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wish famili
Happy Shavuot!
When the synagogue turns green and cheesecake reigns supreme.
ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM
AppleTree Editor
become widespread. Synagogues and tem-
ples post all-night schedules. Morning
services are held early, usually around 5
hat We Celebrate:
a.m., after which congregants head
Shavuot, or "weeks," in Hebrew.
straight for sleep.
Shavuot lasts two days or, in most
And when they finally wake up, many
Reform congregations, one day. On
Jews are likely to do something very
the Jewish calendar, Shavuot is celebrated on the
cheesy.
6th and 7th of Sivan, which this year falls on
Shavuot has a culinary theme of dairy,
Wednesday, May 26, and Thursday, May 27.
which includes cheese blintzes, cheese
(Remember that Jewish holidays begin the
kreplach,and all sorts of deserts, especial-
evening before, so Shavuot actually starts on the
ly cheese cake.
evening of Tuesday, May 25, and ends after sun-
The reason for dairy foods on Shavuot
down on the 27th).
is a mystery. Some believe that until God
gave the commandments concerning
Read All About It:
which animals were kosher and laws
The origins of Shavuot are in the Torah, in
regarding slaughtering and kashering of
Parshat Emor (Leviticus 23: 15-21). The holiday is meat, aside from Temple sacrifices, the
not named here, but you can learn about the
Jewish people had to be satisfied with
method of determining its date, as well as the rit-
dairy foods.
uals associated with it.
Others point out the proximity of the
(Shavuot has the unusual distinction of being
Torah verses discussing the first fruits
Double-Berry Cheesecake
the only Jewish holiday whose day is not deter-
with the commandment to separate meat
mined by calendar date, but by counting days
and dairy in the kosher diet.
rate his yahrtzeit.
after another holiday. In this case, God com-
One tradition states that the Jews waited so
Traditionally, the synagogue or temple on
mands the Jewish people to begin counting on
long for the Torah that they were exhausted after-
Shavuot is decorated with flowers and greenery.
the second day of Pesach [Passover] and continue
ward, and when they returned to their tents they
This is based on the belief that when the Torah
seven weeks, with the 50th day being Shavuot.)
fixed the simplest food possible, which were dairy. was given, Mount Sinai was lush with vegetation.
In Parshat Mishpatim (Exodus 23:16), the Torah
In the Song of Songs, the Torah is likened to
calls the holiday Chag Ha-Katzir ("Festival of the
honey and milk.
Shavuot Meets The Internet:
Harvest"), and in Parshat Pinchas (Numbers
It's best not to go unprepared in your search for
28:26-31), the Torah identifies it as Yom Ha-
Inside The Synagogue:
Shavuot information on the Web. More than half
bikurim, "the day of first fruits." These are refer-
Shavuot has specific prayers and. Torah readings, the sites you'll meet up with are simply holiday
ences to the Shavuot sacrifice, offerings from the
plus a few extras. On the first day of Shavuot,
service times at congregations around the country.
crop of new wheat. Until Shavuot, all meal offer-
after the kohen has been called to the Torah for
There are, however, a few really terrific Web
ings were made of flour from earlier crops.
the first aliyah (Torah reading) and before he
sites. Check these out:
The passage also labels the holiday a festival of
recites the blessing, the Torah reader or the chaz-
• The Union for Reform Judaism (formerly the
"your weeks. For a third time, in Parshat Re'eh
an recites Akdamut. This long poem was com-
Union of American Hebrew Congregations) has a
(Deuteronomy 16:9 12), God commands the Jews
posed by Rabbi Meir ben Yitzhak, who lived in
series of Parent Pages for Jewish holidays. To find
to observe the holiday; here, it is called Shavuot.
Worms, Germany, in the 11th century. Written in
the Parent Page for Shavuot, go to
Yet from early on, the rabbis viewed Shavuot as
Aramaic, the 90 verses speak of the majesty of
www.uahc.orgieducate/parent/pdfd1/0707.pdf
more than an agricultural festival. Based on its
God, the suffering of the Jewish people and their
This is a four-page document with basic informa-
linkage to Pesach, and the commandment to
ultimate restoration to Jerusalem and the Land of tion about the holiday plus great family fun ideas,
remember the days of our bondage in Egypt, the
Israel, and the glory of the messianic era.
such as topics for discussion, creating a Jewish
rabbis determined that on what later came to be
On the second day of Shavuot, after the reading home and recipes. Brachot (blessings) for your
known as Shavuot, God gave us the Torah at
of the first verse of the haftorah, the Yetziv Pitgam holiday table also are included. You can even
Sinai. So in the liturgy of Shavuot, the day is
is chanted. This is another poem in Aramaic com- learn where to count the Omer with Homer
referred to as Zrnan matan Torateynu, "The time
prising 15 verses, with a theme similar to that of
Simpson.
of the giving of our Torah."
Akdamut. This was composed by Yaacov, the son
• The family that cooks together has fun
of Rabbi Meir Levi, whom some scholars believe
together, so why not visit www.cyber-kitchen
How To Celebrate:
is Yaacov ben Meir of Orleans, the grandson of
.com/rfcycategory.cgi?category=shavuot
Beyond the grain and animal sacrifices, the
the great Jewish scholar, Rashi.
This site has an astounding number of Shavuot
Torah does not specify rituals of Shavuot. What
Also on the second day, the Book of Ruth is
food suggestions, with completely new ideas (like
we are told to do is rejoice. There are, however,
read in the synagogue. Why this book? Many of
tortelli) and the most amazing collection of
many traditions surrounding this holiday.
the events in Ruth occur at the time of the har-
cheesecake recipes you can imagine, everything
In commemoration of God's giving us the
vest. Further, just as Ruth accepted the Torah and
from apricot cheesecake to cheesecake for diabet-
Torah, Jewish mystics began staying awake to
became Jewish, so did the children of Israel at
ics.
study the entire night on the eve of Shavuot.
Sinai. King David, a descendant of Ruth, died on
• If you're looking for something a little differ-
Over the generations, staying awake all night has
Shavuot and by reading the book, we commemo-
APPLETREE on page 78
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JS
5/21
2004