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Drash for Shabbat Sukkot By Lee Silva - September 28, 2007 During the celebration of Sukkot, the first pilgrimage in the Jewish year, small booths are built outdoors. The Torah portion begins with the people of Israel receiving an extensive list of rituals, and a specific set of sacrifices. However, my thoughts continued to drift to the actual dwellings themselves. Two important aspects of our lives came to my mind; family and community. I think about my family, extended family, friends, and neighbors. Is it the structure that keeps them safe? Is it the newly remodeled kitchen that sustains them? Is it the "booth" itself that brings happiness? Or, is it the people, under the leaking ceiling, standing on the collapsing porch, barbequing on the near rusted coils, and sharing a meal together on the old card table, that keeps the shell from collapsing? Even with an impermanent booth, even with walls and a roof that may not completely shelter and protect, if the family we have built nourishes the soul through love and affection for one another, they will be protected from the harsh elements. The roof of the sukkah should prompt you to go beyond yourself, and into the community. It is a reminder to all to elevate one's own level of humanity each day. Individual commitment to tikkun olam lends us hope that compassion, understanding, and, of course, prayer, become the daily rituals of our existence. Without ethical principles, we lose the vision of a world without cruelty, hunger, disrespect, and peace. With mindfulness, discipline, unselfishness, and a lifetime of learning Torah, we can take the messages in this parasha as a challenge, lest we become blind to the needs of others, and to our own mortality. I urge each of you to take this year ahead to create a living space of harmony, and to also reach out by becoming a volunteer. Help within our Temple community, as well as the city of Tucson. It's amazing how assisting others can lead to the resolution of your own difficulties, and provides a personal feeling of pride and self-worth. While in the frail booths, the citizens of Israel are given the opportunity to balance their complacency of the High Holy Days by being reminded, symbolically of course, that life is as fragile as the sukkah. Shabbat Shalom.
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