The Festivals.
“The feasts of the Lord, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons” (Lev. xxiii. 4), are Passover, Feast of Weeks, Day of Memorial, Day of Atonement, and Feast of Tabernacles. These are divided into two groups called שלוש רגלים and ימים נוראים, “three festivals” and “solemn days.” In the Pentateuch the two groups are kept distinctly asunder. Thus in Exod. xxiii. 14–17 and xxxiv. 18, and Deut. xvi., only the former group is mentioned.
The name shalosh regalim derives its origin from the following Biblical passage: “Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year,” שלש רגלים תחג לי בשנה (Exod. xxiii. 14). Although in a parallel passage the word רגלים has been replaced by פעמים (ibid. ver. 17), of the same meaning, “times,” shalosh regalim has been preferred, because רגלים reminds one also of “a journey on foot,” “a pilgrimage,” an important element in the celebration of these three festivals, according to the Divine commandment, “Three times every year shall thy males appear before the Lord thy God, in the place which he shall choose, in the feast of unleavened bread, in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles” (Deut. xvi. 16).
The name yamim noraim for the remaining two feasts is not founded on a Biblical phrase, but on the fact that these festivals are devoted more than the rest to earnest reflection and solemn devotion. [[369]]
I. The Three Festivals (שלש רגלים).
The three festivals have the following three characteristics in common:—
1. They refer to important events in our national history; viz., Passover to the deliverance of the Israelites from Egyptian bondage; Feast of Weeks to the Revelation on Mount Sinai; and Tabernacles to the travels of the Israelites through the Arabian desert.
2. They mark the various stages of the harvest; viz., Passover marks the season of the early harvest, Feast of Weeks the second harvest, and the Feast of Tabernacles the ingathering of the fruit.
3. They serve as a means for imparting essential religious truths; viz., Passover embodies the principle of the Existence of God, the Feast of Weeks that of Revelation, and the Feast of Tabernacles that of Divine Providence.
The Distinguished Sabbaths (ד׳ פרשיות).[56]
There are in the months Adar and Nisan four Sabbaths distinguished by the circumstance that on them additional sections are read from the Pentateuch and special lessons from the Prophets. Two of them are connected with the celebration of Passover.
1. שבת שקלים “Sabbath of the shekels;” i.e., on which the law concerning the half-shekel contribution is read from the Pentateuch (Exod. xxx. 11–16), and also the account of the gifts for the repair of the Temple in the reign of King Joash (2 Kings xii. [[370]]1–17). Every male Israelite, twenty years old or upward, had to contribute annually one half-shekel towards the maintenance of the Temple and the Temple Service. The year commenced the 1st of Nisan, when public sacrifices had to be bought with money of the new contributions.[57] Every one was therefore expected to send his contribution before the 1st of Nisan. On the 1st of Adar proclamations were made throughout the country that the half-shekel was due.[58] Hence the custom to read the above-named sections on the Sabbath before the 1st of Adar, or on the 1st, if this happens to be on a Sabbath.
2. שבת זכור “Sabbath Remember” is the Sabbath on which the paragraph concerning the enmity of Amalek is read from the Pentateuch (Deut. xxv. 17–19), and the defeat of Amalek by King Saul from the Prophets (I Sam. xv.). The Agagite Haman, one of the principal figures in the history of Purim, is believed to be a descendant of Agag, king of Amalek (ibid. ver. 8). And as the Law commands us to remember the hostilities of Amalek against Israel, it has been found appropriate to read the above sections on the Sabbath before Purim.
3. שבת פרה “The Sabbath of the Red Heifer,” i.e., the Sabbath on which the law concerning the sacrifice of the red heifer and the purification with its ashes is read from the Pentateuch (Num. xix.), and “the future purification of Israel” (Ezek. xxxvi. 17–38) from the Prophets. It is the Sabbath after Purim, or, when the 15th or 16th of Adar falls on Saturday, the second Sabbath after Purim. All Israelites had [[371]]to come to the Temple, and to offer the Passover-lamb on the 14th of Nisan, and this could not be done by any unclean person. By the reading of the above sections, all are, as it were, reminded to take the necessary steps for their purification, and thus prepare themselves for the celebration of Passover.
4. שבת החדש “The Sabbath of ha-chodesh,” i.e., the Sabbath before the 1st of Nisan, or on the 1st of Nisan if it falls on a Saturday, on which the law that fixes Nisan as the first month[59] and the commandment concerning Passover are read from the Pentateuch (Exod. xii. 1–20), and the description of the sacrifices of the 1st of Nisan, Passover, and other Festivals in the future Temple from the Prophets (Ezek. xlv. 16–xlvi. 18).
