Hillel builds a fragile home

Students may have noticed the building of a new structure on Monday, near the Seventh Street barbecue pits, across from the Event Center.

The new building is a sukkah, a temporary structure built by people from Hillel of Silicon Valley to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.

Eight people worked on the construction of the sukkah, which was a framework of metal piping covered by a sheet of plastic.

Vanina Mutchnik, assistant director of Hillel of Silicon Valley, said the sukkah is a temporary place to live, and is a reminder of how the ancient Jewish people once lived. Jews are obligated to build a sukkah once a year for a week.

She said that according to Jewish history, the Jewish people had to live in temporary facilities called "sukkot" as they wandered the desert after their departure from Egypt.

"Sukkot is plural," she said. "Sukkah is singular."

Mutchnik said the fragility of the sukkah is similar to the fragility of human life, referring to the ease with which a sukkah can be damaged by the elements.

"The sukkah is a fragile place, a temporary place," she said. "It could collapse at any time. We need to take care of our lives as we care for the sukkah."

Mutchnik said Hillel used to build its sukkah outside the Hillel house, located on East William Street, but SJSU has allowed the organization to build a sukkah on campus.

The decision was a blessing, Mutchnik said, because it would allow Hillel to educate students about Jewish beliefs and ways of life.

"One of the goals of Hillel is to educate the campus community about Judaism," she said.

Business management major Eli Lemberg said this was his first time celebrating Sukkot, and said building the sukkah at SJSU "really enhances the Jewish community here on campus."

Freshman kinesiology major Leonard Druker said the sukkah is a chance for a lot of Jewish teens to come together from SJSU and the nearby colleges to meet each other.

"It represents our religion and our culture more," Druker said. "People know who we are."

Building on campus also had the advantage of allowing the University Police Department to watch over the sukkah, she said, referring to the 2007 burning of the sukkah outside the Hillel house.

Mutchnik said all people are welcome to come to the sukkah.

During the day, Hillel staff and students from the Jewish Student Union will be in the sukkah to meet anyone who came, she said.

Spartan Daily, Issue date: 10/6/09 Section: News, Ryan Fernandez.