spirituality Holiday marks the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Experience South as a premier venue for parties, meetings and events! ■ facebook.com/southbar twitter.com/southbar AIL RENAISSANCE MEDIA rTre, SOLUTIONS Elizabeth Applebaum Special to the Jewish News 210 S. Old Woodward Birmingham, MI 48009 (248) 593 - 8133 p,Eull Service Custom Publishing Ho use How can we help you? Flag Banners Publications Tapper's Diamond & Fine Jewelry Diamond Buying Guide Wall and Window Graphics Video Production Marketing Services Creative Services Editorial Services Pre-press Production Social Media Magazines Newspapers Corporate Identities Annual Reports Ad Campaigns Mail and postage Project Management Business Consulting Data Management Telemarketing Contact Kevin Browett or Debbie Schultz 29200 Northwestern Hwy. Suite 110 Southfield, MI 48034 248.354.6060 100 May 24 • 2012 S havuot, or "weeks" in Hebrew, lasts for two days. On the Jewish calendar, Shavuot is celebrated on the 6th and 7th of Sivan, which this year falls on Sunday, May 27, and Monday, May 28. The origins of Shavuot are bibli- cal, found in Leviticus 23: 15-21. God commands the Jewish people to count each day, beginning on the second day of Passover and continuing for seven weeks. Verse 21 of the passage states that the 50th day is a holiday. Shavuot is known by other names, alluding to its agricultural significance. In Exodus 23:16, the Torah identi- fies the holiday as Chag Ha-Katzir, or Festival of the Harvest. In Numbers 28:26-31, the Torah calls it Yom HaBikurim, Day of First Fruits. From early on, the rabbis viewed Shavuot as much more than an agri- cultural festival. They determined that on Shavuot, God gave the Torah at Mount Sinai. On the first day of Shavuot, the Torah reader chants a poem called Akdamut. The Aramaic work was composed by Meir ben Yitzhak, an 11th-century rabbi of Worms, Germany. The 90 verses speak of God's majesty, the suffering of the Jewish people and their ultimate restoration to Jerusalem and the Land of Israel, and the glory of the messianic era. On the second day, the Book of Ruth is read in the synagogue. One reason is the pastoral setting of the story, which fits in with the harvest- celebration theme of Shavuot. Further, just as Ruth accepted the Torah and became Jewish, so did the Children of Israel at Mount Sinai. Traditionally on Shavuot, the syn- agogue is decorated with flowers and greenery, based on the belief that when the Torah was given, Mount Sinai was lush with vegetation. Many traditions surround the hol- iday. In the 16th century, a group of Jewish mystics began the practice of studying the Torah the entire night on the eve of Shavuot (Tikkun Leil Shavuot). This has become a wide- spread tradition. After catching up a night's sleep, it's time for food. The featured cuisine on Shavuot is dairy, including such traditional favorites as cheese blintzes, cheese kreplach and cheesecake. Because Shavuot often coincides with the end of the school year, the Reform movement instituted the confirmation ceremony on the holi- day. Some Conservative congrega- tions also have their religious-school graduations on Shavuot. ❑ Elizabeth Applebaum is a marketing specialist for the Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit. Orthodox Paradox from pg 99 of these make it difficult to let go of Orthodoxy as part of my identity, despite the dilemmas it creates. Among the compensations of get- ting older is learning to accept that perfection is impossible and that some things are valuable despite their inherent shortcomings. A bene- fit of being younger is the passionate desire to improve on the imperfect. So some of the younger generation have developed their own solution — independent minyanim that are not affiliated with any movement and that combine a commitment to observance, Jewish learning, social action and traditional, but totally egalitarian prayer. I know the struggle to reconcile these conflicting values will likely continue into the next generations. I was sitting with my 4-year-old granddaughter, Nava, in the women's section of her shul in New York. When they took out the Torah, I pointed out that the men kissed the Torah as it was carried through the sanctuary. She turned to me with the absolute innocence of a child and asked, "Are they bringing it to our side?" When I told her no, she retorted, "That's not fair" I neither goaded her sense of injustice nor denied her indignation, but simply acknowledged the accura- cy of her observation. I trust that one day she will be knowledgeable and committed enough to come to her own integration of the matter. My hope is that she'll have the benefit of evolving solutions. ❑ Janice Starkman Goldfein lives in Southfield, is a member of Young Israel of Southfield and is a psychotherapist in private practice in Farmington Hills.