In addition to these four Sabbaths, the Sabbath preceding Passover is to be mentioned. It is not distinguished by any special lesson from the Pentateuch, but it has nevertheless received the title “the Great Sabbath,” שבת הגדול[60] on account of the importance of [[372]]the approaching Festival. The last part of Malachi (iii. 4–24) is read as the haphtarah of the day, in which the ultimate triumph of the God-fearing is described by the Prophet.
פסח Passover.
Passover is the first of the Three Feasts, and is kept eight days, from the 15th of Nisan to the 22nd; the four middle days being half-Holy-days, called chol ha-moëd (“the week-days of the festival”).
The name Pesach, “Passover,”[61] reminds us of the way in which the Israelites enjoyed the Divine protection before they left Egypt. Pharaoh, king of Egypt, kept the Israelites as slaves, and when asked in the name of God to let them go, refused to obey. But the ten plagues which consecutively afflicted his land without causing injury to the Israelites taught [[373]]him the existence of a higher Power, to whose decrees the will of earthly rulers has to submit. It was especially the tenth plague, the slaying of the first-born, that convinced the king and his people of this truth. When the Lord smote all the first-born in the land of Egypt, “he passed over the houses of the children of Israel” (Exod. xii. 27).
The Feast has a second name, viz., “feast of unleavened bread,” חג המצות, a name derived from the commandment to eat מצה “unleavened bread,” instead of the ordinary חמץ “leavened bread,” during the Festival. The purpose of this commandment is to commemorate the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt as well as the mode of their actual departure. For when the tenth plague, the slaying of the first-born, had visited the Egyptians, they were overcome with fear, and urged the Israelites at once to leave the country. The Israelites therefore left Egypt hurriedly, [[374]]and had no time for preparing the ordinary “leavened bread,” and baked for themselves unleavened cakes (מצות) of the dough which they had made.
Passover thus commemorates two distinct moments in the deliverance of the Israelites from Egyptian slavery, viz. (1) the special protection which the Almighty granted them in Egypt, and (2) their departure from the house of bondage.
Two distinct observances, therefore, were ordained for the Feast of Passover, viz. (1) the sacrifice of the Passover-lamb, and (2) the eating of “unleavened bread” and the abstaining from “leavened bread.”
1. The Passover-lamb.—A short time before their departure from Egypt the Israelites were commanded by the Almighty that on the tenth of the first month every family should procure a lamb, keep it four days,[62] kill it in the afternoon of the fourteenth, sprinkle of its blood on the “lintel and the two door-posts,” and “eat in the evening the meat roast in fire, with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, in haste, their loins girded, their shoes on their feet and their staff in their hand” (Exod. xii. 3–11). Whatever the material benefit was which the Israelites, in the moment of starting for a long and uncertain journey, derived from the meal prepared and partaken of in this manner, there was a higher purpose in the Divine commandment; it was [[375]]demanded that the lamb should be “a passover sacrifice unto the Lord” (ibid.). The proceedings should be an expression of faith in God,[63] and of gratitude to Him for His protection. Every house should thus form a place holy unto the Lord; an altar, as it were, on which the blood of the sacrifice was sprinkled.
The Passover sacrifice first observed in Egypt was afterwards ordained as a permanent institution (ibid. ver. 24). This difference, however, was observed, that the Passover-lamb, like all sacrifices, had to be brought to the Sanctuary, to “the place which the Lord chose to place his name in” (Deut. xvi. 6). All who were prevented from performing their duty on the 14th of Nisan were allowed to offer the Passover on the 14th of the second month (Iyar). By way of distinction from the sacrifice on the first date, this offering was called “the second passover” (פסח שני,[64] Num. ix. 9–14). Since the destruction of the Temple all sacrificial service has been discontinued, and in accordance with the words, “We will compensate with our lips for the bullocks” (Hos. xiv. 3), prayers and recitals from [[376]]the Bible have taken the place of sacrifices, whilst psalms and hymns are added such as used to accompany the act of offering sacrifices. The Passover sacrifice has therefore been discontinued; but the law of eating unleavened bread and bitter herbs is still observed.
