Shalom friends,

On the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan, we celebrate the holiday of Shavuot. This holiday is mandated by the Torah to be celebrated 49 days after the second day of Passover. Forty nine days are seven weeks (שָׁבוּעוֹת, shavu’ot) and this is the source of one of the names of this holiday.
These seven weeks represent the time that elapsed between Passover – the exodus of the Israelites from their enslavement to the Egyptians and the time the Torah was given to them on Mount Sinai and the people became a nation committed to serving God.

These seven weeks are also connected to the season of the grain harvest in Israel of ancient times. This season began with the harvesting of the barley during Passover and ended with the harvesting of the wheat during Shavuot.
In the times of the temple (בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ, beyt hamikdash) in Jerusalem, people brought their first fruits called Bikurim (בִּכּוּרִים) to the priests (כֹּהֵן, Cohen) of the temple during this holiday. The Bikurim were brought from the Seven Species, for which the Land of Israel is praised: wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates (Deut. 8:8). Bringing the Bikurim to the temple was a gay and festive event, accompanied by music, dancing, and celebrations.

Bikurim Ceremony in Hadera Picture by Sonia Kolodany (1922-1948) Credit: The Chan Museum and Archive, Hadera

Shavu’ot in Modern times

The early 20th century brought a new breed of Jewish immigrants to the land of Israel. These pioneers were primarily idealists who sought to create a communal agricultural settlement in Palestine. They founded the communal settlements called Kibbutz based on agriculture. As they proudly defined themselves as secular Jews, they tried to ascribe secular content to the holidays. They created ceremonies based on the Bikurim ceremonies in the time of the Temple. The characteristics of the holiday were changed throughout the years. Nowadays, the ceremonies of Shavu’ot include public displaying of the new crops, including fruits, vegetables, calves, and even industrial produce.

The Bikurim Band (1949) Credit: The Archive of Kibbutz Gan-Shmuel

The Bikurim Ceremony, 2003 Credit: The Archive of Kibbutz Gan-Shmuel

חַג בִּכּוּרִים שָׂמֵחַ!
Xag bikurim Sameax!
Happy Shavu’ot

Shira Cohen-Regev
The HebrewOnline Team