If You Build It - He Will Come

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In addition to the sukkah that we build at Hillel, which is basically a porch with schach[1], we also build one with canvas side panels outside the cafeteria. Thus in order to have a kosher sukkah we must tie three strings approximately 3 inches apart from each other to create a ‘’virtual’’ barrier that will constitute the halachic walls of the sukkah[2]. Today we did not yet have the necessary string and the question arose: may we first lay the schach upon the sukkah and only later tie the strings?

A sukkah with lavud straps

Rabbi Meir of Rothenberg writes in his Hagahot Maymoniyot[3]that the walls of the sukkah must be built before the schach is put in place. His reasoning for this is that if the schach is placed before the sides are, by definition we are not building the sukkahrather it is passively being built[4]. The Rama[5]rules in accordance with the opinion of the Hagahot Maymoniyot[6].
For this reason we must tie the strings and create the halachicwalls of the sukkah prior to placing the schach upon the sukkah.
I believe there is a profound message concealed within this special law: We build the sukkah from bottom to top and God sanctifies it from above – not vice versa!

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[1] The material used for the rooftop of a sukkah[2] See Shulchan Aruch OC 630:10, Igrot Moshe OC 5:40 and Yechaveh Da’at 3:46[3]Hilchot Sukka 5 subparagraph 40[4] See Tractate Sukkah 11b[5]Shulchan Aruch OC 635:1[6] The Bach, Aruch Hashulchan and others believe that placing the schac prior to the sides would not prohibit the usage of the sukkah de-facto. But many codifiers agree with the Rama’s ruling and all agree that if possible the sides should be built before the schach is placed.