2. The Unleavened Bread.—“Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall have put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel” (Exod. xii. 15). “Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days; and there shall no leavened bread be seen with thee, neither shall there be leaven seen with thee in all thy quarters” (ibid. xiii. 7). “Seven days shall there no leaven be found in your houses” (ibid. xii. 19). The distinction between leavened and unleavened only applies to bread or any other form of food prepared out of any of the following five kinds of grain: barley, wheat, rye, oats, and spelt. Bread or cake prepared from any of these five kinds is called unleavened bread, or מצה, if the dough is baked immediately after it has been prepared, no time being left for fermentation.[65] It is not only forbidden during the [[377]]Festival to eat leavened bread, but it is not permitted to derive any benefit whatsoever from it.[66] All leaven and leavened bread must be removed before Passover comes in; and in accordance with the traditional interpretation of the precept, “Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread” (ibid. xxiii. 18), the leaven must be removed before the time in which the Passover was offered.[67]
The law forbidding חמץ “leavened bread,” to be kept in the house during Passover is frequently and most emphatically repeated in the Torah. Jews have therefore, as a rule, been very conscientious and zealous in the fulfilment of this Divine command. In accordance with this law, the following observances have been ordained:—
(1.) בדיקת חמץ “the searching for leavened bread” on the eve of the 14th of Nisan.[68] The head of the family, or his deputy, examines his residence thoroughly, and keeps the chamets, which he has found, in a safe place till the next morning. This searching, like every other performance of a religious duty, is preceded by a blessing, viz., ברוך … אשר קדשנו במצותיו וצונו על ביעור חמץ “Blessed art thou … who hast sanctified us by thy [[378]]commandments, and hast commanded us concerning the removal of the leavened bread.”[69]
(2.) ביעור חמץ, “the removal or the destruction of chamets.” All the chamets that is left after the first meal on the 14th of Nisan must be removed, i.e., sold or given as a present to a non-Israelite, or destroyed. In addition to the actual removal or destruction of chamets, a solemn declaration is made by the head of the family, that if any chamets should be left in his house without his knowledge, he would not claim it as his. The object of this declaration is to free the master of the house from all responsibility in case any chamets should be found on his premises, contrary to the Law.[70]
(3.) Utensils which have been used for chamets are put away, and replaced by new ones, or by such as have exclusively been kept for Passover. Some vessels used during the year may be used for Passover, after having undergone a certain process called kasher;[71] i.e., “fitting” them as vessels for use on Passover. [[379]]
(4.) Although the articles of food that are directly forbidden as chamets are very few, there are a great many things that contain an admixture of chamets, and those “who fear the word of the Lord” use during Passover only those articles of food concerning which there is no doubt whatever that they are perfectly free from chamets. Articles of food for Passover are therefore only bought of persons who can be trusted to hold these observances in respect.
In addition to the commandments of the Passover-offering and the unleavened bread, there is a special duty, mentioned four times in the Pentateuch, for the Israelite to relate to his children the history of the departure from Egypt, and to explain to them the meaning of the several rites connected with the celebration of Passover. This duty is called haggadah, “relating,” and a service has been arranged for the purpose, called Seder, “the Order.” The first two evenings of Passover are therefore called “Seder-evenings,” and the book which contains this Service is generally called Haggadah.
The Seder-service contains four elements: (1) the relation of the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt; (2) the festive meal, preceded by Kiddush and the partaking of bitter herbs and unleavened bread, and followed by Grace; (3) Hallel and other hymns; (4) the partaking of four cups of wine (arba kosoth).[72] [[380]]
The head of the family or his substitute who reads the Service has before him on the table: (1) three unleavened cakes (matsoth);[73] (2) bitter herbs and [[381]]other vegetables;[74] (3) salt water, in which the vegetables (karpas) are dipped before they are eaten, and charoseth, a mixture of apples, almonds, various spices, especially cinnamon, and wine, in which mixture the bitter herbs are dipped;[75] (4) a bone with some meat on it and an egg,[76] both roasted.
The order of the Service is indicated in most [[382]]editions of the Haggadah in rhymed Hebrew as follows:—
קדש ורחַץ . כרפס יחַץ . מגיד רחַץ . מוציא מצָה.
שלחן ערֵךְ . מרור כרֵךְ . צפון ברֵךְ . הלל נרצָה׃
The following is the explanation of these lines:—
1. קדש Say Kiddush. See above, page 379.
