ByNaomi Firsht, Naomi Firsht
It may only be a simple wooden frame adorned with a cluster of empty plastic bottles, but the succah at St James, Piccadilly could signal the end of the long-running rift between a historic London church and the city's Jews.
Last Christmas, the church caused a great deal of anger among Jews when it erected a life-size replica of Israel's security wall in its courtyard, as part of a festival about Bethlehem.
The Israeli embassy accused the church of incitement against the country, while the Board of Deputies said St James had been "highly biased".
Now, the church has joined with the Jewish Social Action Forum (JSAF) and West London Synagogue to build a succah just yards from where the wall stood.
JSAF member Rabbi Natan Levy welcomed the move.
We had a really rough patch with the church at Christmas
"We had a really rough patch with the church at Christmas and this seemed a really positive way to find a point where we can come together," he said.
"Since the security wall, I have had ongoing dialogue with the church. Asking what can we do to get the communities talking to each other again."
Billed as "a Succah for all", the structure allowed visitors to St James to celebrate Succot as well as the Christian harvest festival.
Succah guests were asked for a minimum donation of one can of food with all contributions going to either The Trussell Trust food banks or the Jewish charity, Gift, in a bid to raise awareness about food poverty.
The succah was also the venue for an all-night soup kitchen as well as a communal falafel lunch.
Rabbi Levy said: "The wall was a one-sided stunt that wouldn't help peace and dialogue.
"Putting the succah there did feel healing on a lot of different levels.
"It felt like building a bridge instead of a wall. Their community was totally supportive of it."
The church's rector Lucy Winkett said: "Visitors have been struck by this visible statement of joint social action. It is vital that we find ways to work across faith traditions, political opinions and deeply held beliefs."