Jewish families in Pasadena are going to celebrate Shavuot, one of Judaism’s three major pilgrimage festivals, between Saturday and Monday, June 4 and 6, traditionally commemorating the period when the Israelites brought their first summer harvest to their Temple as a crop offering.
The three-day holiday, commonly known in English as the Feast of Weeks, coincides with the celebration that occurs on the sixth day of the month of Sivan in the Hebrew calendar.
Shavout reminds Jews of the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai about 3,000 years ago, as well as the grain harvest for the summer. In biblical times, Shavuot was one of three pilgrimage festivals in which all the Jewish men would go to Jerusalem and bring their first fruits as offerings to God.
In Pasadena, both the Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center and Chabad of Pasadena have set up activities for their members, including morning and evening services, an all-night Torah study, midnight Yid talks, reading of the Ten Commandments, and delicious dairy Kiddush lunch at Chabad of Pasadena on Sunday.
Chabad of Pasadena has also produced a four-minute video containing what you need to know about Shavuot. To watch it, visit https://bit.ly/3x43eJD.
The PJTC will have Shavuot services beginning with Shavuot Havdalah or Maariv prayers held Saturday, lectures by Jewish educators, and Top Chef: Milk and Honey Edition, when members of PJTC’s 20s and 30s groups will cook up Shavuot-themed bites and the community become the judge and decide who wins for taste, creativity, and connection to the Shavuot holiday. Morning services will be held on Sunday and Monday, beginning at 9:30 a.m.
To learn more about Shavuot in Pasadena, visit www.pjtc.net/jewishholidayresources#Shavuot and www.chabadpasadena.com/templates/articlecco_cdo/aid/5531548/jewish/Shavuot-Chabad.htm.