2. רחץ “Wash,” scil., your hands.—Only the head of the family does so at this part of the Service.[77]
3. כרפס “Vegetables.” A piece of parsley or salad or bitter herb is dipped in salt water, and eaten after the recitation of the blessing: ברוך … בורא פרי האדמה “Blessed art thou … who hast created the fruit of the ground.”[78]
4. יחץ “He divides.” Of the three matsoth before him, the head of the family breaks the middle one, part of which is laid aside, to be eaten at the end of the meal.[79]
5. מגיד “Relating,”[80] scil., the history of the departure [[383]]from Egypt. The reader, pointing to the broken מצה before him, exclaims, “Such was the bread of poverty which our forefathers ate in the land of Egypt;” as if to say, “We are all alike descendants of those who ate the bread of poverty in Egypt.” In the same sense, the reader continues, “We all alike should rejoice in the kindnesses shown by the Almighty to our nation, and all alike should seek and find true comfort in the hope of the Messianic blessing promised by Him for the future.”[81] One of the company, usually the youngest, puts to the reader four questions, as formulated in the paragraph beginning מה נשתנה “Why is different?”[82] Additions and alterations may, of course, be made by the inquirer according to his knowledge and intellect. The object of these questions is to obtain an explanation of the rites that distinguish this evening from others. In answer to these questions, the reader refers to the past history of Israel in three different forms,[83] viz.:—
(1.) The first answer begins, עבדים היינו, “We were [[384]]slaves;” and ends, בשעה שיש מצה ומרור מונחים לפניך “When unleavened bread and bitter herbs lie before thee.” Here the reader restricts himself, without any comment, to the one fact that our forefathers were at first slaves in Egypt, and were then delivered, and illustrates the duty of speaking that night more fully concerning the departure from Egypt, by precedent, by the authority of the Mishnah, and by the Midrashic interpretation of the law commanding us to tell our children this event.
(2.) The second form of the answer begins, מתחלה עבדי עבודה זרה היו אבתינו “Our forefathers were at first worshippers of idols,” and ends, מצילנו מידם “delivers us out of their hand.” Here the exodus from Egypt is described as the fulfilment of the promise made by God to Abraham, that his descendants would be delivered out of the hands of their oppressors.
(3.) The passage from Deut. xxvi. 5–8 is recited with its Midrashic interpretations,[84] and in conclusion all the benefits received by the Israelites from the [[385]]departure from Egypt till the building of the Temple are enumerated, and our duty of gratitude is shown.
In all these three forms no notice has been taken of the particular questions. Rabban Gamaliel insists that this should be done, and a section is therefore added, containing the explanation why the Passover-offering, the unleavened bread, and the bitter herbs were to be eaten; this, like the three other sections, concludes with the emphatic declaration that we—after so many generations—are still bound to praise and to thank God for the benefits bestowed upon our nation so long ago. Hereupon follows the Hallel, of which the first two paragraphs, containing special reference to the departure from Egypt, are sung before supper; the first part of the Seder-Service concludes with a blessing, in which we praise God for our past deliverance and pray for the approach of our future redemption.
6. רחץ “Washing.” All those who partake of the meal wash their hands, as is ordinarily done before meals.
7. מוציא מצה. Two pieces of מצה are taken; one piece, broken off the whole cake, representing the bread eaten at ordinary meals for מוציא, and the other piece taken from the broken one, representing the מצה we are commanded to eat on the Seder-night. Before eating the two pieces two blessings are recited ברוך … המוציא לחם מן הארץ “Blessed art thou … who bringest forth bread from the earth,” and ברוך … אשר קדשנו ּּּ על אכילת מצה “Blessed art thou … who hast sanctified us by Thy commandments and hast commanded us to eat מצה.”[85] [[386]]
8. מרור “Bitter herb.” Bitter herbs dipped in charoseth are eaten, after the following blessing has been recited ברוך … אשר קדשנו … על אכילת מרור “Blessed art thou … who hast sanctified us by thy commandments and hast commanded us to eat bitter herbs.”
9. כורך “Combining;” scil., unleavened bread and bitter herbs; these are eaten together, just as formerly, in the time of the Temple, Hillel used to eat together meat of the Passover-offering, unleavened bread, and bitter herbs (Exod. xii. 8; Num. ix. 11).
10. שלחן עורך “Table laid.” The evening meal is taken.
11. צפון “Laid aside.” The meal is concluded with a piece of the half matsah that has been laid aside at the beginning of the Service. It is called afikuman, “dessert.”[86] [[387]]
12. ברך “Say grace.”[87]
13. הלל “Hallel.”—The rest of Hallel is sung, followed by Ps. cxxxvi., and the whole of נשמת with the concluding blessing.—The fourth cup of wine is then taken, and the usual prayer after the partaking of wine is recited.
