On Hoshana Rabbah We Bid Farewell to the Etrog and Lulav and Welcome Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah

Today is Hoshana Rabbah, the last day of Sukkot. In synagogues around the world, Jews take up the etrog and lulav for the last time and march around the shul seven times carrying them together with the myrtle and willow leaves.

In the evening we welcome Shemini Atzeret, a separate holiday which leads into Simchat Torah. In Israel, both holidays are celebrated in a single day.  

The search for a nice set of the four species is a big project in Israel, where stands are set up in the street and in front of stores where the etrogim (citrons) are on display for buyers to inspect and purchase.

In this video, singer Aaron Holder visits the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem, smelling his way through many etrogim before finding the perfect one.

We will be observing Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah on Thursday and Friday, leading into another Shabbat. So Jewish Humor Central will be taking a break for two days, and we'll be back on Sunday with our usual mix of humor and music.

Enjoy, Chag Sameach, and Shabbat Shalom!

Explaining Why a Month of Jewish Holidays Gets in the Way of Business Meetings - A Sukkot Comedy Sketch

Explaining why a month of Jewish holidays, from Rosh Hashana to Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, Hoshana Rabba and Simchat Torah can be a challenge to observant Jews trying to set up a business meeting with customers who are not observing these holidays.

When the holidays fall on weekdays, and you add Shabbatot to the mix, finding a date for a meeting can leave the impression that you just don't want to have a meeting.

This situation is the subject of a comedy sketch that we found on the Jewish Sparks YouTube channel. In this humorous video, we join a Jewish individual as he navigates the complex calendar of Jewish holidays and hilariously explains to a customer why he couldn't meet in the past month. 

With wit and laughter, he walks through the series of holiday events that have kept him occupied. This comedic take on the challenges of scheduling during the Jewish holiday season will be familiar to many of our readers.

Enjoy! 

Amazon's Sukkot Gift Boxes Spell Out "Happy Tuchus"

What happens when you design a product featuring the phrase "Happy Sukkot" in Hebrew letters, but don't know that cutting and pasting the words from an internet source can result in their appearing backwards and totally changing their meaning? That's what happened this month when it was discovered that the Sukkot gift boxes sold on Amazon were printed with the Hebrew words "Happy Tuchus".

As Larry Yudelson reported in The Jewish Standard, the boxes were discovered by Jessica Russak-Hoffman while searching for Sukkot gift wrappings on Amazon.com.

But what led Russak-Hoffman to press the buy button was the extremely incompetent product design by someone who didn’t realize that when you cut-and-paste Hebrew from the web to an app, there’s always a chance the Hebrew letters will forget they’re supposed to flow from right to left.

Which is how a design which wishes “happy sukkot” in English can present Hebrew characters that approximately spell out tuchus — the Hebrew-derived Yiddish word for bottom or buttocks — which — who knew! — is what you get when you write “sukkot” backwards.

(Tuchus, Merriam Webster informs us, was first cited in English way back in 1886; derived from the Hebrew tachat, “under, below,” it is too slangy, even in Yiddish, to appear in the three Yiddish dictionaries we have at hand.)

But if you want to wish your friends a Sukkot-themed bottoms-up this year, you may be out of luck. The particular product that Russak-Hoffman bought is now unavailable; her tweet went viral, with 70,000 views, not only due to the backsided nature of the Hebrew text, but also the hilarious marketing photos, which included the Sukkot/Tuchus boxes on the table for both Pesach and Chanukkah observances.

Compounding the error, Amazon's photo of the Sukkot boxes shows the breaking of a matzah, which of course is a feature of the Passover seder and has nothing to do with Sukkot or tuchuses.

We'll be celebrating Sukkot and Shabbat for the next three days, and we'll be back with our usual mix of humor and music on Sunday.

Chag sameach and Shabbat Shalom!

 

 

Holiday Countdown: Yiddish Philharmonic Chorus Sings a High Holidays Medley

The Yiddish Philharmonic Chorus began as a musical expression of the Jewish labor movement. It was founded in 1922 as the Freiheit Gezang Farein, an outgrowth of the leftist Morgen Freiheit Yiddish newspaper. In 1948, the Chorus changed its name to The Jewish People’s Philharmonic Chorus—likely to avoid scrutiny during the McCarthy era. Now that it's a century old, they changed the name again—to reflect the goals of learning, enjoying, and promoting the Yiddish language and Yiddish choral music.

The chorus is a multigenerational thirty-five-voice ensemble. They're students, professionals, and robust retirees, all in love with singing and committed to promoting Yiddish language and culture through beautiful four-part harmony.

