There are three major Biblical Festivals during the Jewish calendar year. During the time of the Biblical and Rabbinic Periods. The Festivals were based on three different periods of time on the agricultural calendar.
Sukkot, which is the last of the three festivals, takes place in the fall. Sukkot was the agricultural festival that marked the beginning of planting the seeds for our crops to grow each year (in the land of Israel). Passover, which is the second of the three, was the agricultural festival that marked the beginning of the harvest season. Pesach occurs in the Spring when everything blooms and begins to ripen. Finally, Shavuot, which is our third Biblical Festival, was the agricultural festival where the harvesting of produce was at its ultimate climax.
But along with agriculture that defined our Biblical Festivals, the Rabbis enhanced each of the Shalosh Regalim (the Three Festivals) by giving to them a more ritual based meaning. The Holiday of Sukkot reminds us of the Forty Years we as a Jewish people lived in temporary dwellings known as Sukkot. Pesach reminds us of the Exodus from Egypt. Shavuot is the time when according to our tradition, the Jewish people stood at the Foot of Mount Sinai and received God's Torah, which is now our Torah!
This month, we celebrate the Biblical Festival of Shavuot. Shavuot is shorter than the Holidays of Pesach and Sukkot. Shavuot is a two day holiday (in Israel, it is only one) while the other two are eight days long (Seven days long in the land of Israel). Shavuot does not have as many rituals as Sukkot and Pesach (eating in a Sukkah, shaking the Lulav and Etrog, having a Seder, cleaning out our homes, buying special Passover food, etc.).
There are some rituals and customs on Shavuot which include the eating of dairy foods such as cheesecake and blintzes. The question is "why?" One argument is that Shavuot and its purpose stand alone and do not need help to enhance the holiday. The Torah is the central piece to the Jewish people. Shavuot is the time of year when we stand together and receive God's Torah and no other customs, rituals or commandments need to assist us in our relationship with God.
There is a tradition on Erev Shavuot to study Torah all night long (until we fall asleep that is). The idea is that when we receive a gift, we get very excited about it and want to use it and derive as much benefit from it as we can. The Torah is the greatest gift of all and Shavuot marks the time when we receive the most priceless gift of all time.
The other name for Shavuot is called "Zman Matan Torateinu, The Time of Giving the Torah". But the question that many Rabbinic Scholars have asked over the centuries is why is it called the time of "giving" the Torah and not called the time of "receiving" the Torah.
I want to share a wonderful response to the question given by Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotsk, who was a Polish born Chasidic teacher and Rabbi born in 1787 and died in 1859. Otherwise known as the Kotsker Rebbe, the Rabbi answers the question in the following way: "The giving of the Torah was on Shavuot; the receiving must take place every single day."
Shavuot reminds us of the climax in Jewish History, the moment when God gave us the Torah at Mount Sinai. Shavuot challenges us to receive the Torah with joy, commitment, devotion, love and the most enthusiastic attitude we can have.
Chag Shavuot Sameyakh,
A Happy and Inspiring Shavuot to everyone!
Kol Tuv,
Rabbi Micah Caplan
