Read the passage below:
Housing insecurity leads us to think about vulnerability in the face of the of places in which we live. It therefore prompts us to explore the value of hospitality, and consider how and where hospitality shows up in our own lives as we consider inviting others inside.
Hospitality can be defined as the relationship between a guest and a host, where the host receives the guest with goodwill. Inviting those in need to your home through an act of hospitality is quite different than an act of charity. In fact, one can be “hospitable” even without a home.
Facilitator Prompts the Group:
- How, in your estimation, is being “hospitable” different than being “charitable”?
- How might you people move themselves from being “charitable” to “hospitable” when it comes to those who are housing insecure?
After reading the following passage for context, answer the prompts below:
The Jewish holiday of Sukkot invites us to think about the nature of homes, the protection they afford, and how – without them – individuals are vulnerable to the forces of nature. One of the central mitzvot (commandments) of this holiday is to build a Sukkah – a temporary booth whose roof is made of palm leaves and through which you are able to see the sky.
The exact goal of the mitzva of Sukkah is debated in the Talmud. (Sukka 11b). Rabbi Eliezer thought that the Sukka is meant to remind us of the miraculous Clouds of Glory that protected the Israelites in the desert while Rabbi Akiva argued it is meant to represent the actual physical booths that the Israelites dwelled in the desert.
Sukkot then is a time of impermanence, and an opportunity to think about the vulnerability of not having fixed and secure shelter, raising many of the issues involved in housing and housing justice. It also invites us to think about hospitality, since a core aspect of Sukkot is inviting guests inside your dwelling, even if it is temporary.
In fact, a symbolic marker of this value is that of “Ushpizin,” which is the Aramaic word for “guests.” In Jewish tradition it is a reference to key Jewish historical figures who metaphorically come to visit us in the sukkah, each of the seven days of the Sukkot festival.
“Ushpizin” is not just a symbolic dimension of Sukkot, but rather, a core part of the experience of the holiday. Guests are an important part of the Jewish home all year round – but especially on the Jewish holidays, and in particular on Sukkot.
Facilitator prompts the group:
- How can we think about the value of hospitality on Sukkot and extend it to larger questions of engaging with those who are experiencing housing insecurity?
- How might the vulnerability of a Sukka open up your thinking about those who experience housing insecurity in an ongoing way?