Led by conductor Binyumen Schaechter, they perform each spring and fall at Merkin Concert Hall and most summers at the North American Jewish Choral Festival. They've also performed at Symphony Space, Carnegie Hall, Shea Stadium, West Point, Queens College, the World Trade Center site after 9/11, and places of worship throughout the New York metropolitan area.

Today we're sharing a video of the chorus singing a medley of songs for Rosh Hashanah,  Sukkot, and Simchat Torah.

Enjoy!

Sukkot in Jerusalem: Thousands of Marchers From Around the World Join in 68th Annual Sukkot March

The streets of Jerusalem were filled with tens of thousands of marchers from more than 70 countries yesterday. This march had nothing to do with protests or politics. It was a joyful expression of support for Israel during the Sukkot holiday.

Israel's television station ILTV reported as the marchers streamed through the city on the way to Sacher Park where they enjoyed hours of live musical acts, dance performances, and activities for children.

The march started 68 years ago in 1955, and grows larger every year.

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Welcoming Shabbat and Sukkot with a Sukkot Video Refresher

Tonight we celebrate a double simcha. The first day of Sukkot starts on Shabbat. Thanks to Chabad, we're sharing a fun and upbeat refresher on all the features of this very special holiday.

This video reviews all of the major features of this holiday, from the sukkah, the arba minim (four species), and holiday practices.

We picked up our lulav and etrog today, and are looking forward to shaking them with the myrtle and willow branches starting Sunday and continuing through the week. 

We will be observing Shabbat and Sukkot for the next two days, so Jewish Humor Central is taking a short break. We'll be back on Monday with our usual mix.

Shabbat shalom and Chag Sameach!

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Rappers and Rabbis Release New Sukkot Music Hip Hop Video Featuring Rapper Kosha Dillz

Rappers and Rabbis, the largest Jewish hip hop collective in the nation, has released a new music video just in time for Sukkot, which starts this Friday evening. They reimagine prayers, reinvent holidays, and use music as a means to connect with Jewish youth.

Rappers and Rabbis have developed interactive and hip-hop-inspired prayer books, Havdalah services, and Passover Haggadahs. They've reached more than 2,500 kids through performances and workshops in camps, schools, and youth groups nationwide, inspiring the next generation to embrace their inner MC.

Their latest release, Sukkah MCs, is a music video that pays tribute to the upcoming holiday of Sukkot, also known as the Festival of Booths. This song is already making waves, thanks to its educational yet fun approach. With captivating cinematography by Tolu, a renowned filmmaker from New York (Newark), and direction by Rachel Haymer, aka Kol Isha, the video brings the essence of Sukkot to life.

The Sukkah MCs music video not only showcases Rappers and Rabbis' talent but also features a guest appearance by the viral sensation Kosha Dillz. Kosha starts as himself, the rapper we know, before transforming into one of the Ushpizin. These Ushpizin are biblical figures traditionally invited into our homes during Sukkot, with each night welcoming a different guest. In this music video, we witness these ancient figures navigating the modern-day Sukkah.

Enjoy!

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A Music Video for Sukkot: "Sukkah", a Parody by Temple Israel of the Maroon 5 Hit "Sugar"

The Sukkot holiday starts this Friday night, which leaves only a few days for us to share any new Sukkot musical videos that are being released this year.

The clergy and staff of Temple Israel of West Bloomfield, Michigan are starting us off with Sukkah, a joyful parody of the pop hit Sugar by Maroon 5, released about eight years ago.

As Suzanne Chessler wrote in The Detroit Jewish News, 

“We want to spread the joy of Sukkot,” said Cantor Michael Smolash, who developed and participated in the video with Cantor Neil Michaels and Maya Grinboim, director of music production for the temple.

“The whole idea of Sukkot is that it takes place as the most joyous holiday in the Jewish calendar. After getting through Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah and the repentance linked to that, this video is all about joy,” Smolash said.

“This video is taking a very popular song and showing how you can celebrate to have fun, be a little silly, dance and be together in the sukkah.”

The music is from the song “Sugar” by Maroon 5, and the new lyrics are by Smolash, Grinboim and Canadian comedian Simon Rakoff, who polished the final lyrics. Rakoff is known personally to Smolash because the comedian is a cousin of Smolash’s wife.

Part of making the video was to appeal to all ages, and the musicians helping with that included Larry Prentiss on electric bass, Steve Nolton on drums and percussion, and Bryan Pope on electric guitars and synth.

