Mary, Mother of God

St. Hannibal Di Francia was the Ecclesiastical Censor of Luisa’s writings until his death in 1927. Volumes 1-19 bear his Nihil Obstat. Additionally, he was responsible for publishing Luisa’s work, The Hours of the Passion, in 1915

OFFERING OF THE HUMAN WILL TO THE CELESTIAL QUEEN

Sweetest Mother, here I am prostrate before Your throne. I am Your little child who wants to give you all my filial love; and, as Your child, I want to interlace all the little flowers, the exclamations, my promises that I have made so many times in this month of graces of no longer doing my will; and forming a crown, I want to put it in Your lap as proof of love and thanksgiving to my Mother.

But that is not enough; I want You to take it in Your hands as a sign that You accept my gift; and at the touch of Your maternal fingers convert it for me into so many suns, at least for as many times as I have sought to do the Divine Will in my little acts.

Ah, yes, Queen Mother, Your child wants to give You the homages of light and of most refulgent suns. I know that You have so many of these suns, but they are not the suns of Your child. Indeed, I want to give You mine in order to tell You that I love You and to engage You to love me. Holy Mother, You smile at me and in all goodness You accept my gift; and I thank You heartily. But I want to say so many things to You; I want to enclose my pains, my fears, my weaknesses and all my being in Your maternal Heart as in a place of refuge for me. I want to consecrate my will to You. Ah, O my Mother, accept it; make it a triumph of grace and a field where the Divine Will may extend Its Kingdom! Thus my will consecrated to You will make us inseparable and will keep us in continual rapport. The doors of Heaven will not be closed to me because, having consecrated my will to You, You will give me Yours in exchange. So, O my Mother, come to be with Your child on earth; and the child will go to live with its Mother in Heaven. Oh, how happy I will be!

Ah, dearest Mother, to make the consecration of my will to You more solemn, I call the Most Holy Trinity, all the angels, all the saints; and, before all, I profess and I swear of making a solemn consecration of my will to my Heavenly Mother.

And now, Sovereign Queen, in conclusion I ask You for Your holy blessing for me and for everyone. May Your blessing be the celestial dew which descends upon sinners and converts them, covers the afflicted and consoles them, descends upon the entire world and transforms it into good, descends over the purging souls and smothers the fire which burns them. May Your blessing be the pledge of salvation for all souls. Amen.

Adela Maria; Much is not written about the young life of Jesus and Mary and Joseph. Can you visualize the child and his mother setting up the booth that Joseph, His earth father, had built? I would love to celebrate the festival of booths today, with my Jewish brethren. What a sight that would be?

Celebrated this year September 27, 2007 (Jewish Year 5668)

A Festival of Faith

Klezmer I Artwork by: Philip Winestone
www.art.com

Sukkot- Booths
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The Festival of Sukkot begins on Tishri 15, the fifth day after Yom Kippur. It is quite a drastic transition, from one of the most solemn holidays in our year to one of the most joyous.

This festival is sometimes referred to as Zeman Simkhateinu, the Season of our Rejoicing. Sukkot lasts for seven days. The two days following the festival are separate holidays, Shemini Atzeret and Simkhat Torah, but are commonly thought of as part of Sukkot.

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.
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 Judaism that 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. (Nifty facts they don’t teach you in public school!)

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).

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 the bimah (the pedestal where the Torah is read) each day during the holiday.

These processions commemorate similar processions around the altar 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).

List of Dates

Sukkot will begin on the following days on the American calendar:
October 7, 2006 (Jewish Year 5667)
September 27, 2007 (Jewish Year 5668)
October 14, 2008 (Jewish Year 5669)
October 3, 2009 (Jewish Year 5770)
September 23, 2010 (Jewish year 5771)
October 13, 2011 (Jewish year 5772)