14. נרצה “Completed.”[88]—The Seder-Service is [[388]]completed; it concludes with a prayer for the rebuilding of the Temple and the restoration of Israel to Zion. The prayer seems to have been originally the conclusion of a Piyyut or liturgical poem on the Passover Sacrifice.
The Haggadah contains, besides, several hymns and songs, of which the following are found in the ordinary editions of the work:—
1. ויהי בחצי הלילה “And it was in the middle of the night.” The author reflects on the various marvellous events in our history that happened in the night-time.
2. ואמרתם זבח פסח “And ye shall say, It is a sacrifice of Passover.” A song referring to wonderful events which, according to Tradition, took place on Passover.
3. כי לו נאה “To him praise is seemly.” A praise of God as the only Being worthy to be called King and Ruler.
4. אדיר הוא “He is mighty.” A praise of God, and an expression of hope that He will soon rebuild the Temple.
5. אחד מי יודע “One, who knows?” A popular song enumerating persons and objects in Jewish History and Tradition, as well as in Nature according to numbers up to thirteen, with the object of emphasising the Unity of God.
6. חד גדיא “One kid.” A popular song that illustrates the working of Divine Justice in the history of mankind.
Passover as an agricultural feast was kept “in the season of the month of ripeness” (למועד חדש האביב), [[389]]when the barley sown in the winter had become ripe. On the second day of Passover an offering was brought of “the beginning of the harvest;” it consisted of an omer[89] of barley (Lev. xxiii. 9 sqq.). Before this offering was presented it was not allowed to eat of the new corn (ibid. 14).
From the bringing of the Omer to “the harvest feast” the days are counted, viz., forty-nine days, and the fiftieth day is the feast of harvest (חג הקציר), or “the day of the first-fruit offering” (יום הבכורים).
The counting commences on the second evening. It is done either immediately after Maarib, or later on during the Seder-Service; it is preceded by the following blessing: ברוך … אשר קדשנו … על ספירת העומר “Blessed art thou … who hast sanctified us by thy commandments and hast commanded us … to count the days of the Omer.” The following is the way of counting: היום יום … לעומר “This day is the first day since the Omer.” From seven upward the number of weeks is likewise expressed,[90] היום יום … שהם … שבועות … לעומר “This day completes … that is … weeks … since the offering of the Omer.”
The celebration of Passover serves to inculcate into our hearts the first principle of our faith: the existence of God, the Supreme Being who rules the whole universe, in whose hand are the destinies of kings and peoples, whose power was recognised by the Egyptians when they were punished for their misdeeds, [[390]]and whose might was seen by the Israelites when He divided the Red Sea for them, and fulfilled the Divine promise made to the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
The season of Passover, in which we celebrate our liberation from earthly taskmasters, is called זמן חרותנו “The season of our freedom.” The deliverance from Egypt, the first step leading to the fulfilment of the promise, “And I will take you unto me for a people,” has been poetically conceived as the betrothal of Israel to God, and in the Piyyut for Passover ample use has been made of this idea. It has further found expression in the custom of reading the Song of Solomon on the first Sabbath after the first two days of Passover, and by some also on the Seder-evening after the conclusion of the ordinary Service.
The Service is, in general outline, the same as on Sabbath. It consists of Maarib, Shacharith, Musaph, and Minchah. The Morning-Service includes Hallel, the reading of the Law, and Lessons from the Prophets (קריאת התורה and הפטרה). The following sections, containing description of, or reference to, Passover or to the departure from Egypt, are read consecutively on the eight days: Exod. xii. 21–51, on the Passover celebrated by the Israelites in Egypt; Lev. xxii. 26 to xxiii. 44, on “the seasons of the Lord;” Exod. xiii., xxii. 24 to xxiii. 19, and xxxiv. 1–26: Num. ix. 1–14, on the second Passover; Exod. xiii. 17–xv. 26, the crossing of the Red Sea; Deut. xv. 19 (on Sabbath, xiv. 22) to xvi. 17 contains laws referring to the three Festivals. On Sabbath chol-ha-moëd, Exod. xxxiii. 12 to xxxiv. 26.—In addition to these sections [[391]]verses from Num. xxviii.–xxix., referring to the sacrifices prescribed for each day of the Festival, are read from a second sefer.