“Little kids will like it,” Smolash said. “Adults will get more of the jokes, and teenagers will dig the Maroon 5 song.”

Enjoy!

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Thousands Gather in Jerusalem for Birkat Kohanim (The Priestly Blessing) on Sukkot

In Israel, the priestly blessing takes place daily in every synagogue across the country. But twice a year, once during Passover and once during Sukkot, a mass priestly blessing is held at the Western Wall.

This gathering of tens of thousands became tradition following its initiation by Rabbi Menachem Mendel Gafner during the War of Attrition. He thought of the impact and power the priestly blessing holds, even following the destruction of the temples, and decided to offer both kohanim and others to partake in this meaningful experience en masse during a period that was very difficult in the State of Israel.

Birkat Kohanim at the Kotel is something very worth attending at least once. Provided you aren’t bothered by very large crowds, join the tens of thousands of people who attend this event annually and receive the historic blessing from hundreds of Jews of priestly lineage as they face the congregation, hands stretched forward, chanting in one voice.

This was the scene yesterday morning at the Kotel as Jerusalem residents and visitors came together to receive the blessing of the Kohanim on the third day of Sukkot, the first day of Chol Hamoed.

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A Farewell to Sukkot 2021 with a Walk Through the Street Theater of Jerusalem's Ben Yehuda Street

During most of the year Jerusalem's Ben Yehuda Street is busy with tourists and locals visiting the many shops and restaurants on this popular pedestrian mall. But it really comes to life during the intermediate days (Chol Hamoed) of Sukkot.

This year we weren't able to be there in person, but thanks to YouTuber Amir Rimer's post we're able to pay a virtual visit to yesterday's activities on the street.

Street performers and musicians flock to the site to play their instruments and dress as living statues, human flowers, and even a witch with her cauldron.

Enjoy the stroll down Ben Yehuda and enjoy the last two days of this holiday, Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah (one and the same day in Israel). We'll be observing the holiday tomorrow and Wednesday, and we'll be back with our usual mix on Thursday.

Chag Sameach!

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Etrog After Sukkot: A Visit to Jerusalem's Medicine Man and His Etrog Remedies

Starting tomorrow we will be waving the etrog, along with the lulav, myrtle and willow branches, for the week of Sukkot. The etrog can be very expensive, costing up to and in some cases more than $100 apiece.

But what use is the etrog after the holiday is over? It depends where you are and who you are. As we enter the Sukkot holiday, let's hop over to Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda market, where one of the shopkeepers, Uzi-Eli Chezi, is known as the Etrog medicine man.

In this video, Uzi-Eli greets a pair of American visitors and gives them instant etrog-based treatments for a variety of illnesses and skin conditions, along with a jolly laugh and a hearty welcome to Israel.

Enjoy! We'll be celebrating Sukkot tomorrow and Wednesday, returning with more Jewish Humor Central on Thursday.

Chag Sameach!

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Yiddish Word of the Day - The Holiday of Sukkot

Last year the Forverts launched a daily series of short informal video clips called Yiddish Word of the Day.

The series, written and narrated by Forverts editor Rukhl Schaechter, aims to give non-Yiddish speakers an introduction to familiar Yiddish words and phrases and how they might be used in everyday situations. 

Schaechter, who was appointed the new editor of the Forverts in 2016, is the first woman to helm the paper in its 119-year history, its first editor to have been born in the United States, and likely its first editor who is shomeret Shabbat.We posted the first of this series in May 2020. Now that the Forverts is continuing the series, we'll continue sharing some of the words and phrases as a regular feature of Jewish Humor Central.

Today we'll share the Yiddish words and expressions that relate to the holiday of Sukkot, which starts tomorrow night.

Enjoy!

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Before Coronavirus: Second Hakafot After Simchat Torah in Jerusalem

Here's a scene that's unlikely to be repeated this year because of coronavirus lockdowns and social distancing. But two years ago at Yeshivat Har Hamor in Jerusalem, hundreds of Yeshiva students joyfully participated in the annual second hakafot at the conclusion of Simchat Torah. 

Yeshivat Har Hamor was founded in Jerusalem in the year 5758, by the pupils of Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Hacohen Kook. Hundreds of boys learn, day and night, all parts of the Torah, while also combining military service.

At the conclusion of the one day celebration of Shemini Atzeret/Simchat Torah in Israel and the beginning of Simchat Torah in the Diaspora, there is a custom in Israel to do Second Hakafot, during which people go into the streets with Torah scrolls and dance another time. 

