Sukkot - Succot - Feast of Tabernacles - Feast of Booths (all the same!) - Begins 09.18.13

Happy Sukkot 

from Love For His People!

A Succot Celebration in 2009 

with Barry & Batya Segal in Jerusalem

Photo by Steve Martin)

Celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem

(Steve Martin and sister Mary Smith)

Jerusalem March during Feast of Tabernacles

(Photo by Steve Martin, 2009 in Jerusalem)

Sukkot

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Jewish Holidays: Table of Contents | Upcoming Dates | Festivals in Israel

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The Festival of Sukkot begins on the 15th day of Tishri and is the fifth day after Yom Kippur. It is a drastic transition from one of the most solemn holidays in the Jewish calendar to one of the most joyous.

Introduction

Sukkot is a seven day holiday and the two days following the festival - Shemini Atzeret and Simkhat Torah - are commonly thought of as part of Sukkot but are actually separate holidays. Sukkot is sometimes referred to as Zeman Simkhateinu, the Season of our Rejoicing.

The word "Sukkot" means "booths," and refers to the temporary dwellings that we are commanded to live in during this holiday. The name of the holiday is frequently translated "The Feast of Tabernacles," which, like many translations of technical Jewish terms, isn't terribly useful unless you already know what the term is referring to. The Hebrew pronunciation of Sukkot is "Sue COAT," but is often pronounced as in Yiddish, to rhyme with "BOOK us."

Like Passover and Shavu'ot, Sukkot has a dual significance: historical and agricultural. The holiday commemorates the forty-year period during which the children of Israel were wandering in the desert, living in temporary shelters. Sukkot is also a harvest festival, and is sometimes referred to as Chag Ha-Asif, the Festival of Ingathering.

The festival of Sukkot is instituted in Leviticus 23:33 et seq. No work is permitted on the first and second days of the holiday. Work is permitted on the remaining days. These intermediate days on which work is permitted are referred to as Chol Ha-Mo'ed, as are the intermediate days of Passover.

The Sukkah

In honor of the holiday's historical significance, we are commanded to dwell in temporary shelters, as our ancestors did in the wilderness. The commandment to "dwell" in a sukkah can be fulfilled by simply eating all of one's meals there; however, if the weather, climate, and one's health permit, one should live in the sukkah as much as possible, including sleeping in it.

A sukkah must have at least three walls covered with a material that will not blow away in the wind. Canvas covering tied or nailed down is acceptable and quite common in the United States. A sukkah may be any size, so long as it is large enough for you to fulfill the commandment of dwelling in it. The roof of the sukkah must be made of material referred to as sekhakh (literally, covering). To fulfill the commandment, sekhakh must be something that grew from the ground and was cut off, such as tree branches, corn stalks, bamboo reeds, sticks, or two-by-fours. Sekhakh must be left loose, not tied together or tied down. Sekhakh must be placed sparsely enough that rain can get in, and preferably sparsely enough that the stars can be seen, but not so sparsely that more than ten inches is open at any point or that there is more light than shade. The sekhakh must be put on last.

It is common practice, and highly commendable, to decorate the sukkah. In the northeastern United States, Jews commonly hang dried squash and corn in the sukkah to decorate it, because these vegetables are readily available at that time for the American holidays of Halloween and Thanksgiving. Building and decorating a sukkah is a fun, family project, much like decorating the Christmas tree is for Christians. It is a sad commentary on modern American Judaismthat most of the highly assimilated Jews who complain about being deprived of the fun of having and decorating a Christmas tree have never even heard of Sukkot.

The following blessing is recited when eating a meal in the sukkah:

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech ha'olam asher
kid'shanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu leisheiv basukkah.

Many Americans, upon seeing a decorated sukkah for the first time, remark on how much the sukkah (and the holiday generally) reminds them of Thanksgiving. This is not entirely coincidental. Our American pilgrims, who originated the Thanksgiving holiday, were deeply religious people. When they were trying to find a way to express their thanks for their survival and for the harvest, they looked to the Bible for an appropriate way of celebrating and based their holiday in part on Sukkot.

