Upcoming Jewish Holidays

Get ready for: 

Tisha B'Av 7/15/13
Tisha B'Av primarily commemorates the destruction of the first and second Temples, both of which were destroyed on the ninth of Av (the first by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.E.; the second by the Romans in 70 C.E.).


Although this holiday is primarily meant to commemorate the destruction of the Temple, it is appropriate to consider on this day the many other tragedies of the Jewish people, many of which occurred on this day, most notably the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 and from England in 1290. 

Star of David

Rosh Hashanah 9/4/13 = Jewish New Year - a time to start over 

Gold and Clear Swarovski Crystal Kippah

Yom Kippur 9/13/13 = Day of Atonement - repentance and forgiveness

Hebrew/English Baby Blanket

Sukkot 9/18/13  On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the Festival of Sukkot, seven days for the L-RD... on the eighth day, there shall be a holy convocation for you. -Leviticus 23:34

Sukkot Art

Shemini Atzeret 9/25/13 evening - Shemini Atzeret literally means "the assembly of the eighth (day)." Rabbinic literature explains the holiday this way: our Creator is like a host, who invites us as visitors for a limited time, but when the time comes for us to leave, He has enjoyed himself so much that He asks us to stay another day. 

Hebrew Baby Onesie

Simchat Torah 9/26/13 evening - Simchat Torah means "Rejoicing in the Torah." This holiday marks the completion of the annual cycle of weekly Torah readings. Each week in synagogue we publicly read a few chapters from the Torah, starting with Genesis Ch. 1 and working our way around to Deuteronomy 34. On Simchat Torah, we read the last Torah portion, then proceed immediately to the first chapter of Genesis, reminding us that the Torah is a circle, and never ends.

Glass Tile Pendant

Hanukkah 11/27/13 evening - the miracle of the oil for the menorah lasting for 8 days & the battle that Judah fought to preserve Judaism. 

Hanukkah Dreidel earrings 

Visit the EtsyChai team members' shops to see more Jewish handmade creations. 

Keep watching our blog for more information about Jewish holidays and handmade gifts. 

The Feast of Booths

 

Judaism is a religion of contrasts.  The leap from one of the most solemn days of the year (Yom Kippur) to one of the most joyous (Sukkot) in the space of one week is a perfect example.

Yom Kippur we spend 25 hours fasting and reflecting on the past year.  Then we get busy building an outdoor structure, called a Sukkah (Soo-kah – NOT sucka) for the holiday of Sukkot, loosely translated as “Feast of Booths/the Tabernacles”.  (“Sukkot” is plural of Sukkah.)

Sukkot lasts a full week and is a festival with two meanings.  First, the Sukkah is reminiscent of the type of dwellings in which the Israelites slept during their 40 years of wandering in the desert with Moses during the Exodus.  Throughout the holiday the Sukkah substitutes for the living area of the house, and all meals are eaten there.

Secondly, the holiday celebrates the season of the harvest, which helps makes sense of the items used during this happiest of holidays… (more about that later on… ).

The Sukkah itself consists of three or four walls (no higher than about 30 feet and no lower than about 40 inches).  Size-wise, a Sukkah cannot be smaller than 22.4 inches by 22.4 inches.  At its smallest, it needs to be large enough to hold a person's head and torso, and a small table.  There is no size limit in how large a Sukkah may be.  It can be made of any material, as long as it can be easily dismantled, so it is interpreted as non-permanent.  I’ve seen Sukkah walls made of canvas, wood, tarps, and plastic sheeting.  There are even “popup” Sukkot for those who find themselves traveling during the holiday.

The roof is called a s’chach (that’s two hard, guttural “ch” sounds).  This consists of geographically appropriate unfinished plant material laid across raw wooden beams.  Again, variety plays a role in this: corn stalks in the Midwest, evergreen branches in New England, palm fronds in the warmer climes, and, well, I hope you get the idea.  The important part about the s’chach is that it consist of natural materials with enough space between so you can see stars through the branches when you look up at night, but not so much that there’s more sunlight than shade during the day.

One of the great mitzvahs (blessings) of the holiday is the shaking of the lulav and the etrog, over which members of the household recite a blessing each day of the holiday period, with the exception of the Sabbath.  The lulav collectively refers to a grouping of greenery consisting of three myrtle twigs, two willow twigs, and a palm frond bound together.  The etrog is an aromatic cousin of the lemon called a citron.

You can get more specific information on the specific way to bind and use the lulav and the etrog, including the prayers here.

Of course the great fun of Sukkot is the chance to decorate your Sukkah to your taste.  Just about anything goes including popcorn balls, clove-studded fruit, paper cut designs, fruit made out of paper-maché, pages from your preschooler’s coloring book, and so on and so forth.

The even greater fun is inviting company (ushpizin) over to dine in the Sukkah.  Sukkot is all about eating, drinking and being merry with friends and family.  So, participate in the mitzvot and the joy!

 

Adorn your home, your glasses, your walls, or your Sukkah with finds from these great EtsyChai artists:

 

Come on all you Etsy artists – What are your Sukkah decorating suggestions?

 

April
http://agru.etsy.com/  (ceramics shop)
http://surlespointe.etsy.com/ (upcycled dance gear)
http://agru.blogspot.com/  (ceramics blog)
http://agru.livejournal.com/  (nature blog)