Jewish Unity

Succot is a good time to talk about the importance of Jewish unity. During our Davening on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, we asked Hashem, ויעשו אגודה אחת, and they shall form one unit, to fulfill Your will in this world, with a perfect heart.

When the Jewish people are united, no force on earth can harm us. It is our divisiveness that causes a breach in our Divine protection.

This should be our Kavana when we take hold of the ארבעה מינים. Each specie represents a different kind of Jew. The Etrog, with it’s good smell and good taste, represents the Tzaddik. The willow, with no taste and no smell, represents the רשע, the wicked person. The other two species involve some deficiencies. Nevertheless, we bind them all together as one unit. This is the example of symbolically showing Jewish unity.

We must learn to love every Jew, despite their deficiencies. When we do this, we create this wall of protection that cannot be broken. This, too, is an important message of Succot.