Detroit Jewish News

October 05, 2017

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2162010 BUY t SELL LEASE t MANAGE Get RESULTS www.MetroSold.com Let our 150 years of combined experience and knowledge guarantee the best possible outcome. serving Oakland County and the Entire Metro Area including Ann Arbor Residential & Commercial Got Questions? Cari Cohen 248-574-1905 Direct Sid Roth 248-202-3297 Direct Regina Bronstein: Huntington Woods Specialist 248-298-9615 Direct Jay Greenspan, Broker Jgreenspan@metrosold.com 248-488-SOLD MICHIGAN METROPOLITAN, REALTORS ® A DIVISION OF MICHIGAN PROPERTY MANAGERS 2117430 MEL DRYMAN Raised in Detroit, Experienced in Arizona Your Professional & Dedicated ARIZONA REALTOR Mobile: (480) 239-8686 mel.dryman@azmoves.com Each Office Independently Owned and Operated 3051 E WALTON BOULEVARD, AUBURN HILLS, MI 48326 100 W SQUARE LAKE ROAD, BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP, MI 48302 2500 MARTIN PARKWAY, COMMERCE TOWNSHIP, MI 48390 Welcome to the lifestyle you seek, the care and security you need and the dignity you deserve. Our communities include The Village Square, 3 on-site restaurants with Chef-prepared meals, a Concierge approach to care and more. This is where life happens! NOW ACCEPTING RESERVATIONS! 855-543-2636 WWW.FIRSTANDMAIN.US ASSISTED LIVING I MEMORY CARE OPENING FALL 2017 IN OAKLAND COUNTY! 40 October 5 • 2017 jn M any congregations observe the tradition of reading the Book of Ecclesiastes (Kohelet) during Sukkot. It is an interesting pairing of this holiday with this particular book. Our tradition describes Sukkot as Z'man Simchateinu, the time of our rejoicing. It is a time when we wel- come guests and connect with our surrounds. A time for us to be inspired by the nomadic origins of our people. Compare this with the tone of Ecclesiastes. It famously proclaims, "Utter futility! All is futile!" or, as the King James version of the Bible gave the transla- tion, "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity!" (Ecclesiastes 1:2) Far from joyful, Kohelet's view of the world is pessi- mistic and corrupt. A world where the cunning prosper and the meek go oppressed. A world where there is no hope for change in the future, that there will never be anything new "beneath the sun." It is hardly what one would expect as a reading to emphasize the theme of rejoicing, so why then was it cho- sen for this festival? What can we learn from this book and its ironic inclusion by many as part of our Sukkot liturgy? One answer explains that Sukkot as a holiday is meant to remind us that our lives are finite. We have the privilege of living for a set amount of time and then so quickly we are gone. The sukkah we invest money, time and energy into erecting is used for but a week and then it is gone. An old joke asks, "Why do Jews say Shalom, peace, when greeting or leaving someone?" The answer: "We don't know if we're coming or going." We do not know what might be around the next turn. This uncertainty presents a choice. We can rejoice in the time we have or fret over how long we have remaining. Ecclesiastes adjacent to the festival provides a framework for this consideration. Another answer explains that the dark tone of Ecclessiastes provides a contrast that heightens the significance of our rejoicing. Like the break- ing of glass at the end of a wedding, the study of Ecclesiastes reminds us of the reality that in the presence of any celebra- tion there is also sorrow. This aware- ness of sorrow enables better appre- ciation of what is good in one's life. Life contains both its share of uncertainty and challenge, as well as joy. Whatever comes next, may we find our joys heightened through our observance of this holiday and our appreciation of that joy height- ened as well against the backdrop of Sukkot. Whatever remains to unfold in our world beneath the sun, let it be for the good. May we this Sukkot, Z'man Simchteinu, be reminded of all we have to be joyful for in our lives, but let us also remember that bitterness is a part of life. In doing so, may our lives this new year of 5778 be sweet- ened as we learn to appreciate those things we are fortunate enough to possess. • Brent Gutmann is rabbi at Temple Kol Ami in West Bloomfield. The Bitter And The Sweet spirit torah portion Parshat Chol HaMoed Sukkot: Exodus: 33: 12-34:26; Ezekiel 38:18-39:16. Rabbi Brent Gutmann BRETT MOUNTAIN

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