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Jewish Holiday Celebrations

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Jerusalem Day

On Sunday, the 28th of the Hebrew month of Iyar (May 20), Jerusalem will celebrate Yom Yerushalayim, marking 45 years since the reunification of the city and the establishment of Israeli control over the Old City.
Until 1860, the Old City was all of Jerusalem. That year, Sir Moses Montefiore, a financier, banker, philanthropist and Sheriff of London, donated large sums of money to promote industry, education and health among the Jewish community in Palestine. Montefiore sponsored the building of the first Jewish neighborhood outside the walls of the Old City. Life within the walls was crowded and unhealthy, but although housing in the neighborhood that Montefiore built was comfortable and modern, the Jews refused to leave the Old City and had to be paid to move. The name of the neighborhood, Mishkenot Sha'ananim in Hebrew, was taken from Book of Isaiah 32:18: "My people will abide in peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings and in quiet resting places." After the 1948 War of Independence, Jordan captured all of the Old City and denied access to Jews. Mishkenot Sha'ananim was abandoned because of its proximity to the armistice line.
In the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel captured the Temple Mount along with all of East Jerusalem and the West Bank from Jordan, who had controlled it since 1948. Many Jews saw the capture of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount as a miraculous liberation. Since then, Israel has controlled the Old City, and East and West Jerusalem have been united and become the capital of Israel and the Jewish world. In 1980, Jerusalem was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site List.
For centuries, the Old City has been home to holy sites for the three monotheistic religions: the Temple Mount and its Western Wall for Jews, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher for Christians, and the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque for Muslims.
Jerusalem's Old City walls have eight gates. All but one (the Gate of Mercy) are open and invite visitors to enter. The eight gates are:
The Zion Gate, also known as the gate leading towards the Tomb of King David.
The Dung Gate: This gate's unusual name derives from the refuse dumped there in antiquity. This gate leads directly to the Western Wall and the Southern Wall Archaeological Park.
Gate of Mercy: This gate, in the eastern Temple-Mount wall, is said to be awaiting a miraculous opening when the Messiah comes and the dead are resurrected.
Lion's Gate is named after a pair of ferocious-looking animal carvings on both sides of the gate. In 1967, Mota Gur led the paratroopers to the Old City through the Lion's Gate.
Flowers Gate: The name derives from a rosette carved over it.
Damascus Gate: This gate faces north and is named for the grand city from which Jerusalem's rulers once came. Today, this gate leads to one of the Old City's markets.
The New Gate: This is the only Old City entry not part of the original design of the sixteenth-century walls. It was breached in the Ottoman Empire period to allow Christian pilgrims access to holy places within the ramparts.
The Jaffa Gate: This was the destination of Jewish and Christian pilgrims disembarking at the Jaffa port. This gate leads directly to the Jewish and Christian quarters, as well as to the most popular parts of the market, and to the Tower of David Museum, once Jerusalem's citadel and now a showcase of its history.

Jerusalem Day Photos

See a video of the liberation of the Western wall

Shavuot

Shavuot, the holiday that commemorates the Israelites receiving the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai, is also one of the shaloshah regalim, the three biblical pilgrimage festivals. Shavuot is a Jewish holiday, but it has aspects that are specific to the land of Israel.
According to the Midrash, Mount Sinai suddenly bloomed in anticipation of the giving of the Torah on its summit. For this reason, Jewish families traditionally decorate their homes and synagogues with plants, flowers, and leafy branches in honor of holiday.
Shavuot is also called the holiday of bikkurim (first fruits). In the period of the First and Second Temple, bikkurim consisted of the seven species for which the land of Israel is praised: wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates. Baskets would be loaded on oxen whose horns were gilded and laced with garlands of flowers, and the oxen were led in a grand procession to Jerusalem. In modern Israel, the tradition of bikkurim ceremonies continues, mostly at kibbutzim. The children participate in a procession of agricultural products, and donations are made to the Jewish National Fund for land reclamation.
Israel has a thriving agricultural sector, which supplies most of the country's food needs. It is a major exporter of fresh produce and a world leader in agricultural technologies, despite the fact that the geography of Israel is not naturally conducive to agriculture. Today, agriculture represents 3.6 percent of exports. Since 1948, the sparsely populated desert area in the south has played an important role in agricultural production. More than forty percent of the country's vegetables and field crops are grown there. New varieties of crops suited to the region are being developed and introduced. The desert has many hours of sunshine and high temperatures and land there is relatively cheap. This makes it possible to grow for export to Europe during the winter months - October through March - using less energy, when prices are highest.
Water scarcity remains the most significant challenge for agriculture. In Israel, rain falls only between September and April and usually not enough to fill the reservoirs. This water shortage led Israel to develop innovative new methods, such as the drip irrigation system, which is now used in many dry places, and recycled water sources.
Israeli wines are also becoming more popular. Vineyards, first promoted as a commercial enterprise at the beginning of the twentieth century, now produce special varieties of grapes for a wide range of prize-winning red and white wines. These include grapes grown with saline water in desert conditions – an original Israeli phenomenon.
Israel is one of the world's leading fresh citrus producers and exporters. In addition, more than forty types of fruit grow in Israel. Israel is the leading producer of loquat after Japan. In 1973, two Israeli scientists developed a variety of cherry tomato that ripens more slowly in a hot climate. Flowers are Israel's leading agricultural export (29 percent). Each year, hundreds of millions of flowers are exported to Europe ahead of Valentine's Day. Flowers in Israel are less expensive than in North America or Europe. Before Jewish holidays and Shabbat in Israel, flower stands appear on each street corner. In recent years, ornamental plants have become a rapidly growing industry, both for internal use and for export.
Organic produce makes up only 1.5 percent of Israeli agricultural output, but it accounts for 13 percent of agricultural exports. Organic farming is the latest trend in Israel. New organic farms are now visible throughout the country, providing fresh organic produce. The climate differences between the cold north and hot Negev desert enable farmers to offer a year round supply of a large variety of vegetables, as well as organic wine, honey and solar panels!

Shavout Photos


For more information regarding these and other holiday celebrations: www.myjewishlearning.com or www.jewfaq.org.