(Sha rhymes with ha, vu rhymes with you, and ot sounds like the word oat, as in oatmeal. Sha-voo-oat.)Shavuot is a religious holiday that has deep meaning for Jews and also includes a lot of fun for Jewish children. It is two days long, and this year takes place on the 5th and 6th of June.Let’s first talk about what it is. Then why it’s on different days each year. After that, in Fun Facts, we’ll describe some of the things kids like doing on Shavuot.What Is Shavuot?Shavuot is one of three pilgrimage festivals. Long ago, Jewish families used to make pilgrimages, or special religious trips, to a temple in the city of Jerusalem. On each pilgrimage, they would bring with them as an offering some animals or crops they had raised. The three pilgrimages were Pesach (Passover), Shavuot (Weeks or Pentecost), and Sukkot (Tabernacles, Tents, or Booths.)After the temple was destroyed by the Romans back in 70 A.D., pilgrimages to Jerusalem were no longer required, but the festivals are still celebrated in Jewish communities throughout the world. Outside of Israel, Shavuot is a two-day festival. Inside Israel, it’s only one day.A Jewish church is called a synagogue (SIN-uh-gog). On Shavuot during synagogue services, certain parts are read aloud from a scroll called the Torah (TOR-uh). The reading takes place on a platform called the bimah (BEE-ma) at the center of the synagogue.In the Old Testament in the Bible, we can read in English some of the things that are read from the Torah in Hebrew on Shavuot. (Hebrew is the language that Jews speak, read, and write.)The book of Exodus tells about Moses, who more than 3,300 years ago led an enslaved people out of Egypt. After getting away, including making it through the Red Sea without getting wet, they arrived at a mountain called Sinai (sort of rhymes with my my). It is believed that Shavuot is the day when Moses received the Torah and the ten commandments from God on Mount Sinai.The ten commandments include such things as do not steal or kill or tell lies. It also has instructions on how to treat your parents and how to worship God. In synagogues today, the ten commandments are read aloud on the first day of Shavuot.Another important tradition is reading the story of Ruth, a young woman whose husband died. She was very kind to her mother-in-law, Naomi, and ended up marrying a man named Boaz. In the Old Testament, her story is found in the book of Ruth.Ruth and Boaz had a son named Obed, who had a son named Jesse, who had a son named David. When David was young, he used a sling to defeat a giant named Goliath. Later on, David, who was Ruth and Boaz’s great grandson, became king of Israel.When Is Shavuot?Shavuot means weeks. That’s because it takes place seven weeks after a special Jewish day called Passover. Another name for Shavuot is Pentecost, which means 50th.Figuring out when Passover is each year and when, seven weeks later, it’s time for Shavuot can be a little difficult. It’s easier to simply look at a calendar of religious holidays. This year, Shavuot will be from June 4th to June 6th. In 2023, it will be from May 25th to May 27th.You may be thinking, wait a minute, that’s three days. Isn’t Shavuot only two days?On the Hebrew calendar, a new day begins, not when the sun comes up, but when it goes down. This makes it a little difficult to match the Hebrew calendar to the one we use. The first day of Shavuot this year will begin at sundown on June 4th and end at sundown on the 5th. The second day will start at sundown on the 5th and will end at sundown on the 6th.Fun Facts• On Shavuot, it’s traditional to stay up all night. Some of the night is spent reading from the Torah and from the book of Ruth, but there’s still plenty of time for family storytelling and fun activities.• People eat a lot of yummy dairy products (foods made from milk) on Shavuot. Cake and ice cream are among the favorites. So are cheesecake and cheese-filled pancakes called blintzes. Some people bake tall cakes to remind them how tall Mount Sinai was. People may also eat fruit such as figs, pomegranates, and dates.• Because Moses’s people camped at the bottom of Mount Sinai, many families go camping or hiking during Shavuot. Sitting around a camp fire in the middle of the night is fun for adults and for kids. If the weather is bad, some families camp in, using pillows and blankets.• Because it’s early summer, flowers and nature crafts are a traditional part of Shavuot.
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