The Four Species

Another observance related to Sukkot involves what are known as The Four Species (arba minim in Hebrew) or the lulav and etrog. We are commanded to take these four plants and use them to "rejoice before the L-rd." The four species in question are an etrog (a citrus fruit native to Israel), a palm branch (in Hebrew, lulav), a myrtle branch (hadas) and a willow branch (arava).

 The etrog (Photo by Steve Martin, 2009)

Every morning of Sukkot, except on Shabbat, it is the custom to hold the lulav in the right hand and the etrog in the left. Bringing them together (with the pitam, the stem of the etrog pointing downward), the following blessing is recited:

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech ha'olam asher
kid'shanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu al n'tilat lulav.

The four species are also held during the Hallel prayer in religious services, and are held during processions around thebimah (the pedestal where the Torah is read) each day during the holiday. These processions commemorate similar processions around the alter of the ancient Temple in Jerusalem. The processions are known as Hoshanahs, because while the procession is made, we recite a prayer with the refrain, "Hosha na!" (please save us!). On the seventh day of Sukkot, seven circuits are made. For this reason, the seventh day of Sukkot is known as Hoshanah Rabbah (the great Hoshanah).

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Sources: Judaism 101 and Cardin, Rabbi Nina Beth. The Tapestry of Jewish Time. NJ: Behrman House, 2000.

Inside a succa in Mevaserrat Zion, near Jerusalem

The following are photos of the Jerusalem March, held every year during the Feast of Tabernacles through the streets of Jerusalem. (Photos by Steve Martin, 2009)

Steve with Vision for Israel tour group

Mary Smith - my sister!

Mary Smith & Indira Persad (left front two)

My good friends - Peter from UK 

and Peter from The Netherlands!

(after a brief rain...)

Barry & Batya Segal's Succot Celebration at 

Yad Hashmonah, near Jerusalem

Website article: 

Messianic Kibbutz-Yad Hashmona

Barry & Batya Segal - founders of Vision for Israel 

& The Joseph Storehouse 

in Jerusalem

Happy Sukkot to all our Jewish friends 

and those who love Israel too!

Chag Sameach!

Steve & Laurie Martin

Mount Herzl, Yad Vashem museum, Israel's national Cemetery - video tour with Dr. David Reagan

Tour Mount Herzl, Yad Vashem Holocaust museum, Israel's national Cemetery, and more. 
with Dr. David Reagan of Christ in Prophecy.

About - Dr. David R. Reagan

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Dr. David R. Reagan serves as the Senior Evangelist for Lamb & Lion Ministries. He is a native Texan who resides in a suburb of Dallas. He is married and is the father of two daughters. His wife, Ann, is a retired first grade teacher. They have four grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Dr. Reagan is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Texas in Austin. His graduate degrees were earned in the field of International Relations from the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy of Tufts and Harvard Universities.

Dave — as he prefers to be called — was the founder of Lamb & Lion Ministries in 1980. Before entering the ministry he had an extensive career in higher education which included the following positions: Assistant to the President of Austin College in Sherman, Texas; President of South Texas Jr. College in Houston; Director of Pepperdine University's Center for International Business in Los Angeles; and Vice President of Phillips University in Enid, Oklahoma.

In the mid-60's Dave served as a Fulbright Lecturer at the University of the Philippines and toured all of Southeast Asia lecturing on U.S. foreign policy in behalf of the U.S. Information Agency.

Dave is a life-long Bible student, teacher, and preacher. He entered the full time ministry in 1976 when he was called to serve as the pulpit minister for a church in Irving, Texas. His ordination as a Christian minister has been formally recognized by three different Christian groups.

