Many of you know of my fondness for Jewish legends and folklore.  As we prepare for the festival of Sukkot, I am reminded how the Jewish value of hospitality takes on a mythical quality at this holiday.  I hope that you are intrigued by the following excerpt from The Tree of Souls by the great Jewish folklorist Howard Schwartz (p. 299)

…On the first night of Sukkot a mysterious guest appears in the sukkot of the righteous. This is none other than Abraham, who is the first of seven guests to appear, one on each night of the festival. On the second night Isaac appears, and on the third, Jacob. Joseph appears on the fourth night, Moses on the fifth, Aaron on the sixth, and King David on the last night of Sukkot… These guests are known as the Seven Shepherds...

Before these celestial guests can appear, they are invited with the following words: “Let us invite our guests. Let us prepare the table. ‘You shall live in booths seven days (Lev.23:42).’ Be seated, guests from on high, be seated! Be seated, guests of faith, be seated!”

Among some modern Jews there is a new custom of also inviting the four matriarchs, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah, along with Miriam, Deborah, and Esther, or other female leaders of the Jewish people, to visit in the sukkah.