Published: 24 September 2018
Last updated: 5 March 2024
During the Hebrew month of Tishrei, the ancient olive tree that dominates the yard of this large worship space is dwarfed by a reed succah, a ceremonial hut in which Jews consume their meals for one week each year on the holiday of Succot, in commemoration of the Israelites’ state of homelessness after they were freed from slavery in Egypt.
But the Ark is no synagogue. It’s a popular Protestant church with a giant illuminated cross affixed to the wall behind the pastor’s pulpit.
Located 64 kilometres south of Amsterdam in Holland’s so-called Bible Belt, The Ark’s congregation of 1,500 members is celebrating Succot, which began yesterday, for the second consecutive year.
The church has joined a growing number of Protestant churches in Holland where Succot, or the Feast of Tabernacles, has been celebrated in recent years by Christians who are drawn to the Jewish holiday’s theological and ecological significance.
“Succot, a harvest holiday, is deeply connected to the earth and heavens,” said Piet van Veldhuizen, a longtime camping enthusiast and survivalist who has served as The Ark’s pastor for over a decade.
FULL STORY Why these Dutch Christians are celebrating Succot (Times of Israel)
Photo: Pastor Piet van Veldhuizen has lunch inside his congregation’s succah (Cnaan Liphshiz)
READ MORE
There’s an AirBnB For Succahs (Forward)
For Succot, a story by Israeli novelist Haim Be’er, in a first English translation By Haim Be’er (Tablet)