He is the author of many religious essays which have been published in a wide variety of journals and magazines. He has written 11 books — The Man of Lawlessness, Jesus the Lamb and the Lion,Eternity: Heaven or Hell?, God's Plan for the Ages, Wrath & Glory: The Meaning of Revelation, The Christ in Prophecy Study Guide, America the Beautiful?, Trusting God, Living for Christ in the End Times, An Overview of Revelation Study Guide, and Jesus is Coming Soon! which is a book for children. He has co-authored another book called The Parched Soul of America. His books have been translated into several languages.

Dave's sermons have been distributed worldwide. He has led more than forty pilgrimages to Israel that focus on the prophetic significance of the sites visited. He has also conducted prophecy conferences in Russia, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Austria, Belarus, Israel, South Africa, Mexico, the Philippines, India, England (including Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland), and China.

Dave is the host of Lamb & Lion's weekly television program called "Christ in Prophecy." This program is broadcast nationally on seven Christian networks which combined have access to 80 million homes in the United States. And through DayStar, the program is available to every country in the world. The program deals with the prophetic significance of national and international events.

Purpose

Lamb & Lion Ministries was founded in 1980 as a non-denominational, independent ministry. The Ministry does not seek to convert people to any particular church. Rather, it seeks to lift up Jesus and draw people to Him as Lord and Savior.

The Ministry was established for the purpose of proclaiming the soon return of Jesus. We do not believe it is possible to know the date when Jesus will return. But we do believe it is possible to know the season of the Lord's return, and it is our conviction that we are living in that season.

The message of the Ministry is directed at both believers and non-believers. To the unsaved, the Ministry says, "Flee from the wrath that is to come by fleeing into the loving arms of Jesus." To believers, the Ministry says, "Commit yourselves to holiness as you await the appearance of your Blessed Hope."

We believe that Jesus is the only hope for the world today. He is the Gospel — the "Good News."

We believe the Church, as expressed through the local congregation, is the basic unit of God's plan for the proclamation of the Gospel and the discipling of believers. Lamb & Lion Ministries exists to serve the Church in its effort to win souls for Christ and to disciple those who accept the Lord.

read more...

Governance

The Ministry is governed by a Board of twenty-two Trustees who come from a variety of Christian fellowships. The Trustees establish all the policies of the Ministry, and they meet quarterly to review the Ministry's operations.

All the Trustees are committed Evangelicals who affirm that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God; that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that Jesus is returning soon.

read more...

Outreach

The Ministry proclaims its message in a variety of ways. One of the most significant is through its weekly television program called Christ in Prophecy. This program is broadcast nationally over the DayStar, Inspirational, NRB and Church Channel networks. The television program provides commentary on national and international events from a Biblical perspective, showing that many of these events are signs of the times pointing to the soon return of Jesus.

The Ministry conducts meetings and seminars all over the country in all kinds of churches. The Ministry's seminars focus on Bible prophecy. The meetings cover either prophecy or spiritual renewal or a combination of the two.

Other forms of outreach include resources such as topical teaching videos, audio programs, books, multimedia training materials, a bi-monthly magazine called the Lamplighter, and the periodic Bible Prophecy Insights magazine. The magazines alway contain a featured article on some aspect of Bible prophecy.

Another form of outreach consists of pilgrimages to Israel which are conducted a few times a year by the ministry for educational and spiritual purposes.

read more...

Missions

In recent years the Lord has opened up many doors of opportunity for the Ministry to proclaim its message in foreign countries. Prophecy conferences and evangelistic crusades have been conducted in South Africa, Poland, Beloruss, the Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria, Russia, England, India, the Philippines, Israel, Mexico and China.

Bibles and all types of study materials have been sent to churches and missions in countries all over the world. The Ministry's books about Bible prophecy have been translated into Russian, Hungarian, Czech, Polish, Hindi, Tagulu, Urdu, Spanish, and Chinese.

Particular attention has been given to aiding the Jewish refugees that God is regathering back to the land of Israel from the four corners of the earth. The Ministry has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the assistance of the refugees.

read more...

