Sukkot is one of the three “pilgrimage festivals” in Judaism, when Jews in Israel would make a trip to the Temple in Jerusalem. As it does today, the holiday had an agricultural theme, celebrating the harvest time at the end of the farming year. It may be the basis for Thanksgiving!
Today in Diaspora, which includes Bangor, Maine, we combine those harvest themes with the “Festival of Booths.” We commemorate the story of our Exodus from Egypt (again) and our dependence on G-d. We build a “booth” or sukkah, which is a walled shelter covered with s’chach (a plant based covering).
We are commanded to dwell in these “sukkot” (hence the name of the holiday) for the 8 days in Diaspora. For some, that means taking a meal (including bread) in the sukkah, and for others, that means sleeping in them! In Israel the holiday is only 7 days long. We also have rituals involving a lulav and esrog, four species of plants and a citrus used during the holiday.
The first and second days of Sukkot are non-working holidays. The intermediate days, called chol chamoed days, allow for labor. The festival closes with another non-working holiday called Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah. On Shemini Atzeret there’s not much ritual distinctiveness to the holiday, other than that we read the last of the weekly Torah portions in the cycle, and we do Yizkor, a service where we remember our departed loved ones and congregants.
Simchat Torah is a festive and fun holiday. We remove all of the Torah scrolls from the ark (we have at least 10 at Beth Israel!), and we dance around the sanctuary with them in a series of seven hakafot (or circuits around the room).
In non-COVID years, Rabbi Siemers likes to convene a Scotch in the Sukkah event with a little folksy jam band. It’s a good time.
This holiday is a good one for reinforcing a strong Jewish identity in children.
Holiday Schedule
| Date | Time |
|---|---|
| Friday, September 29th | 5:30 pm |
| Saturday, September 30th | 10:00 am |
| Sunday, October 1st | 10:00 am |
| Wednesday, October 4th – JCEA Sukkot Party | 4pm – 6pm |
| Thursday, October 5th, Scotch in the Sukkah | Contact Office |
| Friday, October 7th – Hoshana Raba | TBD |
| Saturday, October 8th – Shemini Atzeret | 10:00 am |
| Sunday, October 9th – Simchat Torah | TBD |
Important Notes
Masks are required. For your safety and for the safety of others, we require masks to be properly worn at all times on CBI grounds.
If you have experienced any COVID symptoms or have been exposed in recent days, we ask that you refrain from in-person attendance or come with a negative COVID test result.
