“For forty years, the Israelites lived without permanent homes…in the wilderness …The people certainly lived under Divine protection. But they could never be sure in advance whether it would be forthcoming and what form this protection might take. It was a prolonged period of insecurity.

The Israelites may have complained and rebelled. But they followed God. They kept going.

…It becomes important to embed in a people’s memory the knowledge that we can handle the unknown. God is with us, giving us the courage we need.

Succot is a testament to the Jewish people’s survival. Each Succot it is as if God were reminding us: don’t think you need solid walls to make you feel safe. I led your ancestors through the desert so that they would never forget the journey they had to make and the obstacles they had to overcome to get to this land.

It is no accident that the Jewish people is the only one to have survived 2,000 years of exile and dispersion, its identity intact and energy unabated. It is the only people who can live in a shack with leaves as a roof and yet feel surrounded by Clouds of Glory. It is the only people who can live in a temporary dwelling and yet rejoice.”