Asti ot,t14' Shavuot Customs Focus on Torah And Agriculture sit Each month in this space, shpeter the wheat was harvested. L'Chayim will present a Yiddish lesson entitled, "Du Redst Yiddish? (Do You Speak Yiddish?)," whose aim is to encourage further study of Yiddish. The lessons were prepared by Mary Koretz of Oak Park. She has taught both children's and adult classes in Yiddish at the Workmen's Circle. Following is this month's lesson: Coming from a secular haym I never knew the meaning of Shavuot. I had gehert the name of the holiday. Once, when we had blintzes for mitog, my mother said that it was appropriate for the yom tov. That was the extent of my visin. I knew all vegn Chanukah, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. (As a child, I ale mol wondered farvos it was the Jews who atoned and fasted. It seemed to mir that we were sinned kegn and justice demanded that the goyim atone for their zind.) But since this issue of L'Chayim is ibergegebn to Shavuot, I was called upon to tawn some research. The reasons and customs of this yom tov were varied and interesant. The word Shavuot means vochn and marks the festival that is the sof of the weeks of the grain harvest. At the onhayb of the grain harvest perlgroypn was brought to the temple as an offering. Fifty days . V do sDecalogue Has Import Today In Jewish tradition the holiday of Shavuot is attached to the time of giving of the Ten Commandments. What is the significance of the commandments and their validity for our day? Another name for Shavuot is the Festival of the First Fruits. How can modern man find a meaning for a festival that gives first fruit as an offering? Can we find an association between God, the first fruits and the Jewish people, not only in the past, but for today as well? According to the Torah portion, Bamidbar, who would be responsible for the tabernacle, and what were those responsibilities? —Submitted by Robert Lask, educational director, Temple Beth El Two loaves of broyt were made of the finest vayts and likewise brought to the temple. Basically, es remained, for a lange time as an agricultral holiday. Chotsh, in the apochryphal Book of Jubilees, the festival is celebrated as a pact God hot gemacht with Noah not to have a general flood again. Whether this idea was widely accepted or nit is not klor. However, it was the ershte indication that a new meaning for Shavuot, on a historical basis, was to be gemacht. The holiday took on a greserer role, outside the temple, ven it celebrated the giving of the Torah by God, to the Jews. There are those who gloybn that God gave us the Ten Commandments rather than the Torah at this tseit. Since it is geglaybt that Ruth accepted Judaism during this period, the Book of Ruth is gelaynt in the synagogues during Shavuot. Reform Jews hold confirmations at this time. One of the most shayne customs of Shavuot is the decorating of homes mit green plants. This celebrates the lovely time of yor. One of the most batempt customs are in the food we eat. Blintzes are prominent among the milchik dishes. One explanation offered for dos is that, when the Jews hobn bakomen the Torah, they returned to their tents so hungerik, they couldn't wait for meat to be prepared. A custom that intrigued me was the practice of staying awake a gants nacht Shavuot eve. There are tsvay possible reasons given for this act. One is that God made himself bavost on Mt. Sinai at noon. The Jews had overslept that day and thus oysgemidn Him. In order to avoid oversleeping, should the event occur noch a mol, it is thought best to stay awake all night. The second theory proposed is that King David iz geshtorbn on Shavuot. The all- night vigil, accompanied by the burning of a large, memorial licht commemorates this event. There was much to lernen about this relatively minor holiday. Whether we accept all of its meises or not, it's all interesting. yom tov visin vegn ale mol farvos mir kegn goyim zind ibergegebn tawn interesant vochn sof onhayb perlgroypn shpeter broyt vayts es lange chotsh hot gemacht nit klor holiday knowledge about always, all the time why me against gentiles sins devoted do interesting weeks end beginning barley later bread wheat it long although made not clear ershte greserer ven gloybn tseit geglaybt gelaynt shayne mit yor batempt milchik dos hobn bakomen hungerik a gants nacht tsvay bavost oysgemidn noch a mol iz geshtorbn licht lernen meises first greater when believe time believed read beautiful with year delicious dairy this received hungry all night two known missed again is died candle learn stories BOOKS Take Care of Me, Chana Rivka Jacobs; All About Us, Dina Rosenfeld; What Happened to Crazy Yosel? Mayer Bendet; The Chazon lsh, Rabbi Simon Finkelman; A Fire in His Sou/,Amos Bunim; Hello Heddy Levi! Yaffa Ganz; The Glass Blower of Venice,Gershon Kranzler; The Precious Little Spicebox,Gershon Kranzler, all at both Spitzer's and Borenstei n's. AUDIO CASSETTES "Kiddush Club" and "It's Chazal Time Vol. I," both at Borenstein's. VIDEO CASSETTES "Jerusalem Throughout The Ages" and "Now I Know My Aleph Bet," both at Borenstein's. TOYS AND GAMES Aliyah game, age 8-adult; Match It, age 3-8; Beit Hamikdash model to assemble, all at Spitzer's. Mishkan Monopoly, at Borenstein's. Vocabulary haym gehert mitog home heard lunch Spitzer's is located at 21770 W. 11 Mile, Southfield. Borenstein's is located at 25242 Greenfield, Oak Park. THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS L - 5