Believers know of the holiday of Shavuot as Pentecost. It is known as the birthday of the Church. It was during Pentecost that the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles and the Church began. However Shavuot was a Jewish festival which God established in the time of Moses.

Shavuot is one of the pilgrim festivals. During the three pilgrimage festivals all Jewish men were required to go to Jerusalem, to the Temple, to present a sacrifice to God. Biblically, it is an agricultural festival as the people were required to bring the first fruits of their harvest to the Temple and so is known as Hag ha-Bikkurim (the Festivals of First Fruits). Extra-biblically, it also has an historical aspect as tradition tells us that it was upon the fiftieth day after the Passover in Egypt, that God gave the Torah to the Israelites in the desert. Thus the Jewish people also celebrate the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai and so it is also known as Hag Matan Torateinu (the Festival of the Giving of Our Torah).

Following the destruction of the Temple in 70AD, the observance of Shavuot lost its sacrificial dominance and the religious leaders changed the emphasis from agriculture to an emphasis on the giving of the Torah.

From the second day of Pesach, the Jewish people were commanded to count the fifty days until the festival of Weeks, Shavuot. This is known as the Counting of the Omer. There is great expectation in the lead up to Shavuot as it was important to remember the connection that these two important festivals have. It is believed that the Jewish people were not fully redeemed from slavery in Egypt until they received God’s law at Mount Sinai. They received physical redemption during Pesach but Shavuot commemorates when they received the Torah and thus were redeemed spiritually from the idolatry in Egypt.

Jewish customs associated with this holiday include reading the Torah through the whole night, eating dairy dishes and decorating their homes and synagogues with branches, flowers and fruits from the Spring harvest. Since the holiday marks the barley harvest, the book of Ruth is read in synagogues.

Recently we marked "Tu B'Shvat", the "New Year of the Trees". "Tu" is not a Hebrew word, but rather a contraction for the number 15, as the holiday is on the 15th of the Jewish month Shevat.

Although the holiday is not mentioned in the Bible, it is tied to the command to not eat of a new tree's fruit for the first four years (Leviticus 19). The sages designated Tu B'Shevat as the day each tree would become another year old. Imagine the rush to finish planting trees on the 14th of Shevat, then you would only have to wait 3 years and one day to reap the crop.

In Israel, celebration of Tu B'Shvat is marked by the eating of fruits and nuts, planting trees, and general environment-consciousness.

Recently, an Israeli friend remarked to me that "if you mention peace, people assume you are a left-wing peacenik. And if you talk about God, they wonder if you are one of those 'religious people'." In the same way, to many Americans, if you mention caring for the earth, you must be an environmental wacko. Not true!

We know that all good things come from the hand of God, and that He created all things, and they were good! God appointed man as the caretaker of His perfect creation. Now, even under the curse, we can enjoy the beauty and bounty of God's creation. Are we a little embarassed to embrace His gifts? Does that make us "tree-huggers?". The key is to see the handiwork of God in His creation, and praise Him for it, rather than worshiping the creation itself.

So, Happy Birthday to the trees, but the songs of praise, like the Levites sang in the time of Nehemiah, will be for the Creator and Sustainer of all life.

Nehemiah 9:5-6 NKJV
And the Levites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said:

"Stand up and bless the LORD your God forever and ever!

Blessed be Your glorious name,
Which is exalted above all blessing and praise!

You alone are the LORD;
You have made heaven,
The heaven of heavens, with all their host,
The earth and everything on it,
The seas and all that is in them,
And You preserve them all.
The host of heaven worships You."

Shana Tova! was the greeting of the past few days here in Israel. The hopeful wish "for a good year" encompasses both the joy of this holiday as well as the solemnity of the occasion. The 2 days of Rosh haShana (lit. "Head of the Year") begin the New Year of the Jewish calendar. This year we welcomed in the year 5770, dated from the traditional Jewish date of the Creation.
**check out more information on the Hebrew lunar calendar at Judaism 101

A Solemn Time
The Jewish New Year is not filled with fun, frivolity, and football as we often celebrate New Year's in America. Instead, Rosh haShana begins the Days of Awe, a period of 10 days of repentance, prayer, and good deeds to compensate for the wrongs of the previous year. Judaism teaches that on this day God writes our names (and future for the coming year) in 1 of 3 books: those righteous who will live, those unrighteous who will die, and those in-between or yet to be decided. 10 days later, God will seal those books on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. In full, the wish leShana Tova Tikatevu ve-Techatemu wishes the hearer the hope "for a good year you shall be written and confirmed [in the Book of Life]."