Finances

Lamb & Lion is a faith ministry. We do not charge fees for any of our services. Items such as the e-newsletter and electronic magazine are offered free of charge. Meetings and seminars are conducted on a love offering basis. The Lord knows our needs, and we rely upon Him to supply the finances needed for our operations.

The salaries of all staff members are determined by the Board of Trustees. Donations to the Ministry go for staff salaries, operations, and outreach — mainly outreach.

The Ministry operates on a cash basis and has been blessed to end every calendar year of its existence with all its bills paid.

The Ministry has no debts. Its buildings, property, and equipment are all paid for. A financial statement is produced monthly, and copies are available on request. All financial records are audited annually, and the audit reports are also available on request.

The Ministry is a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. That means the Ministry operates according to the highest ethical principles with regard to both fund raising and the expenditure of funds.

read more...

Location

The Ministry's headquarters is located on five acres of land in a rural area near Princeton, Texas, about 35 miles north of Dallas.

read more...

The Temple Mount - video tour with Dr. David Reagan

Dr. David Reagan of Lamb & Lion Ministries

- tour video

About - Dr. David R. Reagan

ShareThis:

Print: On/Off

Font: S/M/L

Dr. David R. Reagan serves as the Senior Evangelist for Lamb & Lion Ministries. He is a native Texan who resides in a suburb of Dallas. He is married and is the father of two daughters. His wife, Ann, is a retired first grade teacher. They have four grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Dr. Reagan is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Texas in Austin. His graduate degrees were earned in the field of International Relations from the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy of Tufts and Harvard Universities.

Dave — as he prefers to be called — was the founder of Lamb & Lion Ministries in 1980. Before entering the ministry he had an extensive career in higher education which included the following positions: Assistant to the President of Austin College in Sherman, Texas; President of South Texas Jr. College in Houston; Director of Pepperdine University's Center for International Business in Los Angeles; and Vice President of Phillips University in Enid, Oklahoma.

In the mid-60's Dave served as a Fulbright Lecturer at the University of the Philippines and toured all of Southeast Asia lecturing on U.S. foreign policy in behalf of the U.S. Information Agency.

Dave is a life-long Bible student, teacher, and preacher. He entered the full time ministry in 1976 when he was called to serve as the pulpit minister for a church in Irving, Texas. His ordination as a Christian minister has been formally recognized by three different Christian groups.

He is the author of many religious essays which have been published in a wide variety of journals and magazines. He has written 11 books — The Man of Lawlessness, Jesus the Lamb and the Lion,Eternity: Heaven or Hell?, God's Plan for the Ages, Wrath & Glory: The Meaning of Revelation, The Christ in Prophecy Study Guide, America the Beautiful?, Trusting God, Living for Christ in the End Times, An Overview of Revelation Study Guide, and Jesus is Coming Soon! which is a book for children. He has co-authored another book called The Parched Soul of America. His books have been translated into several languages.

Dave's sermons have been distributed worldwide. He has led more than forty pilgrimages to Israel that focus on the prophetic significance of the sites visited. He has also conducted prophecy conferences in Russia, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Austria, Belarus, Israel, South Africa, Mexico, the Philippines, India, England (including Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland), and China.

Dave is the host of Lamb & Lion's weekly television program called "Christ in Prophecy." This program is broadcast nationally on seven Christian networks which combined have access to 80 million homes in the United States. And through DayStar, the program is available to every country in the world. The program deals with the prophetic significance of national and international events.

Purpose

Lamb & Lion Ministries was founded in 1980 as a non-denominational, independent ministry. The Ministry does not seek to convert people to any particular church. Rather, it seeks to lift up Jesus and draw people to Him as Lord and Savior.

The Ministry was established for the purpose of proclaiming the soon return of Jesus. We do not believe it is possible to know the date when Jesus will return. But we do believe it is possible to know the season of the Lord's return, and it is our conviction that we are living in that season.

