The Sukkot Page |
A New Sukkah Being Built at B’nai Israel in 2006!!
Our synagogue Sukkah of the past 20 years has seen better days, and is finally being laid to rest. We have purchased materials to construct a brand new Sukkah and we are planning a big Sukkah building bash/ Pizza party at B’nai Israel on October 4 at 5:00PM to help put it together in advance of our Synagogue wide Sukkah Decorating celebration. Come help build and raise the walls and s’chach (roof) of our brand new B’nai Israel Sukkah. All enthusiastic adult hands are needed!! Fun Sukkot games and activities will be provided for children while adults hammer away. Please contact Elaine Chetrit at 336-1858 to be a part of the construction team.
CELEBRATE SUKKOT!
Synaplex Sukkot |
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Celebrate Sukkot |
God’s Paintbrush: A Family Nature Walk to Celebrate Sukkot
and the Colors of Autumn Havdalah Happening |
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The B’nai Israel
Jewish Film Festival |
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As the festive Jewish holiday of Succoth approaches, big-hearted Moshe Bellanga, (Shuli Rand) a devoutly religious man, and his wife, Malli (Mechal Bat Sheva Rand), find themselves childless, broke and unable to purchase the necessary religious objects to appropriately observe the holiday. When Moshe and Malli receive an anonymous gift of $1,000 from a local charity, they interpret it as a blessing and use it purchase the holy items and build the Succah (holiday dwelling) for their rituals. Meanwhile, just as the holiday begins, a dark secret from Moshe's past is revealed as two of his former associates escape from prison and come to Moshe's home - as they know it is considered a blessing to host guests during the holiday of Succoth and will not be turned away. The two outlaws begin to take advantage of Moshe's hospitality - drinking, smoking and playing loud music in his home, and they begin to question his new found faith and allude to his violent past. After fabricating a story to rid themselves of their unruly houseguests, Moshe and Malli eventually come to see the treatment of their less-than-holy Ushpizin as a test of love and faith. |
Ushpizin (Israel)
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SIMCHAT
TORAH CELEBRATION
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13, 6:00-7:30 p.m.
REJOICE IN THE TORAH
AT B'NAI ISRAEL!
Flagmaking - 6:00 p.m.
Design your own colorful flags and banners for the service and procession
of Torah scrolls.
Simchat Torah
Family Service - 6:30 p.m.
Dance, sing and be enveloped by the Torah as it is completely unfurled
before our eyes.
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BUILD YOUR OWN SUKKAH !!!
Make this the year to build your own home Sukkah and add yours to the dozens of home Sukkot that grace B’nai Israel backyards. Call Elaine Chetrit at 336-1858 by September 18th to order your own Sukkah kit for an 8’ by 8’ Sukkah. For a total cost of $200.00, the Sukkah kit includes all of the construction hardware, an easy to follow assembly manual and the necessary building materials which we will have delivered to your home. Just contact Elaine Chetrit (or 336-1858 x125).
Rules of the Sukkah
By Rabbi Art Gould
| You can build it very small1 You can build it very tall2 You can build it very large3 You can build it on a ship4 You can build it in an alley 6 You can build it on a wagon8 You can make the scakh of wood10 Make the scakh from leaves of tree Build your Sukkah tall or short You can build it somewhat soon If your Sukkah is well made |
You can build it very wide Build it if your name is Jim Build it if your name is Sue14 From the Sukkah you can roam You can invite some special guests You can sleep upon some rugs In the Sukkah you should sit If in the Sukkah it should rain And if it should be very cold So build a Sukkah one and all Sukkah rules are short and snappy |
© Rabbi Arthur E. Gould, 2006
- Maimonides (RMBM) Mishne Torah, Hilchot Sukkah, Chapter 4, Section 1. The minimum height of a Sukkah is 10 tepachim. A tepach is a measure of the width of the four fingers of one’s hand. My hand is 3 ¼ inches wide for a minimum Sukkah height of 32 ½ inches. The minimum allowable width is 7 tepachim by 7 tepachim. This would result in a Sukkah of 22 ¾ inches by 22 ¾ inches.
- The maximum height is 20 Amot. An Amah is the length from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger. My Amah is 15 ½ inches for a maximum height of 25 feet. Others say that 30 feet is the maximum.
- According to RMBM the Sukkah can be built to a width of several miles. Shulchan Aruch also says there is no limit on the size of the width.
- RMBM Hilchot Sukkah Chapter 4, Section 6.
- RMBM Hilchot Sukkah Chapter 4, Section 11. RMBM states that one may construct a Sukkah by wedging poles in the four corners of the roof and suspending scakh from the poles. The walls of the building underneath are considered to reach upward to the edge of the scakh.
- RMBM Hilchot Sukkah Chapter 4, Section 8-10 discusses the ins and outs of building your Sukkah in an alley or passageway
- There is a location referred to in the Talmud called Ashtarot Karnayim. According to the discussion there are two hills, with a valley in between where the Sun does not reach. Talmud Bavli, Sukkot 2a. Thanks to the miracle of the Internet, Rabbi Joshua Strulowitz (of Congregation Adath Israel in San Francisco) commented on this line, which now reads correctly. The halacha is that you can build your Sukkah in Ashtarot Karnayim, or other places where the sun does not reach the Sukkah because of artificial impediments, provided that if the impediment were removed, shade from the sun would now come through the scakh. Who is wise? One who learns from all!
- RMBM Hilchot Sukkah Chapter 4, Section 6. You can go into a Sukkah built on a wagon or a ship even on Yom Tov.
- RMBM Hilchot Sukkah Chapter 4, Section 6. OK, RMBM says a camel but dragon rhymes with wagon a lot better, don’t you agree. Anyway, RMBM says you can build your Sukkah on a wagon or in the crown of a tree, but you can’t go into it on Yom Tov. There is a general rule against riding a beast or ascending into the crown of a tree on Yom Tov.
- Chapter 5 deals with the rules for the scakh. Basically, you can use that which has grown from the ground, and is completely detached from the ground. So, for example, you cannot bend the branches of a tree over the Sukkah to form the scakh. But you can cut the branches from a tree and use them as scakh.
- This would be a violation of the rule cited in the prior footnote.
- Shulchan Aruch, Hilchot Sukkah, Perek 636, Section 1 The Sukkah should not be built sooner than 30 days before the Hag. However, if the structure is built prior to 30 days, as long as something new is added within the 30 days, the Sukkah is kosher.
- Of course it’s a well known rule that you must sit in the shade from the roof of the Sukkah and not in the shade that may be cast by the walls. It seems that this might affect the height of the walls, depending on the longitude of the location where you are building your Sukkah.
- Traditionally, women, servants and minors are patur from the Mitzvah of Sukkah. In our day we hope we know better than to read out half the Jewish people from the observance of Mitzvot. Of course, that’s just a personal opinion of the author.
- RMBM ibid Chapter 6, Section 6 explains that you should eat, drink and live in the Sukkah for the 7 days as you live in your own home. One should not even take a nap outside of the Sukkah.
- RMBM ibid, Section 10 If it rains one should go into the house. How does one know if it is raining hard enough? If sufficient raindrops fall through the scakh and into the food so that the food is spoiled – go inside!
