New York – Most observant Jews around the world spend hours building a sukkah that’s big enough to host a full meal for family and guests. Any location under the open sky is considered kosher.
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But what if you’re a Jewish soldier serving in Iraq? Or a young Jew protesting on Wall Street? Or you live in New York City and have only a tiny balcony?
The PopUp Sukkah allows Jews on the go to mark the harvest festival of Sukkot wherever they are.
That’s the choice of Daniel Sieradski, a Jewish man who is spending Sukkot agitating for social justice on Wall Street, and who lacks a city permit to erect a sukkah in occupied Zuccotti Park.
The 11-pound nylon PopUp Sukkah, which jumps out of its case and expands into a 6-foot-high tent, is likely Sieradski’s best chance.
“I plan to be in the park as a protester, but I also plan to be in the park as a Jewish protester,” Sieradski said. “My faith requires me to eat in the sukkah and sleep in the sukkah. It’s going to be an interesting showdown with the police.”
Scores of the portable sukkahs have also gone to prisons where Jewish inmates have expressed an interest in celebrating a proper Sukkot (in the courtyard, not their cells). Wardens are often skeptical. But Rabbi Menachem M. Katz of the Aleph Institute, a nonprofit that advocates for Jews in the military and in prisons, said prison officials usually relent when he pops open a PopUp Sukkah.
“There are no nails or two-by-fours. There are no metal pipes that are going to become a weapon,” Katz said. “If I had to pitch them a regular sukkah, I’d be dead in the water.”
PopUp Sukkahs aren’t the only portable sukkah on the market, this year, for the first time, Brooklyn-based Sukkah Depot is offering a competitively priced portable sukkah for $199 — the “Carry-On” — assembled with fiberglass poles in just a few minutes. More than 100 have been sold already.
“Demand is high,” said Sukkah Depot manager Eitan Kwiat. “In general it’s a solution for people who are traveling, for people who just moved, and don’t want to buy a big sukkah. Or for people who just have a small porch.”
The pop-up sukkah is halachkly questionable at best. It’s a great idea, but the execution is faulty.
A sukkah to be kosher should be rigid and able to withstand normally expected winds, without needing to be taken down, for the entire duration of sukkos.
The “pop-up” fails on both counts miserably!
Why is it really necessary ? Doesn’t the shulchan aruch say that travellers are exempt from succah ?
Let’s not forget the main point here. This guy Daniel is a complete fool and moran. You want to celeberate the holiday then stay home. What are you doing on wall street with a pop up succoh ?? What’s your goal and purpose anyways ? Notice, all the people in attendence are lacking attention and are deficiant in self fulfilment.
Go get a life
Let me tell you that I was by the protests today just for the kicks and saw that pop up sukkah there. It looked pretty sad and saggy, it was half collapsed and looked like it was about to be blown over.
Raboisay, let this stupid guy be mekayem vesomachto bechagecho with his sukah, let him protest in the sukah too, he is only there for attention anyway!
I’m not sure what the problem is w\a temporary sukkah for those who really want to keep the mitvot, but are away from home? As long as it’s made out of the proper materials… it shouldn’t be a problem, correct?
I could be wrong halachahly (sp?) speaking… if anyone can let me know, that’d be great!
In the days of the Moshiach… us gentiles get to celebrate the days of Sukkot as well! (Zechariah)
I look forward to that day, and EVERY DAY when the Moshiach is amongst us!
(:-D