A highlight of this week's Sukkot holiday will be two re-enactments of Hakhel public gatherings taken from commandments mentioned in recent Torah readings The word Hakhel literally means "Gather the people together," and is a Biblical commandment (Deut. 31, 10-12) for the entire nation to gather in Jerusalem for the purpose of hearing parts of the Torah read aloud in an awe-inspiring ceremony, during the Sukkot holiday following the Shemittah year, in the courtyards of the Holy Temple.
The Jerusalem-based Temple Institute, in conjunction with the Jewish Quarter Reconstruction and Development Company, plans a reenactment of the dramatic ceremony at 4:30 PM on Wednesday, October 15th, the first day (in Israel) of the holiday's Intermediate Days, in the Tekumah Park, below the Jewish Quarter's well-known parking lot. The ceremony will be preceded by two large-scale ascents to the Temple Mount, at 7:30 AM and 12:30 PM.
On Thursday at 3:30 PM at the Western Wall plaza, another Hakhel-related ceremony will be held, involving the introduction of a new Torah Scroll to the Western Wall praying area. Sponsored by the Chief Rabbinate, government offices, and the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, it will feature the presence of former and current Chief Rabbis, but will be less Temple-oriented in nature.
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