Sept 25, 2026 – Sukkot

Ushpizin and the Power of Poetry

Ushpizin is the custom of welcoming biblical ancestors into the Sukkah. It begins with paragons of hospitality, Abraham and Sarah, and extends from there.

This year provides us with an opportunity to take the concept even further. Make this Sukkot an occasion to welcome poets into your sukkah, be it one of the great Israeli, Hebrew-speaking or American Jewish writers you love, or the late great Wendell Berry, our remarkable Kentucky sage, activist and educator. Think of the seven- to eight-day festival as an opportunity to choose a great poet each night. Alternatively, think of each day as an opportunity to select a theme and read several poems by different writers that speak to it.

Here is a suggested progression to the thematic approach. Feel free to create a progression that speaks to you.

• Day 1: Hospitality — Hachnasat or’chim
• Day 2: Love — Ahava
• Day 3: Reverence — Year
• Day 4: Gratitude — Hodaya
• Day 5: Creation — B’reishit
• Day 6: Generosity — Tzedakah
• Day 7: Respect/Reverence — Kavod
• Day 8: Joy — Simcha

May your celebration of Sukkot be enriched with poetry and may poetry be enhanced by Sukkot.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach,
Rabbi David Wirtschafter