The source of this custom is attributed to Rabbi Hayyim ben Joseph Vital, who described the customs of his teacher, Isaac Luria, in Safed. Vital explains Luria had the custom to visit a number of synagogues after Simchat Torah, which delayed the end of the prayer services and did Hakafot. 

From there the custom spread to Hebron and the Beit El Synagogue in Jerusalem, and subsequently spread to other congregations in Jerusalem before becoming accepted across Israel. The custom spread from Israel to communities in Italy and the Near East—Turkey, Baghdad, Persia, Kurdistan, and India. 

Over the next few days we'll be observing a quiet Shabbat, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah while remembering joyous celebrations like this one and hoping for a return to normalcy next year.

Shabbat shalom and Chag Sameach!

Welcoming Shabbat and Sukkot with Adon Olam by Toronto's Beth Radom Congregation

Today we're welcoming both Shabbat and Yom Tov with a new version of Adon Olam by Toronto's Beth Radom Congregation.

Beth Radom, a.k.a. BRC or the Radomer Shul, is Toronto's first Conservative synagogue which combines traditional and alternative approaches, services and customs with a spiritual davening experience.

Their rendition of Adon Olam is set to the tune of Blinded by the Lights, a pop hit performed by The Weeknd and Pentatonix with millions of views online. 

We'll be observing the first two days of Sukkot tomorrow and Sunday, and we'll be back with our usual mix on Monday.

Shabbat shalom and Chag Sameach!

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Netanyahu Gives Visiting Pompeo a Tour of His Sukkah

On Friday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Israel and the home of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In a joint statement they reaffirmed the strong close relationship between the two countries.

At the end of the meeting, Netanyahu and US ambassador David Friedman showed Pompeo the residence’s sukkah, or temporary booth, built for the Sukkot holiday. “Since you’re visiting here on the holiday of Sukkot, we sit in the sukkah during the Feast of Tabernacles. We remember what it was like when we didn’t have a permanent home,” said Netanyahu. 

 “We sit here to have our family meals and visitors sit here in the sukkah.” “When you put the schach on the top, it is supposed to be porous enough so that you can see the stars. One problem is what do you do when it rains? The answer is you go in.” “This is a typical sukkah, and my kids used to draw drawings for it.”

Tonight and Monday we celebrate the holiday of Shemini Atzeret followed by Simchat Torah on Tuesday. We'll be back with more Jewish Humor Central postings on Wednesday.

Chag Sameach! 

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Sukkot is Here - Get Ready to Shake Your Lulav with Rebbetzin Tap!

With Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur in the rear view mirror, Sukkot is suddenly here. Starting tonight, we'll be spending lots of time in the Sukkah --eating, drinking, and spending special time with family and friends. Some of us may also be sleeping in the Sukkah, weather permitting.

As we head into a seven day period of saying special blessings while holding the lulav, etrog, myrtle and willow branches together and giving them a good shake, let's get the holiday off to a good start with Rebbetzin Tap and her entourage.

Rebbetzin Tap is Kerry Bar-Cohn, the only female chiropractor in Ramat Beit Shemesh near Jerusalem, where she lives with her husband David and four sons.
 
But that's only her day job. As "Rebbetzin Tap," she produces music and dance DVDs for children, as well as online courses and a plethora of YouTube videos, whose goal is to emphasize the “joy” component in Judaism and in life, and to teach self-esteem and empowerment.

Why Rebbetzin Tap? Because tap dancing is part of all her music videos.
She has a background in stage performance, first as a child, then attending the High School of Performing Arts in New York, and subsequently returning to performance ten years ago after making aliyah.

We'll be taking tomorrow and Tuesday off to celebrate Sukkot, and we'll be back with our usual Jewish Humor Central mix on Wednesday.

Chag Sameach!

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Ivanka Trump and Kids Head to Shul on Shemini Atzeret

The news media always pay attention when Ivanka Trump gets dressed for shul, and this week her walk to shul on Shemini Atzeret in the Kalorama section of Washington, D.C. was no exception.

This year they focused on her dress and hat, and the scooters that her three kids were riding. The mispronunciations of the automated text reader are always funny, and especially when trying to pronounce Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret.

Back in 2011 we posted a photo from the London Daily Mail showing Ivanka, Jared, and baby Arabella walking to shul in Manhattan on Sukkot. It's still the most viewed post on Jewish Humor Central. What made the photo an example of Jewish humor was the Daily Mail's description of the scene as Ivanka walking with some flowers that her husband bought for her. Actually he was carrying a lulav in plastic wrapping and an etrog in a cardboard box, just like any Jew going to shul on the holiday. 

