What is Shemini Atzeret/Simchat Torah all about? Is it merely a continuation of the week-long holiday of Sukkot or does it have its own special purpose?
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'If atonement is not granted on Rosh Hashana, I will grant it on Yom Kippur, and if they do not attain atonement on Yom Kippur, I will grant it on Hoshana Rabba.'
Concern for our material possessions does not represent indulgence, but the opposite. We learn this lesson from our forefather Jacob and the Festival of Sukkot.
The word "Sukkot" means "huts" or "booths", referring to the booth-like structures that Jews are to eat their meals in over the course of the holiday, and preferably to sleep in too!
The day after the Jewish High Holiday of Yom Kippur, Jewish communities in Israel and around the globe start building in preparation for the Festival of Succot.
US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman was among the 100,000 who attended the annual 'Birkat Kohanim' - Priestly Blessing - at the Western Wall in Jerusalem during Sukkot 2019.
Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah are timeless lessons of continuity, growth, study and celebration of all of God's gifts, especially the spiritual ones.
Mistakenly confused with Sukkot and sometimes referred to as the last days of Sukkot, the holiday of Simchat Torah is actually an independent holiday that begins the moment the holiday of Sukkot ends.