Sukkot (first two days)

Day 1: Gandel Besen; Day 2: Caulfield Shule

Following Yom Kippur comes the festival of Sukkot, but this year the weekend of the first two days of that festival were largely dominated in Melbourne at least, by the footy grand final and the changing of the clocks for daylight savings. Each of these were major talking points in all shules – Who is going to win and why, and do we change our clocks before the festival begins or do we stay on the old time? And then, how did Collingwood win, and when does the festival actually end, on the old time or the new time? Not only were these issues discussed by the congregants, but by many rabbis too.

For festivals such as these, I often have the privilege to be invited out for meals, and I am very grateful since I don’t have my own Sukkah. As such, the shules I went to for these festive days were where my hosts go and ones I had been to previously. For the first day I went to Gandel Besen (Beit Aharon), a shule that I have long had an affinity with. It is relatively small and intimate, but not in any way claustrophobic or crammed. It always has a lovely atmosphere, where the congregants are keen to be there but it is also the kind of shule where casual chat or catch up is par for the course.

It is also one of the shules where the sermon is always thought-provoking and interesting. Not only does the rabbi talk about the portion of the week or the festival of the day, but he always relates the issues of the Torah to the modern world, which I for one greatly appreciate. On this occasion it was no different. He spoke about the four species of Sukkot and related it to the unity of the world, or the lack thereof. All the elements (ie; all four species) are required to have a whole set, but equally, all four need to connect with each other and appreciate that the others are also playing their part of the whole, which is often a sentiment missing in the world.

Once the service was over, there was a very pleasant Kiddush in the Sukkah at shule in glorious weather, and then I went to a lunch with a number of other congregants from the shule. It was such a lovely lunch in such a nice setting with a cool breeze, that we didn’t actually leave till almost 5pm!

The following day I went to another very familiar shule, one that I actually also went to for Kol Nidrei on Yom Kippur. Caulfield shule is one of the biggest and most prominent in the city, and thus for a decade or more they have been bringing out a choir from Israel for the High Holy days. Now that Yom Kippur is over, half have already departed, but five of the guys stayed on for Sukkot and the second day of the festival – which isn’t really Yom Tov for them – was their last performance. Moreover, I was going to a lunch organised by the shule, so it was a good opportunity to see the choir in action again. However, being Sunday (rather than Shabbat), the second day – like all the other weekdays of Sukkot – also included what I think is the weirdest ritual in Judaism, namely the Hoshanot – walking around in circles with the four species whilst reciting a series of chants. I’m sure there is a very good explanation for this ceremony, but to an outsider, or even a shule insider, it has never made sense to me. But it certainly does add an extra level of intrigue to the festival.

On that note, the sermon – after a not unexpected reference to the footy – was about what the four species, and can one use a stolen Lulav? Not surprisingly the answer is no, but the reason was not necessarily obvious. Each person is obliged to own their own set of four species – or at least borrow a set with permission – and thus stealing a set from someone else is akin to performing a good deed via a transgression. This is explicitly stated in the liturgy, in part because Sukkot is the ultimate festival or joy and unity and thus it is important to embrace those elements in the most unambiguous of ways, as we did with a lovely Kiddush in the Sukkah, followed by an even more filling and satisfying lunch in the sun. A great way to end two festival days… until next weekend!