On Shavuot the custom is to stay up all night studying Torah to mark the date that God gave the Ten Commandments. We pray and read the Torah (Exodus 19-20), and eating dairy foods is customary.
The wheat harvest and the Giving of the Torah.
Feast of Weeks (Shavuot)
Shavuot is recognized as a festival by all branches of Judaism, Orthodox, Reform, Conserviative. However, of the three pilgrimage festivals, it is the most frequently ignored. (Despite the good food, since cheesecake is a traditioinal food for Shavuot.) I have been to Orthodox synagogues where hardly anyone showed up for Shavuot, and I have been to Reform synagogues that were crowded on Shavuot. Even so it is probable that more Orthodox Jews take Shavuot seriously.
Shavuot is one of the three annual Jewish pilgrimage festivals. Before the year 70, all Jews were commanded to go to the Temple in Jerusalem for these festivals. Shavuot is also called Pentecost because it occurs 50 days after Passover, and it is called the Feast of Weeks. Shavuot is a harvest festival (the winter wheat harvest), and it commemorates the revelation of the Torah to Moses at Mount Sinai. In addition to the festival liturgy, Shavuot is frequently observed by eating dairy meals -- lots of cheese dishes and cheesecake, and by all-night Torah study sessions. In modern times, the Reform movement has created confirmation ceremonies on Shavuot honoring students who have continued their religious education beyond bar mitzvah age.
Prior to Shavuot, which the Christians often mislabel as Pentecost, Jews were in the Omer or Harvest Season. It is typically seen as a time of lament in Judaism and happy activities, such as weddings, haircuts, parties, and similar are not performed. After Shavuot, these activities resume.
Not only Jews celebrate penticost christians do too.Anyway the reason we celbrate penticost is it's 50 days after Jesus died on the cross.Jewish AnswerWe don't celebrate Pentecost. The holiday we observe is Shavuot, this holiday celebrates the anniversary of the day HaShem gave us the Torah. The two holidays fall around the same time of year.
In Christianity, the holiday known as Shavuot is called 'Pentecost.' While Jews celebrate God Giving them the Torah on Shavuot, Christians celebrate God Sending them the Holy Spirit on Pentecost.
During the passover festival, the Jews remember their exodus from Egypt.
Because that is when the Jews got the Torah from God at Mount Sinai. The observance of Shavuot is a Torah-mitzva (Leviticus ch.23, Deuteronomy ch.16).
The date on the Jewish calendar is 6th of Sivan. How this correlates with the Gregorian Calendar depends on the year.If Passover falls early, such as will happen in 2015, the holiday of Shavuot, signalling the end of the Omer and the celebration of receiving the Torah, will happen towards the end of May. However, Shavuot can fall instead in the beginning of June if Passover comes late, such as will happen in 2016.
1) It commemorates the date that God gave the Ten Commandments. 2) Every one of the festivals has as its purpose "remembering the Exodus from Egypt" (as stated in our prayers and the kiddush over wine). 3) In addition, Shavuot is a thanksgiving to God for the wheat-harvest.
Shavuot is a Jewish religious holiday.