Celebrating Sukkos in Jerusalem

Sukkos in Israel was a real experience! Especially since the kids were off from school and we were not working, and given the six (!) days of Chol HaMoed, there was a lot of time to do a lot of things. There was so much to do in Yerushalayim that we passed on a variety of exciting events outside the city (including a concert with Ishay Ribo and Zusha in Rishon LeZion) and focused on happenings in the Holy City.

I already wrote a column in anticipation of Sukkos, and I could probably write five more about our Sukkos experience. But since by next week the statute of limitations on Sukkos reflections will probably be up, instead I have a bunch of mini-posts to give a picture of our very busy week.

Chava Ba-Gaye

We spent one morning attending the “Chava ba-Gaye,” or “The Farm in the Valley,” at Gei Ben Hinnom. (Yes, this place is the origin of the word Gehinnom. Yes, one of my kids asked why we were spending Chol HaMoed visiting Hell. No, we did not undertake child sacrifice like the pagans did there millennia ago.) They had a really nice biblical village, where there were various activities – pita making, olive processing, blacksmithing, ancient Hebrew script writing – that reflected aspects of what life was like in the area in the time of Tanach and the Mishna. It was really nice to relive a pilgrimage during one of the Shalosh Regalim, and our kids were engaged by the activities. Despite the particularly hot weather that day, especially in a valley, we had a great time! And some of us had a chance to go on the suspension bridge over part of the valley – an experience in its own right!

Jerusalem March/Gan Sacher

Every year there is the Mitzad Yerushalayim, the Jerusalem March, where various groups march through the city, ending up at Gan Sacher, where there was a sort of fair with bouncy houses, a tightrope walker, cotton candy, and more. We thought we’d make a day out of it, meeting with friends at Gan Sacher, and watching the people coming through. The morning march is for various Jerusalem and Israel-based groups, while the afternoon featured many groups tied to the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ), an evangelical group that brings thousands of people to Israel from scores of countries. While the kids enjoyed receiving the various countries’ flags, it was also fascinating to watch the group and their messaging. There was a combination of some people shouting “we love you, Israel,” “Chag Sukkot sameach,” and generally trying to engage with the Israeli onlookers. Others were more musical – some sang Heveinu Shalom Aleichem, there were literally dozens of shofars being blown, and even a harp (another biblical instrument!). It was truly heartwarming to see people from all over the world, including countries that are not on great terms with Israel (I saw South Africa and Ireland), express such love for the Jewish people! And at the same time some things were a little cringeworthy: one fellow was oddly wearing a kippah, there was a flag heralding in Hebrew the coming of Mashiach (which one?) and one person was giving out not Indonesian flags but rather bills of 1000 Rupiah to very excited Israeli children. (As I suspected and later learned, 1000 Rupiah is worth about six cents.) And in the background was the idea that many of the march participants have a theology that leads up to the rapture, in which Jews who do not accept Jesus are left behind. I don’t think I drew any theological conclusions from seeing the march, but it was fascinating to see the group in action.

Meeting the President

One day we had the opportunity to meet President Isaac (Bougie) Herzog at the President’s Residence. Every Sukkos, the President invites the public to join him at his residence for a variety of activities – book readings, coloring, arcade games and feats of strength, shows for kids, and more. Everyone is then invited to enter the sukkah and meet President Herzog and his wife, Michal. Herzog comes across as an experienced diplomat: polished, personable, and a real mensch. In our brief conversation, he asked both me and Chana about what we were doing this year in Jerusalem, having come from the U.S. It was a lovely highlight of our chag to have the opportunity to meet the President!

The Great Isaiah Scroll

For the past few months, the Israel Museum has had a featured exhibit on the Great Isaiah Scroll, the only full biblical text recovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls. Since the temporary exhibit was about to close down for several decades, I made sure to see it, and it did not disappoint. It was surreal to see this text of Yeshayahu, which was written down some 2200 years ago, preserved in the desert of Qumran, brought to New Jersey (!), then acquired and brought back to Israel, held underground (for preservation purposes), and brought out very infrequently for people to see the original. Generally, a copy housed in Heichal HaSefer is available, but this was a chance to see the actual text itself from all those millennia ago. As I leined some of the pesukim aloud alongside my children, I got a bit choked up. Our tradition spans millennia, and ancient prophecies preserved in long-neglected scrolls remain fresh and relevant for us today.

Minyanim

In Yerushalayim, there are so many options for minyanim of various types. Some days I went to a businesslike 70-minute minyan, while other days I was more adventurous. On Hoshana Rabbah, Pnima, a new Neo-chassidic minyan in Katamon, hosted a musical tefillah, which I attended. It had beautiful singing and a great energy, so much so that people only started to lose steam toward the end of the three-and-a-half-hour davening.

On Simchas Torah, there was beautiful dancing and singing (and candy!) for both men and women in a variety of places. We were mostly at Yakar at night and Ramban by day, but also popped into Eretz Chemdah and Pnima to get an additional taste of the chag.

And although in Israel, Simchas Torah is on Shemini Atzeres, it continues into Isru Chag as well. Many places hold hakkafot shniyot, a second set of hakkafos that are accompanied by live music. I stopped by one sponsored by Bnei Akiva of North America, which was very American, and then compensated for that by going to the hakkafot shniyot at Yeshivat Har Hamor, a super-Israeli event which brings together thousands of yeshiva guys to dance (and women to watch) from 10:30 pm until vasikin! The incomparable energy and excitement brought together those who love Torah across many different communities.

Other Events

I can’t go into detail on everything, but didn’t want to leave these out, so here are a few other activities we did, in short.

We attended the Derech Beit Lechem Festival, with a bunch of local businesses hawking their wares or food, some entertainers, a chess tournament, and generally just a chance to see dozens of people we know in the area.

We spent a morning at the Begin Center, with an informative and interesting tour (although the sukkah was closed for a private event).

We attended the Botanical Gardens, which had a nice variety of trees, plants, and activities, even if the dry climate meant a less than ideally lush collection.

One final thought: This wasn’t an event we attended per se, but the FlyDubai salvation happening over Sukkos was a powerful experience as well. It felt like not just the news but something that was immediately happening to our community. The news affects people around you (someone in a research group of mine had a sister on the flight), and shuls added special Tehillim of thanks – everything just felt so much more present.

So it was really a jam-packed Sukkos, with so many things to do in Yerushalayim!