Sefirat Ha'Omer
(the
counting of the Omer), with
the counting of 49 days from
the second day of Passover
to the holiday of Shavuot,
the time of harvest. The
"Counting of the Omer"
is based on the commandment
in the Book of Vayikra
(Leviticus 23:15-16) which
states: "And from the day
on which you bring the
offering…you shall count off
seven weeks. They must be
complete."
This
commandment led to the
practice of the Sefirat
Ha'Omer, or the 49 days
of the "Counting of the
Omer." Lag Ba'Omer
is simply shorthand for the
thirty-third day of the
Omer, as Hebrew letters
have numeric values, the "lamed"
equals 30, and the "gimmel"
three, Lamed Gimmel
(L"G) Ba'Omer,
literally 33 (days) in the
Omer.
An
Omer refers to an
ancient Hebrew measure of
grain, amounting to about
3.6 litres. Biblical law
forbade any use of the new
barley crop until an Omer
offering was brought to the
Temple in Jerusalem.
The counting is intended
to remind us of the link
between Passover, which
commemorates the Exodus of
the Israelites from Egypt,
and Shavu'ot, which
commemorates the giving of
the Torah at Mount Sinai. It
is meant to remind us that
the redemption from slavery
was not complete until the
Torah was received and
accepted by the people of
Israel.
The period of
the omer counting is also a
time of partial mourning, in
memory of the plague that
killed thousands of
Rabbi Akiba's students.
Some of the traditional
mourning customs are applied
to this period. During the "Sefira"
(counting) or "Sfirat HaOmer"
(the counting of the omer)
weddings, parties, and
dinners with dancing are not
conducted. People also
refrain from getting their
hair cut, and some men
refrain from shaving their
facial hair.
The 33rd
day of the Omer (the
eighteenth of the Jewish
month of Iyar) is a minor
holiday commemorating a
break in the plague. The
holiday is known as Lag
b'Omer. The mourning
practices of the omer period
are lifted on that date. The
word "Lag" is not really a
word; it is the number 33 in
Hebrew, as if you were to
call the Fourth of July "Iv
July" (IV being 4 in Roman
numerals). |
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Shavu'ot, the Festival of
Weeks,
is
the second of the three
major festivals with both
historical and agricultural
significance (the other two
are Passover and Sukkot).
Agriculturally, it
commemorates the time when
the first fruits were
harvested and brought to the
Temple, and is known as Hag
ha-Bikkurim (the Festival of
the First Fruits).
Historically, it celebrates
the giving of the Torah at
Mount Sinai, and is also
known as Hag Matan Torateinu
(the Festival of the Giving
of Our Torah).
The period from Passover
to Shavu'ot is a time of
great anticipation. We count
each of the days from the
second day of Passover to
the day before Shavu'ot, 49
days or 7 full weeks, hence
the name of the festival.
See The Counting of the
Omer. The counting reminds
us of the important
connection between Passover
and Shavu'ot: Passover freed
us physically from bondage,
but the giving of the Torah
on Shavu'ot redeemed us
spiritually from our bondage
to idolatry and immorality.
Shavu'ot is also known as
Pentecost, because it falls
on the 50th day; however,
Shavu'ot has no particular
similarity to the Christian
holiday of Pentecost, which
occurs 50 days after their
Spring holiday.
It is noteworthy that the
holiday is called the time
of the giving of the
Torah, rather than the time
of the receiving of
the Torah. The sages point
out that we are constantly
in the process of receiving
the Torah, that we receive
it every day, but it was
first given at this time.
Thus it is the giving, not
the receiving, that makes
this holiday significant.
Shavu'ot is not tied to a
particular calendar date,
but to a counting from
Passover. Because the length
of the months used to be
variable, determined by
observation (see Jewish
Calendar), and there are two
new moons between Passover
and Shavu'ot, Shavu'ot could
occur on the 5th or 6th of
Sivan. However, now that we
have a mathematically
determined calendar, and the
months between Passover and
Shavu'ot do not change
length on the mathematical
calendar, Shavu'ot is always
on the 6th of Sivan (the 6th
and 7th outside of Israel.
See Extra Day of Holidays.)
Work is not permitted
during Shavu'ot.
It is customary to stay
up the entire first night of
Shavu'ot and study
Torah, then pray as
early as possible in the
morning.
It is customary to eat a
dairy meal at least once
during Shavu'ot. There are
varying opinions as to why
this is done. Some say it is
a reminder of the promise
regarding the land of
Israel, a land flowing with
"milk and honey." According
to another view, it is
because our ancestors had
just received the Torah (and
the dietary laws therein),
and did not have both meat
and dairy dishes available.
See Separation of Meat and
Dairy.
The book of Ruth is read
at this time. Again, there
are varying reasons given
for this custom, and none
seems to be definitive.
List of Dates
Shavu'ot will occur on the
following days of the
secular calendar:
- Jewish Year 5771:
sunset June 7, 2011 -
nightfall June 9, 2011
- Jewish Year 5772:
sunset May 26, 2012 -
nightfall May 28, 2012
- Jewish Year 5773:
sunset May 14, 2013 -
nightfall May 16, 2013
- Jewish Year 5774:
sunset June 3, 2014 -
nightfall June 5, 2014
- Jewish Year 5775:
sunset May 23, 2015 -
nightfall May 25, 2015
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