**Leviticus 23:33 And HaShem spoke unto Moses, saying:
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them: The appointed seasons of HaShem, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are My appointed seasons.
3 Six days shall work be done; but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of work; it is a Sabbath unto HaShem in all your dwellings.
4 These are the appointed seasons of HaShem, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their appointed season.
5 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at dusk, is HaShem’S passover.
6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto HaShem; seven days ye shall eat unleavened bread.
7 In the first day ye shall have a holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work.
8 And ye shall bring an offering made by fire unto HaShem seven days; in the seventh day is a holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work.
9 And HaShem spoke unto Moses saying:
10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them: When ye are come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring the sheaf of the first-fruits of your harvest unto the priest.
11 And he shall wave the sheaf before HaShem, to be accepted for you; on the morrow after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.
12 And in the day when ye wave the sheaf, ye shall offer a he-lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering unto HaShem.
13 And the meal offering thereof shall be two tenth parts of an ephah of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto HaShem for a sweet savour; and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of a hin.
14 And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor fresh ears, until this selfsame day, until ye have brought the offering of your G-d; it is a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
15 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the day of rest, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the waving; seven weeks shall there be complete;
16 even unto the morrow after the seventh week shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall present a new meal-offering unto HaShem.
17 Ye shall bring out of your dwellings two wave-loaves of two tenth parts of an ephah; they shall be of fine flour, they shall be baked with leaven, for first-fruits unto HaShem.
18 And ye shall present with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams; they shall be a burnt-offering unto HaShem, with their meal-offering, and their drink-offerings, even an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto HaShem.
19 And ye shall offer one he-goat for a sin-offering, and two he-lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace-offerings.
20 And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the first-fruits for a wave-offering before HaShem, with the two lambs; they shall be holy to HaShem for the priest.
21 And ye shall make proclamation on the selfsame day; there shall be a holy convocation unto you; ye shall do no manner of servile work; it is a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
22 And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corner of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleaning of thy harvest; thou shalt leave them for the poor, and for the stranger: I am HaShem your G-d.
23 And HaShem spoke unto Moses, saying:
24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying: In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall be a solemn rest unto you, a memorial proclaimed with the blast of horns, a holy convocation.
25 Ye shall do no manner of servile work; and ye shall bring an offering made by fire unto HaShem.
26 And HaShem spoke unto Moses, saying:
27 Howbeit on the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of atonement; there shall be a holy convocation unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls; and ye shall bring an offering made by fire unto HaShem.
28 And ye shall do no manner of work in that same day; for it is a day of atonement, to make atonement for you before HaShem your G-d.
29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from his people.
30 And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any manner of work in that same day, that soul will I destroy from among his people.
31 Ye shall do no manner of work; it is a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
32 It shall be unto you a sabbath of solemn rest, and ye shall afflict your souls; in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye keep your sabbath.
33 And HaShem spoke unto Moses, saying:
34 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying: On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto HaShem.
35 On the first day shall be a holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work.
36 Seven days ye shall bring an offering made by fire unto HaShem; on the eighth day shall be a holy convocation unto you; and ye shall bring an offering made by fire unto HaShem; it is a day of solemn assembly; ye shall do no manner of servile work.
37 These are the appointed seasons of HaShem, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to bring an offering made by fire unto HaShem, a burnt-offering, and a meal-offering, a sacrifice, and drink-offerings, each on its own day;
38 beside the sabbaths of HaShem, and beside your gifts, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill-offerings, which ye give unto HaShem.
39 Howbeit on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruits of the land, ye shall keep the feast of HaShem seven days; on the first day shall be a solemn rest, and on the eighth day shall be a solemn rest.
40 And ye shall take you on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm-trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook, and ye shall rejoice before HaShem your G-d seven days.
41 And ye shall keep it a feast unto HaShem seven days in the year; it is a statute for ever in your generations; ye shall keep it in the seventh month.
42 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are home-born in Israel shall dwell in booths;
43 that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am HaShem your G-d.
44 And Moses declared unto the children of Israel the appointed seasons of HaShem.

**HaShem
(”the name”). Commonly used to refer to God, while avoiding casual use of His name in conversation

Rabbi Poster by Josh Michaels

From the Bible
“Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh, when you have gathered in the fruits of the land, you shall keep a feast unto the Lord seven days: on the first day shall be a Sabbath, a solemn rest, and on the eighth day shall be a solemn rest.” “And you shall take for yourselves on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days. And you shall keep it a feast unto the Lord seven days in the year; it shall be a statute forever in your generations; you shall celebrate it in the seventh month.” “You shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths; that your gene- rations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the Land of Egypt.” “I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD.” And Moses declared unto the Children of Israel the appointed seasons of the Lord.”
Leviticus: 23,39-45

Introduction

The festival of Sukkot is rooted in the Bible, which delineates its basic laws and recounts the historical events related to it.

According to the Pentateuch, HAG HA-SUKKOT (Feast of Booths) or HAG HA-ASIF (Feast of Ingathering), as the holiday is alternately termed, is one of the three festivals on which the Israelites were enjoined to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem. It prescribes the manner of observance — dwelling in booths, prohibition of work on the first and eighth days, offering sacrifices, use of the Four Species, and rejoicing over the harvest.
The people were commanded to assemble and hear the reading of the Law of Moses every seventh year, on the Feast of Booths.

Data

The Festival has nine days (eight in Israel) and begins on the 15th of Tishri.
In addition to the first days there are four intervening days (third to sixth inclusive) known as Chol Hamo’ed — weekdays of the Festival. There are three further days, with characteristics of their own making a combined nine day festival period.