A Day of Joy
And yet, Rosh haShana is a joyful time of thankfulness for life and properity through the last year and of hope for the same in the coming year. Ezra, the scribe, reminded the people in his day to be joyful:

And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law. Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Neh. 8:9-10

On this day, people send cards and greetings to wish shana tova. Charity is given so that all people can rejoice in the new year. And sweet foods, such as apples and honey, are eaten in the hope that the coming year will be just as sweet.

Biblical Record
The term Rosh haShana was not applied to this holiday until the 2nd century AD, after the destruction of the Second Temple. In the Tenakh, the Hebrew Scriptures, it is called Yom Teruah, or Zikhron Teruah, the Day or Memorial of Blowing [of Trumpets]. Because of the prominence of the the shofar (a trumpet made of a ram's horn), the biblical holiday is often called the Feast of Trumpets. Even today, the shofar is blown 100 times in the synagogue services.

In Leviticus 23:23-25, God commanded that the day be kept as a shabbat (sabbath) and that the shofar be blown. In Numbers 29:1-6, God commanded that burnt sacrifices and a sin offering be made. The emphasis in the Tenakh seems to be on the start of the 7th month (the shabbat of months) and the importance of the coming Yom Kippur.

But I thought you said this was the Jewish New Year? Why is it the 7th month, not the 1st?
The first month of the Jewish calendar is actually the month of Nisan. This month was used for the cycle of festivals and feasts in the Tenakh as well as the calculation point of a king's reign. Yet, the 7th month, Tishri, was also a new year of sorts. It marked the beginning of sabbatical years, Jubilee years, and planting (the fiscal year in the agrarian society of Israel). In fact, there are 4 new years in the Jewish calendar. It was not until the 2nd century AD that Rosh haShana became the most important new year.

As you consider the importance of Rosh haShana and the Days of Awe in the calendar of Israel, think of the awesome grace and forgiveness of God.

"The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, fand the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.
“But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions that he has committed shall be remembered against him; for the righteousness that he has done he shall live. Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?" Ezekiel 18:20-23

As I sit here, 2 weeks back in Israel, I am struck by the goodness and faithfulness of our God. Pesach, or passover as we say in English, is happening right now. It is a time for family. It is a time of celebration. It is a time to look back to the time when God freed His people, Israel, from their slavery in Egypt, and to rest in the truth that God will continue to protect His chosen people. Nearly 3500 years have passed, and yet the Jewish people identify with that event as if it were last year.

On Erev Pesach we sat together as a family to remember the story of God's deliverance brought through the hand of his servant Moses and the awesome display of His own strength through 10 plagues (frogs, lice, and locusts were some of the plagues our kids thought especially gross!). But "the last one was the worst, right Daddy?" our oldest said. While that plague would affect both Egyptians and Israelites, it also came with a way of escape. God demanded that each family sacrifice a lamb and sprinkle its blood on the doors of their houses. That night, when the death angel killed every firstborn, he "passed over" the houses of all who had obeyed God's command.

Pharoah finally let the people of Israel go, and in haste they set out on their return to the land of promise. God did not deliver His people through the eloquence of Moses, or the power or goodness of the people, or the weakness of Pharoah. Consider some verses from Psalm 136:

  To him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
  and brought Israel out from among them,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
  with a strong hand and an outstretched arm,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
  to him who divided the Red Sea in two,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
  and made Israel pass through the midst of it,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
  but overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea,
for his steadfast love endures forever.

God delivered His people simply because of His enduring and steadfast love. In response to God's great love, we must "give thanks to the God of heaven, for His steadfast love endures forever" (Psalm 136:26).

It’s mid-March already, and we’ve been here for just over six months. Time has gone nutzo quick, but at the same time, it feels like we’ve been here for nearly forever. It’s hard to think of leaving, because even though I want to visit, only God knows if that will be possible. I can’t wait to see my family and friends again, and I’m looking forward to what God has next for me.

Being in Israel has been a huge eye-opener for me, and it’s been so cool getting to know people here. God has taught me a lot through them. I will miss them wackloads. This year has been full of awesome new friends, insanely cool experiences, learning so much I never knew before and lots of laughter; but it has also included many challenges and homesickness. I can’t say it’s always been easy, but I can say that Yeshua has kept me through it all and taught me a lot from it. I know that this year was a gift from Him that I will always be thankful for.