The message of the Ministry is directed at both believers and non-believers. To the unsaved, the Ministry says, "Flee from the wrath that is to come by fleeing into the loving arms of Jesus." To believers, the Ministry says, "Commit yourselves to holiness as you await the appearance of your Blessed Hope."

We believe that Jesus is the only hope for the world today. He is the Gospel — the "Good News."

We believe the Church, as expressed through the local congregation, is the basic unit of God's plan for the proclamation of the Gospel and the discipling of believers. Lamb & Lion Ministries exists to serve the Church in its effort to win souls for Christ and to disciple those who accept the Lord.

read more...

Governance

The Ministry is governed by a Board of twenty-two Trustees who come from a variety of Christian fellowships. The Trustees establish all the policies of the Ministry, and they meet quarterly to review the Ministry's operations.

All the Trustees are committed Evangelicals who affirm that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God; that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that Jesus is returning soon.

read more...

Outreach

The Ministry proclaims its message in a variety of ways. One of the most significant is through its weekly television program called Christ in Prophecy. This program is broadcast nationally over the DayStar, Inspirational, NRB and Church Channel networks. The television program provides commentary on national and international events from a Biblical perspective, showing that many of these events are signs of the times pointing to the soon return of Jesus.

The Ministry conducts meetings and seminars all over the country in all kinds of churches. The Ministry's seminars focus on Bible prophecy. The meetings cover either prophecy or spiritual renewal or a combination of the two.

Other forms of outreach include resources such as topical teaching videos, audio programs, books, multimedia training materials, a bi-monthly magazine called the Lamplighter, and the periodic Bible Prophecy Insights magazine. The magazines alway contain a featured article on some aspect of Bible prophecy.

Another form of outreach consists of pilgrimages to Israel which are conducted a few times a year by the ministry for educational and spiritual purposes.

read more...

Missions

In recent years the Lord has opened up many doors of opportunity for the Ministry to proclaim its message in foreign countries. Prophecy conferences and evangelistic crusades have been conducted in South Africa, Poland, Beloruss, the Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria, Russia, England, India, the Philippines, Israel, Mexico and China.

Bibles and all types of study materials have been sent to churches and missions in countries all over the world. The Ministry's books about Bible prophecy have been translated into Russian, Hungarian, Czech, Polish, Hindi, Tagulu, Urdu, Spanish, and Chinese.

Particular attention has been given to aiding the Jewish refugees that God is regathering back to the land of Israel from the four corners of the earth. The Ministry has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the assistance of the refugees.

read more...

Finances

Lamb & Lion is a faith ministry. We do not charge fees for any of our services. Items such as the e-newsletter and electronic magazine are offered free of charge. Meetings and seminars are conducted on a love offering basis. The Lord knows our needs, and we rely upon Him to supply the finances needed for our operations.

The salaries of all staff members are determined by the Board of Trustees. Donations to the Ministry go for staff salaries, operations, and outreach — mainly outreach.

The Ministry operates on a cash basis and has been blessed to end every calendar year of its existence with all its bills paid.

The Ministry has no debts. Its buildings, property, and equipment are all paid for. A financial statement is produced monthly, and copies are available on request. All financial records are audited annually, and the audit reports are also available on request.

The Ministry is a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. That means the Ministry operates according to the highest ethical principles with regard to both fund raising and the expenditure of funds.

read more...

Location

The Ministry's headquarters is located on five acres of land in a rural area near Princeton, Texas, about 35 miles north of Dallas.

read more...

Almost 100,000

Just a few more pageviews to reach 100,000.

(See TOTAL PAGEVIEWS count 

in upper right of picture.)

Thankful that it is being reached during the Feasts of the Lord, especially right before the upcoming Feast of Tabernacles (Succot), which follows Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah (the New Year).

Thank you Yeshua HaMashiach for Your Words of Life, and these whom follow our blog of Love For His People.

Steve & Laurie Martin