A Christian Viewpoint
This year, the Jewish Feast of Booths (Sukkot) takes place at sundown on Oct. 12 and concludes on Oct. 19, 2011. Also known as the Feast of Tabernacles, it's a week-long joyful celebration of the fall harvest. It's also a time when the Jews build temporary shelters (sukkah) made of branches to remember how the Hebrews lived under God’s care and protection during their forty years in the wilderness (Neh 8:14-17). In OT times, King Solomon chose The Feast of Sukkot for the consecration of the first Temple (1 Kings 8).
Four special plants are used to cover the booths: citron, myrtle, willow, and palm (Lev 23:39-40). The roof is made of branches and leaves, with enough open spaces to see the stars. Today, many Jewish people erect booths of wood and canvas on their lawns or balconies and eat a least one meal a day in them.
Two Ceremonies
Sukkot is last of three OT annual pilgrimage feasts when all Jewish males were required to go to Jerusalem to “appear before the Lord” (Deut 16:16). During services, a lulav made up of the same “four species” of citron, myrtle willow, and palm, branches was waved in all four compass directions and up and down to symbolize that God’s presence is everywhere.
Two important ceremonies were part of the last day of Sukkot ...
You can read the rest of this article at my hospitality site, Susannah's {Kitchen}. Please join me over there today. See you in a few minutes!
Related: Rosh Hashana & Yom Kippur (Autumn Jewish High Holidays)Photos: maxnathan (Flickr)
Up Next—Marriage Monday: Our Topic is COMMUNICATION
2 Comments:
Thanks for the heads up again...I need to work this into our adjusted schedule this year....so different to have my son gone to school and not here for us to do this during the day...thanks.
Via Facebook Kim said...:
You know when I was Director of Children's Ministries I always wanted to do a Sunday School rotation on the 7 feasts. On this one I thought it would be cool if families together made a booth out in back of our church. You know a multi-generational kind of thing. Never did though : - (
Post a Comment