The Lessons from the Prophets are the following:—Josh. v. (preceded in the German Ritual by iii. 5–7), on the first Passover kept by the Israelites in Palestine; 2 Kings xxiii. 1–9 and 21–25, on the Passover celebrated in the days of King Josiah; 2 Sam. xxii., the song of David after deliverance from his enemies, a parallel to the Song of Moses; Isa. x. 32—xii., on the defeat of Sennacherib, and the blessings of the Messianic days. According to Tradition the defeat of Sennacherib took place on Passover; moreover, the celebration of the deliverance from Egypt suggests the reflection on the final Redemption of Israel. The Lesson from the Prophets chosen for Sabbath chol-ha-moëd is taken from Ez. xxxvi. 1–14. The prophet sees in a vision how the dry bones of the dead are awakened to fresh life by the Will and the Spirit of the Lord: a precious lesson for us, designed to strengthen our hope of a revival of every good and noble idea, though for the present it be dormant within us. Nature around us awakening to fresh life in the spring supplies a parallel to the vision of Hezekiel.
The Machzor (lit. Cycle) or Prayer-book for the Holy-days contains numerous additions to the ordinary prayers. They are called Piyyutim, and vary according to the custom and the taste of the congregation. The Piyyut added in the second paragraph of the Musaph-amidah on the first day of Passover is called tal, “dew,” or prayer for dew; the rain season having come to an end, we [[392]]pray that the vegetation may, during the hot season, be refreshed by the regular descent of the dew. The praise for “sending down rain” in the same paragraph, viz., משיב הרוח ומוריד הגשם, “Thou causest the wind to blow and the rain to fall,” is discontinued after the shacharith prayer of the first day of Passover. In the Portuguese Ritual the words מוריד הטל, “Thou causest the dew to fall,” are introduced instead.
Similarly, there is an additional prayer for rain (גשם) in the Musaf of Shemini-atsereth. The time chosen for these prayers is in accordance with the meteorological conditions of Palestine. This custom, however, does not exclude the addition of prayers for rain or dew, according to the needs of the country in which we live.
The Days of the Counting of the Omer, ימי הספירה
The period from Passover to the Feast of Weeks is full of sad memories of massacres of Jews that took place in the days of the Crusades; also of the miseries that befell the Jews in Palestine in the days of the Emperor Hadrian. During the month of Iyar, the Jews abstain from rejoicings and weddings,[91] with the exception of the 18th of the month, which is the 33rd of the Omer, because, according to Tradition, a plague that had raged among the disciples of Rabbi Akiba ceased on that day. The 18th of Iyar, ל״ג בעומר is therefore called “the scholars’ festival.” [[393]]
The Feast of Weeks, שבועות
The Feast of Weeks is celebrated on the fiftieth day[92] of the Omer (Lev. xxiii. 16); i.e., the 6th of Sivan. It is, in the first place, “the feast of harvest,” חג הקציר (Exod. xxiii. 16), especially of the wheat, and “the day of the first-fruit offering,” יום הבכורים (Num. xxviii. 26). The first sacrifice of the new corn was offered: “the bread of the first-fruit,” which was to serve as an expression of gratitude for the blessing of the harvest. In the absence of sacrifices in our days, the custom widely prevails of adorning the Synagogue and the home with plants and flowers, in order that the sight of these beautiful objects might awaken and strengthen feelings of gratitude toward the Almighty for His loving-kindness. Each one of the plants and flowers reveals a special form of the Creator’s wisdom, power, and goodness.—The feast is called Feast of Weeks, חג השבעות (Deut. xvi. 10), on account of the completion of the seven weeks counted from the day of the Omer.
The Feast of Weeks, the 6th and the 7th of Sivan, commemorates also an historical event: the Law-giving on Mount Sinai. It is therefore called “the season of the giving of our Law,” זמן מתן תורתנו.
As Passover has been poetically called the day of Israel’s betrothal to God, the Feast of Weeks would [[394]]correspond to the wedding-day, and the counting of the Omer does thus not only connect two harvest-feasts, but represents the longing of the bride for the day of her complete happiness; i.e., the longing of the Israelites for the Divine Revelation, which was to complete the work of their deliverance from Egypt.
The celebration of the Feast of Weeks thus involves the second principle of our faith: תורה מן השמים “The belief in the Divine origin of the Law,” or “Divine Revelation.”
