Ten years ago, Ron Schulhof and Michelle Sterling, two congregants who were serving as volunteers on our village's sustainability board, approached me with an intriguing proposal: make WRT the first local house of worship to go zero-waste.

We sat down with Rabbi Joseph Meszler, author of "The Sukkah in the Storm: A Sukkot Story," to discuss the ways this story teaches children about strength, resilience, community, and asking for help.

Sukkot is known in Hebrew as Z’man Simchateinu – the time of our joy. It’s the happiest festival on the Jewish calendar, labeled as such because it represents a time for coming together to enjoy family, nature, and a bountiful harvest.

Decorate your Sukkot table with Ethiopian, North African, and Sephardi breads full of fall colors and tantalizing spice mixes while broadening your palate with the customs of worldwide Jewish communities. Laden with seasonal honey, pumpkin, or orange, they don’t need braiding and make perfect gifts.  

Known as z’man simchateinu (season of our rejoicing), Sukkot is the only festival associated with an explicit commandment to rejoice.

This year, even if you do not have a sukkah to visit, you can still experience the kavanah (intention) and the ruach (spirit) of Sukkot.

Congregations from coast to coast welcomed immigrants, asylum-seekers, and refugees to be guests in their sukkot and to share their stories. Here are a few reports from congregations that held these moving events.

One iconic, modern Hebrew song about Sukkot is far more than a simple holiday song for children.