What is Shavuot?
The many names of the Shavuot festival reflect something about the reasons Jews "rejoice" on this day.An Agricultural Festival
In the Bible, Shavuot is called Hag HaKatsir (feast of the harvest) or Yom HaBikurim (day of the first fruits) because it was originally a festival of thanksgiving for the harvest. The festival falls in late May or early June, the time of the wheat harvest in Israel.
The Conclusion of Passover
The Bible also refers to Shavuot as Hag HaShavuot (feast of the weeks). In the Bible, God commands the Jewish people to count seven weeks (49 days) starting on the second day of Passover. On the fiftieth day (Pentecost), Shavuot is celebrated.
In the Talmud, Shavuot is called Atseret (stop) as the festival was considered to be the conclusion of Passover. According to this view, Jews gained their freedom from Pharaoh on Passover, but they were only truly free on Shavuot when they accepted the Torah and became servants to God.
Commemoration of the Giving of the Torah
Lastly, Shavuot is called Zman Matan Torataynu (the time of the giving of our Torah) because it commemorates the giving of the Torah to the Jewish People on Mount Sinai.
According to rabbinic interpretation, the Ten Commandments were given to the Jewish People on Mount Sinai on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan. This same date is the fiftieth day after Passover and the day of the Shavuot festival. Thus, Shavuot has also become a celebration of the Torah.
How is Shavuot Celebrated?
On Shavuot, Jews light candles, decorate with greenery, eat dairy food, study Torah, attend prayer services, and read the Book of Ruth. Learn how to celebrate Shavuot.What are Shavuot food traditions?
It is customary to eat dairy food on Shavuot. There are various reasons why Jews eat dairy food on Shavuot.About.com's Kosher Food site provides Shavuot menus and recipes as well as links to the best Shavuot recipes online. Learn how to make traditional Shavuot dishes like cheese blintzes and dairy kugels.
More about Shavuot
Dr. Jonathan Mirvis, International Director of the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School Institute, explains the importance of celebrating Shavuot in his article Shavuot: Celebrating our Jewish Past and our Jewish Future. He also describes Shavuot as an implicit festival with the theme of personal gratitude to God in his article Shavuot: Affirmation of Faith and Personal Gratitude.In his article Shavuot: Torah as Sweet as Honey, Rabbi Professor David Golinkin, President of the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, describes beautiful customs related to learning Torah that have developed around Shavout.
Dr. Josh Kulp, Director of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism in Jerusalem, explains the importance of learning Talmud.
Rabbi Barry Dov Lerner, President of the Foundation for Family Education, offers Shavuot Guides for Families. The guides include background, stories, games and activities for the festival. Rabbi Lerner also provides a resource to be used in Shavuot study sessions - Shavuot Tikkun Leyl Hayzot: Texts from our Rabbinic Tradition.
The customary Shavuot greeing is chag samayach (happy holiday)!
