Have you not yet invited guests to your sukkah? The organization "Guardians of the Common House," Initiative 929, and other social organizations are launching a festive and special project that calls upon the Israeli public – individuals, organizations, companies, and communities from all over the country – to open their sukkahs to guests from all segments of Israeli society and engage in deep and meaningful dialogue. The goal is to strengthen connection, unity, and Israeli identity, especially during these challenging and complex times.
The project, for which participation in is free and open to the general public, is conditional upon advance registration on the Common House website. With registration, you can choose whether to host in your sukkah or be hosted in another sukkah, and accordingly, participants will be allocated to various sukkahs throughout the country. In addition to the registered participants, guides from various organizations will also be placed in the sukkahs. Their goal is to encourage and deepen social dialogue, aiming to connect and bridge the daily divisions in political, social, Israeli, and Jewish aspects, reminding us all of our shared lives in Israel in 2023.
Among the guides and facilitators who have joined the project, you can find Rabbi Shai Piron, Judge Elyakim Rubinstein, singers Berry Sakharof, Ivri Lider, and Shai Tsabari, Brigadier General (Res.) and former CEO of "Derechenu" Yaya Fink, former Knesset Member Yehuda Glick, Rabbi and Professor Dalia Marx, Professor Yuli Tamir, and many other good people.
Rabbi Dr. Benny Lau, the head of Project 929, stated that "Our shared home - the State of Israel - is in danger. We need to stop, talk, and recognize each other beyond slogans and extreme statements, and rediscover the common language. Sukkot, the holiday of hospitality and dwelling in temporary shelters, where we all leave the comfort of our protected homes and come together in a public space, is an excellent time to break down some barriers and talk. Just talk to each other. I hope that the leadership in Israel, which sees the public voting with its feet for the sake of unifying dialogue, will also understand that there is no other way. We need to stop and talk."
Eyal Gur, one of the leaders of "Shomrim VeShomriot Al HaBayit HaMeshutaf" (Guardians of the Shared Home), added and said, "As someone who has been leading protests for nine months, my ears are always open to listen to other voices. The rift created by politicians can only be healed with broad consensus that leans on a return to the fundamental agreement of the people of Israel, as expressed in the Declaration of Independence and was self-evident until recently. The vision of the prophets, the nation-state of the Jewish people, equality for all, and a single system of justice."
