Judaism

There are many disagreements about four ancient Jewish institutions: the Sanhedrin, the Men of the Great Assembly, the Pharisees, and the Sadducees. Put differently, no one knows the truth about these institutions, even though that for many Jews, the subject is profoundly important.

Tradition mandates that Jews should read the biblical book Kohelet, also spelt Koheleth and Qohelet, called Ecclesiastes in English, during the holiday of Sukkot. Both the Hebrew and English names mean “collector” or “collection.” We do not know why this mandate was made. Some say that since Sukkot is a very happy holiday, we need the sober thoughts of Kohelet to modify our joy and make it more reasonable. The book was considered heretical by many ancient rabbis who wanted to exclude it from the Bible.

Leviticus 23:40 states that the Israelites should take four species on the first day and “rejoice before the Lord your God seven days.” While the Hebrew words used for the four species are obscure, the Jewish Publication Society’s 1960 translation defines them as “the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook.” An apparently separate command in verse 42 states, “Ye shall dwell in booths seven days.” The first biblical description of the implementation of this command is in the biblical book Nehemiah. It is entirely different than the way the holiday is celebrated today. (To read more, please click on the headline.)