On the first day we read Exod. xix.–xx., the account of the Law-giving on Mount Sinai, and Ez. i., the first vision of the prophet Ezekiel, in which the glory of God is revealed to him. On the second day Deut. xv. 19 (on Sabbath, xiv. 22) to xvi. 17; and Hab. iii., “the prayer of Habakkuk,” in reference to God’s Revelation as the Ruler of the universe.—There is also the custom to read the Book of Ruth, which contains the account of Ruth’s embracing the true faith, and a description of the harvest and the treatment of the poor in the harvest-season.
There is a custom among some of our brethren to employ the first night of the Feast in preparing themselves for the coming celebration of the giving of the Law. The greater part of the night is spent in reading passages from the Scriptures and from the Talmudical books.[93] The custom has its basis in the preparation commanded by God to be made during “the three days of bordering” (שלשת ימי הגבלה) which preceded the Law-giving (Exod. xix. 10–12). [[395]]
The Feast of Tabernacles, סכות
“The fifteenth day of this seventh month (Tishri) shall be the Feast of Tabernacles (סכות) for seven days unto the Lord” (Lev. xxiii. 34). The name has its explanation in the commandment, “Ye shall dwell in booths seven days” (ibid. 42); “that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt” (ver. 43). We are thus commanded to commemorate the travelling of the Israelites through the wilderness. They dwelt in tents, that gave them shelter to some extent; but without the Divine protection this shelter would have proved insufficient. Of this twofold shelter and protection we are reminded by the tabernacle in which the Law commands us to dwell during the Festival.
In fulfilment of this commandment we make booths (סכות). The chief difference between a booth and an ordinary house consists in the mode and in the material employed for roofing the two structures. For the succah must not be covered with fixed boards and beams or with canvas, but with detached branches of trees, plants, flowers, and leaves, in such a manner that the covering is not quite impenetrable to wind and rain, or starlight. During the Festival the succah is our dwelling-house, in which we take our meals, study, receive our friends, and, if possible, enjoy rest and sleep. If, on account of the severity of the climate, the constant dwelling in the succah threatens to prove injurious to our health, we content ourselves with taking our meals in the succah. Before each meal [[396]]we recite the blessing ברוך … אשר קדשנו … לישב בסוכה “Blessed art thou … who hast sanctified us by thy commandments and hast commanded us to dwell in the booth.” The first time we are in the succah we add the blessing, שהחינו (p. 358).
The Festival is, secondly, called “the Feast of Ingathering,” חג האסיף. The produce of the fields and gardens have been gathered in, and the people rejoice before the Lord in gratitude for the blessings which He has granted to them. “And ye shall take unto you on the first day the fruit of the goodly tree, branches of palm-trees, and boughs of thick-leaved trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days” (Lev. xxiii. 40). In accordance with the traditional interpretation of this verse, we take four kinds of plants (ארבעה מינין), viz., אתרוג “the citron;” לולב, “a branch of the palm-tree;” הדסים, three “myrtle branches;” and ערבות, two “branches of the willow.” According to a Midrashic interpretation, they represent four different types of plants, that which has a pleasant fragrance and a beautiful form (esrog); the beautiful in form, but without fragrance (lulabh); that which smells pleasantly, but is inferior in form (hadassim); and that which has neither a goodly form nor an agreeable fragrance (arabhoth), as if to say that we are thankful to God for all that He has given us, although to our mind some of these seem imperfect in comparison with others.
In obedience to this commandment we take, every day of Succoth except Saturday,[94] the above four kinds [[397]]into our hands, hold them during the recitation of the Hallel, and make with them a procession round the Synagogue,[95] while singing the hymns called hoshaanoth (so called on account of the repeated occurrence of the word hoshaanah in them).
Before taking the arbaah minim into our hands we say the following blessing: ברוך … אשר קדשנו … על נטילת לולב “Blessed art thou … who hast sanctified us by thy commandments and hast commanded us to take the lulabh.”[96] On the first day שהחינו is added.
Succoth lasts seven days, the last five days being half Holy-days, חול המועד. The seventh day is called Hoshaana-rabba, because on that day many prayers beginning with hoshaana are offered up, during the [[398]]chanting of which seven processions round the Synagogue are made.[97]
The Feast of Tabernacles is closely followed by “the feast of the eighth day,” שמיני עצרת,[98] which, like all other Festivals, is kept two days. The second day is, in addition, called “Rejoicing of the Law,” שמחת תורה [[399]]because on this day the reading of the Pentateuch is completed and recommenced.
