Shavuot – Do You Know What That Is?

Shavuot. “What’s that?” I am asked. Whether it’s an American Jew or non-Jew asking, “Never heard of that!” is the reply I get when I explain.

Growing up, I attended public school. My mother, who was raised in an Orthodox Jewish home, did not allow me to go to school on any Jewish holiday. In spite of the fact that my father went to work on many holidays, I was not even allowed to go on a field trip that fell on this holiday while I was in the fifth grade.

For my family, Jewish holidays meant a nice lunch at my Uncle Meyer and Auntie Pearl’s home, with some of the cousins who also weren’t allowed to go to school. Mother did give me a choice of which synagogue to attend. So, I, along with Orthodox Jews and Israelis, know what Shavuot is.

I am miffed that so many Jews are unfamiliar with Shavuot. This holiday is the celebration of us becoming the Jewish people. We were not a nation before accepting G-d’s Ten Commandments. So why don’t people know about this very special holiday? Furthermore, why isn’t Shavuot, the beginning of Judaism, our Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year)? Why was a different day chosen to mark the Jewish New Year?

Spending time in Israel, I gained a broader view of Shavuot. The word shavuot means weeks and represents the seven-week period (49 days) between the second night of Passover and Shavuot. Counting these days leads up to commemorating the tradition from ancient times of, on the 50th day, bringing sheaths of grain to the Temple, celebrating the agricultural bounty, along with the giving of the Ten Commandments.

Today, in Israel, while religious people go to synagogue, the holiday is a national celebration for all. Over and above synagogue and a dairy lunch, everyone celebrates this holiday, both in school and with their families. The garb is white. Children, with floral wreaths upon their heads, parade around, carrying baskets of fruits, maybe some vegetables, too.

Once I was married and living in Detroit, Michigan, with a family of my own, I stayed connected to Israel by participating in Jewish community events and joining Hadassah. I often bring hand-made dolls, our Detroit chapter’s project, to Hadassah’s two hospitals in Jerusalem on our visits to Israel.

In Michigan, I am surrounded by extended family who had no clue what Shavuot was. So I decided to invite them to celebrate the holiday at our home, year after year.

Shavuot became “Beverly’s Holiday.” In the spirit of Israel, the land of milk and honey, we feast on dairy foods. I prepare, with the help of others, a delicious dairy meal of gazpacho soup, salmon, spinach pie, salads and pastas. Dessert always includes cheesecakes: Israeli style with no crust and American style with a graham cracker crust, topped with fruit.

In the style of Tikun Leil Shavuot (Shavuot all-night Torah study), we learn together. Each year, I find different topics. Often, I pose a question in advance for guests to ponder and then discuss when we are together.

Our guests bring “Shavuot information” – a quote from a Jewish text, a text itself, insights or entertaining facts. One year, one of the Ten Commandments was assigned to each of our guests. Another year, it was Israeli style: Our cousin brought materials for us to construct floral wreaths and baskets for fruits, marking the pilgrimage of first fruits. My Shavuot theme, a quote from Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk, “The giving of the Torah was on Shavuot, the receiving must take place every day,” decorates my entire home.

I found a way to spread the joy and celebration of this special holiday with great appreciation for the birth of Judaism. May you, too, discover Shavuot and celebrate this special holiday –if you haven’t already.

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Beverly is a member of the Hadassah Writers’ Circle, a dynamic and diverse writing group for leaders and members to express their thoughts and feelings about all the things Hadassah does to make the world a better place. It’s where they celebrate their personal Hadassah journeys and share their Jewish values, family traditions and interpretations of Jewish texts. Hadassah members are proud of their Zionist mission and their role as keepers of the flame of Jewish values, traditions and beliefs as well as advocating for women’s empowerment and health equity for all. Since 2019, the Hadassah Writers’ Circle has published nearly 800 columns in The Times of Israel Blogs and other Jewish media outlets. Interested in writing? Please contact hwc@hadassah.org.