The Hidden Holiness of the Sukkah - Rabbi Rafi Brodie

Straight after Yom Kippur comes another holiday. The holiday of Sukkot, where the Jews do something quite interesting. They leave their homes and have all of their meals and possibly sleep in a temporary [music] shack-like structure, where they can see the stars and sleep under the stars. According to the sages, this sukkah, this temporary abode, has tremendous sanctity. >> [music] >> It has wonderful holiness. And when we sit in there, we feel so holy. >> [music] >> But do we? I wish I would feel so holy. >> [music] >> We don't really feel that holiness. So, is the holiness there? Well, let me ask you another question. >> [music] >> When you go to the synagogue and pray, do you know that the divine presence comes down? We are sitting, literally, talking to God face-to-face. And there's such holiness in the synagogue. Innate holiness. But [music] do we feel it? Or we just feel so normal, mundane? So, listen to this. There was a fellow who was on a flight 33,000 [music] ft in the air. And he calls the steward over and says, "I'm hot. I'm sweating. [music] Could you please open the window?" "Window? We're 33,000 ft in the air." "I'm hot. The air con here is garbage. Please open the window." >> [music] >> "We're in the air." "Excuse me," said the fellow, "I feel totally like I'm on the wrong way." Well, the steward thought of explaining to him air pressure and how the whole thing works. But he just says, "I'm sorry. It may feel like you're on ground, but you're really high in the air." "Can we open [music] the window? It feels like we're on the ground." Sometimes we're way, way up in the sky. Just because it doesn't feel like that does not mean that we're not there. So, when you're in the synagogue, it may not feel like the divine presence is there, but it's there. And we must behave like the divine presence is there. And we can feel it, and we can talk to God. And when we're in the sukkah, when we're in this temporary abode, and the divine presence in there, and there's [music] tremendous holiness, we may not feel it. But feeling is not everything. The truth is that the world is a big sukkah. Hashem's presence is with us all the time. And that that we don't feel it does not mean that he's not there. So, capitalize on it. >> [music] >> Talk to God. Feel God in your world, and you'll have a better and more connected life.