Yesterday morning I had the pleasure of meeting with a group of parents about school-related items and had the opportunity to share some words of Torah with them, which I would like to share with the larger community as well.
On Sunday evening, we begin the holiday of Sukkot. This is one of the three pilgrimage festivals mentioned in the Torah (Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot), the festival on which the Jewish people would make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and the Temple. But long before Sukkot involved this ritual, the Torah tells us, in God’s name, that we must reside in Sukkot for 7 days because God himself placed us in Sukkot (Leviticus 23:42-43).
The rabbinic commentators have a field day with these two verses because they are not totally clear and they raise a number of questions, of which I’ll share just one: What is the Sukkah which is being referred to in the verse?
Regarding the question, the responses can be put into two major camps: 1) a Sukkah was actually God’s clouds of glory, clouds which traveled with the people and protected them during their time in the desert and 2) a Sukkah was an actual Sukkah...a temporary structure that was built during this time of the year.
These two responses represent two different understandings of the term Sukkah: one was a spiritually-based form of shelter and protection and one was a physically-based form of protection. The spiritual shelter, God’s clouds of glory (ענני כבוד) covered the Jewish people and traveled over them, protecting them, as they wandered for 40 years in the desert. The physical shelter, actual Sukkot, gave them protection from the elements, from the wind and the cold and the rain, as they made their way to the Promised Land. Each approach is important and possible, but each answer focuses on a different human need; the importance of both spiritual nourishment and protection in life AND physical protection and support in life.
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| Building of our Sukkah |
How then is the Sukkah like a school? If you look to combine these two approaches (as many commentators do), we recognize that each understanding has value and provides for a different need. We all recognize that within a school building, there are some basic elements that would define a place as a school: classrooms, labs, sports fields, and more. These are physical elements that create an environment which both protects those within it but gives them the basic structures and supports to carry them through life. At the same time, the school is filled with teachers, mentors, rabbis and others who are there to offer spiritual support, to help raise self-esteem, to challenge one to be their best self and to guide young people to achieve greatness.
Both elements of the school - the structure and the people - are important on their own but are that much more powerful when thought about as a unit. Each brings value to the school community and most importantly, to the experience of a student. Similarly, a Sukkah in which one can both appreciate the safety and support which the physical structure provides while also recognizing that during 40 years in the desert, a physical structure alone would not lead the people to the Promised Land (they needed God’s divine support as well!), raises the meaning of the Sukkah to another level.
May we all find meaning in these two different approaches...and find the support we need in both our Sukkot at home and our Sukkot in school!
Chag Sameach,
Rabbi Lesack
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