Names
Chag HaSukkot: Festival of Booths (Lev. 23,34).
Chag Ha’Asif : Festival of Ingathering (Exod. 23,16)
Zeman Simchateinu: Season of our Rejoicing (Deut. 16,14)
Chag : The Feast (Lev. 23, 39-41)
The first two days are called Sukkot.
The seventh day is called Hoshanah Rabbah - The Great Hoshanah.
The eighth day is called Shimini Atzeret - The Feast of the Eight days or the Eighth Day of Solemn
Assembly.
The ninth day is called Simchat Torah - Rejoicing of the Law. (This day is really the second day of Shimini Atzeret).

The Temple Period

The dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem during the reign of King Solomon took place on Sukkot, and this historic event is described in detail in I Kings and 2 Chronicles.
First Kings also describes the rebellion of Jeroboam against Rehoboam, King Solomon’s successor. To show his independence, Jeroboam, among other changes, changed the date for the commemoration of the feast.

The biblical books of Ezra and Nehemiah contain accounts of the reinstitution of the celebration of Sukkot in Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile.

The prophet Zechariah foresaw a period when all nations will worship one God and will observe the Feast of Booths. The idea of a universal religious brotherhood is confirmed in the rabbinic dictum:
“On the Feast of Tabernacles, the Israelites offered seventy bullocks for the seventy nations of the world” (Midrash Tanhuma on Pinhas).

A Sukkot Summary

Sukkot is also historically a national celebration–CHAG HA-ASIF–the Harvest Festival. At this time of year the farmer had already gathered his harvest and was relaxing before the first rains. It is only in relation to Sukkot that the Torah says,
“You will rejoice before the Lord your G-d.”
This is why Sukkot is also the only holiday called, “ZMAN SIMCHATENU”– the season of our rejoicing.

Through the Ages

Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem was consecrated during Chag Ha-Asif, and because of this, the holiday of Sukkot became the first of the three REGALIM (pilgrimage festivals celebrated in Jerusalem: Sukkot, Passover and Shavuot).
When Solomon went to Jerusalem, he went with all the people of Israel. The Cohanim (priests) and the Levites brought up all the holy vessels in the Tabernacle and G-d’s altar (the Ark). King Solomon and all the Congregation of Israel that were assembled with him sacrificed sheep and oxen before the Ark.

After the Babylonian exile, Chag Ha-Asif became known as Sukkot. This was in remembrance of the days our ancestors left Egypt and dwelled in booths (Sukkot);
“for in booths I sat the children of Israel when I took them from the land of Egypt” (Leviticus 23:41).
The Torah names the first seven days of Sukkot “Chag Ha-Sukkot”–The Festival of Booths–for during these days we are commanded to sit in the Sukkah. In Israel, Sukkot is celebrated for eight days, while in all other places nine days are celebrated. The eighth day is called Atzeret, and the last day is called Simchat Torah. The first and eighth days are both holy days, and no work is permitted.
Before Sukkot, every Jew builds a Sukkah in his yard where he and his family join in the Sukkot meal. Chassidim (men of good deeds) begin building the Sukkah immediately after Yom Kippur ends, so as to proceed directly from mitzvah to mitzvah:
“they will go from strength to strength” –Psalms 85.

Home and Community Customs

The mitzvah of ARBA’AT HA-MINIM, the four species, symbolizes national unity: The ETROG and LULAV symbolize a full life of happiness and love of G-d. The HADAS and ARAVA represent the weaknesses of man. On Sukkot, it is a mitzvah to invite poor Torah students to join in the meals. In extending this invitation, the Ushpizin are also hosted– Arbraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron and David. This custom represents our forefather Abraham’s mitzvah of inviting guests.

Communal Customs

The seventh day of the mitzvah of Sukkah and “the four species” was named Hosha’nah Rabbah for the prayer “Hosha’nah.” On this day, the altar was circled seven times, while the following words were repeated-
“Save now, I beseech you, G-d; G-d, I beseech you, send now prosperity.”
Today, we march around the Bimah (reader’s pulpit) seven times with the Torah, reciting the same Hosha’nah prayer. On this day, the LULAVIM wave repeatedly, signifying the nation’s prayer for rain.
The night of Hosha’nah Rabbah is the culmination of judgement, the day when our future fate is decided upon and sealed for the coming year. The night has thus come to be called LEYL HA-CHOTAM–the night of the sealing of man’s fate.

On SIMCHAT TORAH (the last day of the Sukkot festival), the annual cycle of the Torah reading is completed, and immediately begun again– symbolizing the nation’s eternity.
The reader who finished the last portion of the Torah is called CHATAN TORAH, bridegroom of the Torah, and the reader who begins “BERESHIT” (the first portion of the Torah) is called CHATAN BERESHIT, bridegroom of Genesis.
On this day, the Torah is lovingly surrounded with dancing, while children carry flags garnished with apples at the end of sticks.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
The materials in this file have been adapted from the “SUCCOT” folder written and produced by the former Publications Division of the Youth and Hechalutz Department, WZO and from “SUKKOT”, a leaflet by the American Zionist Youth Foundation, WZO, New York.