Dear Friends,
Buried in the biblical instructions for the festival of Sukkot which commences this Erev Shabbat, is a little word, offering a little ethic, yet which has massive implications.
Note the command regarding dwelling in the sukkah, the humble booth which we construct for the weeklong festival: “You shall live in booths seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths.” (Leviticus 23:42)
Of course, much has been made of this command – to dwell in booths – and we are taught that this implies that one must do the two behaviors which are commonly undertaken in one’s dwelling – to eat and to sleep. Yet, there is more.
I am struck again that the verse commands this charge upon “all citizens in Israel.” This command is not given just to the Jewish people, or even just those who identify with the Jewish people. Rather, this instruction is incumbent upon all those who are citizens in the world of Israel. And, the term “citizen,’ or “ezrach” in Hebrew – connoted Jew, non-Jew, free, slave, woman, man – any individual who lived in the environs.
It is a broad command. And, in that broad command is an ethic with massive implications. The expectation is that we can obligate those who are not Jewish. Moreover, it teaches that the Jewish people must obligate itself to function beyond its own provincial or communal boundaries. It is preaching an ethical universalism – that some ethics and commands, even those which look entirely parochial, like dwelling in a sukkah, are avenues for inclusion of any others in the community. It reminds us that we live not simply with our own, but with all the other citizens around us.
Today, as the United States census is underway, endeavoring to count every resident in the states and territories of our National identity, I find this verse a healthy reminder: from ancient days to today, healthy and sacred communities were wide, inclusive, engaged and respectful.
Everyone counted, and especially today in America, everyone should be counted. This is what I derive today from the hidden little phrase, “all citizens…”
Shabbat Shalom and Hag Sameach – for a festive Sukkot!
Rabbi Douglas Kohn
Buried in the biblical instructions for the festival of Sukkot which commences this Erev Shabbat, is a little word, offering a little ethic, yet which has massive implications.
Note the command regarding dwelling in the sukkah, the humble booth which we construct for the weeklong festival: “You shall live in booths seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths.” (Leviticus 23:42)
Of course, much has been made of this command – to dwell in booths – and we are taught that this implies that one must do the two behaviors which are commonly undertaken in one’s dwelling – to eat and to sleep. Yet, there is more.
I am struck again that the verse commands this charge upon “all citizens in Israel.” This command is not given just to the Jewish people, or even just those who identify with the Jewish people. Rather, this instruction is incumbent upon all those who are citizens in the world of Israel. And, the term “citizen,’ or “ezrach” in Hebrew – connoted Jew, non-Jew, free, slave, woman, man – any individual who lived in the environs.
It is a broad command. And, in that broad command is an ethic with massive implications. The expectation is that we can obligate those who are not Jewish. Moreover, it teaches that the Jewish people must obligate itself to function beyond its own provincial or communal boundaries. It is preaching an ethical universalism – that some ethics and commands, even those which look entirely parochial, like dwelling in a sukkah, are avenues for inclusion of any others in the community. It reminds us that we live not simply with our own, but with all the other citizens around us.
Today, as the United States census is underway, endeavoring to count every resident in the states and territories of our National identity, I find this verse a healthy reminder: from ancient days to today, healthy and sacred communities were wide, inclusive, engaged and respectful.
Everyone counted, and especially today in America, everyone should be counted. This is what I derive today from the hidden little phrase, “all citizens…”
Shabbat Shalom and Hag Sameach – for a festive Sukkot!
Rabbi Douglas Kohn
