Shavuot, the forgotten holiday

Unlike most Jewish holidays, Shavuot has no sad undertones. Could this be why 'the Torah’s birthday’ is generally overlooked?

By Yael Miller for Haaretz

I tutor students part time in a somewhat Jewish area outside of Washington, D.C. Most are pretty excited when they find out I’m Jewish, and I usually try to bond with them over their excitement by mentioning holidays or fun facts on Israel. Oftentimes, I’ll ask, “What holidays are coming up?” and see their faces light up when they answer.

This week, I asked several of my students, “What holiday is coming up?” and watched as a blank stare come over their faces. One postulated, “Yom Kippur?” another looked at me as if I were crazy and said, “Uh, Passover was last month, Yael.” Finally, one exclaimed after much thought: “Oh yeah! It’s the Torah’s birthday. It’s important, right?”

Shavuot has always puzzled me. It’s an important holiday, but honestly, for the vast majority of Jews out there, it isn’t celebrated, and if it is, it’s by eating cheesecake. Even the “Jew FAQ” website who lists a “Gentiles’ Guide to the Jewish Holidays” states that “this holiday is every bit as important as Passover, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, but most American Jews don't see it that way.”

You’d think that for a holiday that considers macaroni and cheese as appropriate festive food, that Americans would be obsessed with Shavuot (myself included). It’s a happy holiday, celebrating the gift of the Torah to the Jewish people, unlike the somber holidays like Yom Kippur. So why don’t we celebrate it more?

Part of me thinks that Shavuot is a victim of its timing. Coming after Passover, a holiday that literally takes over the kitchens of most Jewish people for about a week, I think most secular folk just feel, well, tired. After thoroughly cleaning our kitchens and suffering from the havoc that matza reigns on our digestive system, the thought of creating a full-dairy meal induces a figurative stomachache (or a very real one for those who are lactose-intolerant).

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