On Sukkot, we strengthen our local communities, hosting elaborate meals with relatives and friends and leaving one wall of the sukkah open, symbolizing hospitality. Sukkot also invokes the Jewish community in time. We build temporary structures to commemorate our biblical ancestors wandering through the desert, and we invite ushpizin – symbolic guests.

Traditionally, ushpizin have been biblical characters, kabbalistically associated with particular divine attributes. In my community in Los Angeles, I have noticed and participated in a new approach: summoning the presence of more recent ancestors. This Sukkot, I am promoting this tradition with a focus on our ancestors’ words.

I first experienced a more personalized ushpizin at a friend’s sukkah about a decade ago. Before dessert, the hosts asked each guest to share one person – historical or contemporary – that they would like to symbolically invite to the meal. The guests offered diverse responses, which led to additional conversations and strengthened ties among guests. My family and others we know have adopted this practice at our own sukkah gatherings, interspersed with kiddush, lulav shaking, singing, schmoozing and, of course, copious food.

In our ushpizin conversations, some guests have “invited” celebrities like Taylor Swift and Post Malone or Jewish heroes like Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Rachel Goldberg-Polin. Some have used the opportunity to introduce lesser known historical figures, like scientist Rosalind Franklin and entertainer Gertrude Berg. But the most common type of ushpizin I’ve noticed over the years has been relatives – an adult child living in another state, an elderly parent who was too frail to travel, a deceased grandparent they sorely missed, or even a great-great grandparent who had been part of their family lore.

When sukkah guests speak of their deceased ancestors, especially parents and grandparents, they often get emotional.........

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