It used to be, in America you got a job out of college, you worked for the same company your whole career and you retired with a pension. Today the average American works for 8 companies by the time he is 35. It is very hard to get a job out of college and the pension is a thing of the past.
In the words of Bob Dylan the times they are a changing. But change is nothing new, actually instability is the most reliable thing there is. Embracing the ever changing universe is a key aspect of Sukkot and a major theme of Kohelet.
One explanation for the sukkah is that we leave our permanent dwelling and venture out into a temporary structure to remind us of the changing nature of the universe. I argue that it is the exact opposite. The house is the temporary structure and the Sukkah is the permanent dwelling.
Look at Jewish history. The Epsteins have moved houses several times in the past twenty years as many Americans have. But what has remained the same is every year we gather in the sukkah and celebrate together. No matter where on earth or what time period the Jews are in they go out into the Sukkah. The Babylonians, Persians, Greeks and Romans all had massive empires with the Jews as their subjects and now they no longer exist, of the seven wonders of the ancient world only one is left. The real wonder of the Ancient world is the Jewish people still sit in the Sukkah.
Kohelet is read during Sukkot . One reason we read it is to remind us that everything in life is temporary, our house, our cars, our life’s work will all fade away and be forgotten.
When we go into the Sukkah it is an isolation chamber from our modern materialistic society. We separate from everything that is transient and we focus on what is permanent. Our relationship with our family, learning Torah, doing Mitzvot and connecting to God " for this is the whole of Humanity" .
This holiday I will focus on what is eternal.
Shabbat Shalom & Chag Samayach
