect on themes of gratitude, trust in divine providence, and the importance of community. As we gather in our sukkahs, we celebrate not only our historical roots but also the enduring presence of God in our lives today.

Feast of Sukkot in Jaffa

This year we, members of the Jaffa community, also moved our weekly meeting place to the "temporary apartment" for the Sukkot holiday. This is the first year in which we get to celebrate the holiday in a practical way and feel its meaning "in our flesh". The sukkah, by the way, was built "properly", under the sky, with a thatch made of the grain of the earth and three joined sides. As we know, tradition gives the Sukkots that the Israelites built in the desert an important educational value that comes to teach us a lesson in faith:

You shall dwell in booths for seven days; every native-born Israelite shall dwell in booths, that your descendants may realize that, when I led the Israelites out of the land of Egypt, I made them dwell in booths. I, the Lord, am your God (Leviticus 23:42-43).

The Sukkots of the Israelites tell of the faith that was in their hearts, and that was expressed in the confidence they had to follow God on the difficult and fraught path:

Go, cry out this message for Jerusalem to hear! I remember the devotion[b] of your youth, how you loved me as a bride, Following me in the wilderness, in a land unsown (Jeremiah 2:2).

Going out into the desert and sleeping in temporary structures made of branches and sheets requires the person first of all to leave his stable comfort zone, the house on its walls and its equipped rooms (yes, Egypt was also a "comfort zone" for the Israelites). This departure requires a sacrifice from the person, and this is exactly what indicates faith.

This is actually also the sacrifice that Jesus constantly demands from his disciples who follow him. What does he ask of each of them if not to get out of the comfortable habits of his life in order to be free to devote them to him?

And whoever did so, he is guaranteed grace from God and also hope, as Paul's words to Romans: Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access [by faith] to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in hope of the glory of God (Romans 5:1).

How symbolic is it then that immediately after this Sukkot holiday we begin the days of great anticipation with the sign of hope. Upon entering the Sukkah, we received the brochures (issued on behalf of the Vicariate) in which the Pope's exhortation "Hope does not fail" is quoted.

And it is true that hope is present in this holiday not only on a personal level but also on a social and even universal level. The holiday falls at a time when one begins to look forward to the rains, an expectation that most of all expresses the human eyes fixed on the source of one's life.

Wishing you a fruitful and good year, a year of peace and brotherhood, faith and hope.

Feast of Sukkot in Jerusalem

This year the Sukkah in Jerusalem Community was built by some members of the community with the help of Salesian students that came invited by fr. Benny.

The first dinner was celebrated together with the sisters from St. Joseph Congregation. The food brought by various participants showed the internationality of Israeli food: there were among others: Russian plov, Yiddish blintzes, Italian pasta and Iranian salads. After the meal fr. Piotr proposed a game: six teams were to count the seeds in the pomegranate fruits. The team that had the fruit with the number of seeds closest to 613 was the winner. The pomegranate is said to have 613 seeds representing the 613 commandments of the Torah, but it is a misconception (according to Wikipedia: The number of seeds in a pomegranate can vary from 200 to about 1,400). There is no clear source for this claim, although it is used as a metaphor in the Talmud for numerous good deeds.

Another opportunity to spend time and eat in the Sukkah was an evening of barbeque.

It was a wonderful opportunity to meet and share life in our Sukkah.

We had chicken wings (roasted by Danielle), sweets, and delightful Sukkot music (with sing-alongs).

The fact that some of our young people were even able to come directly from their military bases in Haifa and Tel Aviv was beautiful.

Especially in the current situation, there was big joy to laugh, sing, pray, and connect together.