by Roni Ben-David, Director of Social Justice & Inclusion
A few weeks ago, some students proposed an idea to me: let’s invite students from Gateway, the nearby high school, to be guests in our JCHS Sukkah! They saw this as both a way to build community between our schools as well as honor the festival’s custom of welcoming guests.
This custom has its origins in the tradition of inviting ushpizin (Aramaic for guests) into our sukkah on each day of Sukkot. From the Zohar, the primary text of Kabbalah, we learn the ritual of calling in seven exemplary ancestors, including Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses. Some have the custom of also calling in distinguished female ancestors. “Sit, sit, [you] lofty guests; sit, sit [you] holy guests; sit, sit [you] guests of faith,” begins the text of the ushpizin service.
Hearing this lavish way of speaking about guests reminds me of the way that my Persian family approached hospitality. My dad has stories from his childhood of seeing the most prized food items saved exclusively for guest consumption. This wasn’t just a cultural courtesy – it was the result of seeing a guest as a blessing on the household. In that sense, offering a guest special treatment was merely reciprocity for the gift of their visit!
I must admit, I didn’t truly internalize this mindset…sometimes I feel burdened by hosting. Typically, I view the generosity as going one way – from me to them. What might it be like to flip the direction of giving and receiving? What if I saw every hospitality opportunity as a chance to receive the blessing of my guest?
When I choose to host guests with the conscious mindset of receiving the honor of their visit, both gratitude and generosity naturally flow. This particular framework of hospitality seems especially important during the harvest season, which is the timing of Sukkot. After all, during times of abundance, we are more prone to fall into the trap of feeling proud and possessive of what we labored to accumulate (with a little help from creation, of course!)
Instead, our tradition humbles us by placing us in a simple dwelling that is constructed in a way that invites in both guests and the elements (with a porous roof and one side open to visitors!) We are urged in no uncertain terms to share freely what we have. As it is written in the Zohar, “One should not say ‘I will first satisfy myself with food and drink, and I shall give the leftovers to the poor.’ Rather, the first of everything must be for one’s guests. If one gladdens his guests and satisfies them, God rejoices over him. (Emor 103a)”
On this holiday, may we all feel greatly blessed by the opportunity to honor our guests, both living and ancestral!
