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Lag
B'Omer

Bonfires, haircuts,
weddings and a holiday
with a mysterious origin.

A 3-year-old is about to relieved of his locks on Mt. Meron in Israel.

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM

AppleTree Editor

T

he Holiday: Lag b'Omer, the 33rd day of the
counting of the Omer, which .this year is on
Friday, May 27.

Why We Celebrate: Lag b'Omer has rather unusual
origins. In fact, Jews are of very different opinions as to
exactly why the holiday is observed.
Some say it celebrates the end of the plague that
killed Rabbi Akiva's students.
Kabbalists observe the day because of Rabbi Shimon
bar Yohai, traditionally regarded as the author of the
Zohar, the main book of Kabbalah. (Lag b'Omer
marks various important moments in his life: the
rabbi's yahrtzeit, the time he was ordained by Rabbi
Akiva, and the date when he left a cave where he had
been hiding from the Romans.)

The Story Behind The Holiday. "Lag" is an acronym
formed by the two Hebrew letters that make up the
number 33. This marks the 33rd day of Sfirat Ha
Omer, "the counting of the omer."
In Parshat Emor (Leviticus, chapter 23), God desig-
nates the festivals of the Jewish year, including Passover.
According to rabbinical interpretation of verse 9, on

Calling All Sons
And Daughters

When you were a kid, nothing was
more insufferable than your father's
words of advice.
Now that you're older, and wiser,
and you realize your father actually
knew a lot. Did your father teach you

the second day of Pesach, Jewish farmers of Israel
should bring to the Temple an offering of an omer of
barley flour (about 2.2 liters), along with gifts of meat,
flour and wine. After this, the new grain of the spring
harvest could be used.
In verse 15, God commands that the Jews begin
counting, starting with the omer offering and continu-
ing for 49 days. On the 50th day,.they would mark
Shavuot.
After the Temple was destroyed, the Jewish people
could no longer bring sacrifices, but they continued to
perform the counting commandment.
To this day, Jews count (usually within the daily
evening service) the days between Pesach and Shavuot.
A blessing is recited, then the relevant day's count
announced.
The count includes both the day and the week of
the omer, as directed by the Torah. Thus, one would
say, "Today is 19 days, two weeks and five days of the
omer."

How We Celebrate: Lag b'Omer is enhanced by the
weddings, as well as by parents giving their 3-year-old
sons their first haircuts (another kabbalistic tradition)
along with hosting a party to celebrate the event.

a valuable lesson you remember to
this day? Do you often find yourself
reflecting on an important discussion
you had with him? Have his words of
wisdom shaped your life in a way you
never imagined?
If so, the Jewish News'AppleTree
wants to hear from you. In honor of
Father's Day, AppleTree will include
essays on, "The Best Lesson I

In Israel, thousands of Jews gather in the northern
Israeli town of Meron for prayer and festivity at the
tomb of Shimon Bar Yohai. Others go to the tomb of
another ancient sage, Shimon Ha-Tzadik, in Jerusalem.
For unknown reasons, some light bonfires and chil-
dren play with bows and arrows on Lag b'Omer. They
also commemorate Bar Kokhba and his rebellion
against the Roman occupation of Israel (132-135
C.E.). Why Bar Kokhba is associated with Lag b'Omer
is a matter of scholarly debate.

More Mystery: This time is associated with a number
of painful events in Jewish history. During the first 33
days of the Omer, 24,000 of Rabbi Akiva's students
died in a plague because, the Talmud says, they did not
treat each other with respect.
Later, there were a series of massacres of Jewish com-
munities in the Rhineland during the Crusades in
1096 and 1146, and then during the Chmielnicki
massacres of 1648-49. Consequently, except on Lag
b'Omer, observant Jews refrain from haircuts (some
men also do not shave), do not have weddings and
other celebrations, and do not play or listen to live
music during the counting of the Omer.

Learned From My Father." To con-
tribute, please send a brief (no longer
than 500 words) essay to:
Dads
c/ o AppleTree

The Jewish News
29200 Northwestern Hwy. #110
Southfield, MI 48034
Entries must be typed and at our
office no later than Tuesday, May 31.

❑

Submissions also may be e-mailed
(appletree@thejewishnews.com ).
Include your first and last name, your
father's name, your address and
phone number.
If possible, include a photograph of
you and your father with your essay;
include a stamped, self-addressed
envelope if you would like the photo
returned.

5/19
2005

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