Enjoy!

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"Big Bang Theory" Actress Mayim Bialik Builds a Sukkah

With Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur behind us, our attention turns to Sukkot, one of the happiest holidays in the Jewish calendar.

We hope you had an easy and meaningful fast, and now it's time to plan our feasts for the eight-day holiday of Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah.

Some start building a sukkah immediately after Yom Kippur, and many sukkot went up last night and today.

One of the sukkah building projects was done by actress Mayim Bialik.

You may know Mayim Bialik as Amy Farrah Fowler, Sheldon Cooper's neuroscientist girlfriend (now wife) on The Big Bang Theory, but in real life she really is a neuroscientist who identifies as an Orthodox Jew.

In August 2015, Bialik launched her own lifestyle website, GrokNation, which caters to women and includes wide-ranging topics such as religion, popular culture, parenting, and Hollywood.

Bialik also mentioned in her interviews that her website's title was in reference to the classic 1961 sci-fi novel Stranger in a Strange Land and was derived from the word grok, which means to fully grasp something in the deepest way possible.

In this video Mayim  shows you how she built her sukkah last year and what it looks like when completed.  There's time lapse and drone footage.

Whether you built your own sukkah or whether you'll be spending time this week in the sukkah of a friend or a synagogue, we wish you good weather and a very happy holiday. We will be celebrating a family Sukkot and we'll be in shul Monday and Tuesday. We'll be back on Wednesday with our usual mix of Jewish humor.

Enjoy, and Chag Sameach!

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Today is Hoshanah Rabbah, Last Chance for a Lulav Shake This Year, So Let's Make it a Big One!

Well, our month of holidays is finally coming to an end. Today is Hoshanah Rabbah, the fifth day of Chol Hamoed Sukkot, and the day before Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah.

Whether or not you got a chance to shake a lulav with the etrog, myrtle and willow branches this year, we thought a video of the festivities in Jerusalem yesterday would bring a satisfying closure to this holiday period.

Here's a video of the throngs gathered at the Western Wall yesterday morning to say Hallel with their Sukkot symbols.

One lulav shaker somewhere in the world (we haven't located the place yet) couldn't make it to the Western Wall and did his shaking in a synagogue. This has to be the biggest lulav and etrog that we have ever seen. We'd like to see the carrying case for this giant palm frond. Watch the short video clip below the video of the scene at the Kotel.

We'll be celebrating Sukkot and Shabbat for the next three days and we'll be back with more Jewish humor on Sunday.

Chag sameach and Shabbat shalom!


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Sukkot in Jerusalem: The Joy of Simchat Beit Hashoeivah in a Chasidic Yeshiva

When the Temple in Jerusalem stood, a unique service was performed every morning throughout the Sukkot holiday: the Nisuch ha-Mayim (lit. "Pouring of the water") or Water Libation Ceremony. 

According to the Talmud, Sukkot is the time of year in which God judges the world for rainfall; therefore this ceremony, like the taking of the Four Species, invokes God's blessing for rain in its proper time. The water for the libation ceremony was drawn from the Pool of Siloam (Hebrew: Breikhat HaShiloah‎‎) in the City of David and carried up the Jerusalem pilgrim road to the Temple. The joy that accompanied this procedure was palpable. 

Afterwards, every night in the outer Temple courtyard, tens of thousands of spectators would gather to watch the Simchat Beit HaShoeivah (Rejoicing at the Place of the Water-Drawing), as the most pious members of the community danced and sang songs of praise to God. The dancers would carry lit torches, and were accompanied by the harps, lyres, cymbals and trumpets of the Levites. According to the Mishnah, (Tractate Sukkah), "He who has not seen the rejoicing at the Place of the Water-Drawing has never seen rejoicing in his life." Throughout Sukkot, the city of Jerusalem teemed with Jewish families who came on the holiday pilgrimage and joined together for feasting and Torah study. A partition separating men and women was erected for this occasion. Nowadays, this event is recalled via a Simchat Beit HaShoeivah gathering of music, dance, and refreshments. This event takes place in a central location such as a synagogue, yeshiva, or place of study. Refreshments are served in the adjoining sukkah. Live bands often accompany the dancers. The festivities usually begin late in the evening, and can last long into the night.

Join us for a few minutes of Sukkot rejoicing at a Simchat Beit HaShoeivah at the Toldos Aharon center in Jerusalem.  The Toldos Aharon sect, based in Jerusalem's Meah Shearim neighborhood is one of the most extreme in the Haredi world, but certainly one of the most fascinating as well as devout.

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