The nine days of the Festival are called זמן שמחתנו “The season of our rejoicing,” and it is the third principle of our faith, the belief in Divine Providence, that this Festival impresses on our hearts. On the one hand, we have the rejoicing and the four species of plants as proofs and tokens of Divine blessing; and, on the other hand, the succah is a symbol of human frailties and imperfections. Thus, in all our rejoicings we should remember that our abode on earth is not permanent, and that all earthly happiness is like the plants that easily fade away. In order to impress this idea on our mind, we read the book of Koheleth on Sabbath chol-ha-moëd or on Shemini-atsereth.
The following portions are read from the Pentateuch: Lev. xxii. 26 to xxiii. 44[99] (on the first two days); Exod. xxxiii. 12 to xxxiv. 26 (on Sabbath chol-ha-moëd); Deut. xiv. 22 to xvi. 7 (on the eighth day); Deut. xxxiii. to end of Pentateuch; and Gen. i. 1 to ii. 3 (on Simchath Torah). In addition, the paragraph of the sacrifices of the day (Num. xxix. 12–39) is read [[400]]from a second sefer. The Lessons for chol-ha-moëd are taken from the same passage.
The Lessons from the Prophets are the following: Zech. xiv., prophecy on the future of Israel and on the punishment of those who would not come to Jerusalem to celebrate there the Succoth Festival; 1 Kings viii. 2–21, on the opening of the new Temple; on Sabbath chol-ha-moëd, Ez. xxxviii. 18 to xxxix. 16, on the war with Gog; 1 Kings viii. 22–66, prayer of Solomon on the eighth day of the services for the consecration of the Temple; Jos. i., accession of Joshua to the leadership of Israel.
Solemn Days, ימים נוראים
By ימים נוראים “solemn days,” we understand the first ten days of the month Tishri, especially their beginning and their end: ראש השנה, “New-year,” and יום כפור “the Day of Atonement.”[100]
It is customary to prepare for the “solemn days” during the month of Elul, by additional prayers, called סליחות “forgiveness,” after or before the Daily Service, and by blowing the shofar at the close of the [[401]]Daily Service.[101] According to the Portuguese Ritual, the Selichoth begin on the 1st of Elul, and are continued [[402]]morning and evening till the Day of Atonement. The German Ritual has Selichoth only in the Morning Service; they begin on the Sunday before New-year, and if the Festival is on Monday or Tuesday, on the second Sunday before, and end on the Day of Atonement. The blowing of the shofar takes place in the German Synagogues during the month of Elul, in the Portuguese this custom is not practiced.
ראש השנה New-year.
The first and the second days of Tishri are kept as New-year.[102] In accordance with the command, “The first of the first-fruits of thy land thou shalt bring unto the house of the Lord thy God” (Exod. xxxiv. 26), we devote the first ten days of the year as an offering to the Lord; they are days of increased devotion, earnest self-examination, and new efforts to lead a good, virtuous, and godly life. They are called עשרת ימי תשובה “ten days of return” to God, or “ten penitential days.”
We greet and congratulate each other on New-year, using the phrase, לשנה טובה תכתב—or לש׳ ט׳ תכחבי, תכתבו, תכתבנה according as a male, a female, several males, or several females are addressed—“May you be inscribed for a happy year.” It is a figurative expression, borrowed from the writing and signing of decrees by earthly judges. [[403]]
In the Bible the Festival is not called New-year,[103] but יום תרועה “Day of blowing the shofar” (Num. xxix. 1); and זכרון תרועה “Memorial of the blowing of the shofar” (Lev. xxiii. 24); in our prayers the names יום הזכרון and יום הדין “Day of Remembering” and “Day of Judgment,” are also used.
The first of these four names implies, according to the traditional interpretation, the commandment of blowing the shofar. As a rule the shofar is blown during the Morning Service before the sefer is returned to the Ark, and during Musaf.[104] The blowing of the shofar is expressed by תרועה, which denotes the sound of an alarm; hence we learn that the shofar is intended to awaken us, and to call us forth to range ourselves under our banner. It is an ideal banner, the worship of God and faith in Him, that we are called upon to protect and to defend from enemies without and within.[105] Prominence is therefore given in our Service for New-year to the proclamation of God as King of the universe, and to our longing for the time when all mankind will unite in the worship of the One God. [[404]]
The name “Memorial of blowing the shofar” indicates that we are to remember some historical event suggested by the sound of the shofar. We are reminded of the period when the Israelites, encamped round Mount Sinai, on hearing the Divine message, “Ye shall be my peculiar people,” “a kingdom of priests,” and “a holy nation,” joyfully replied, “All that the Lord hath spoken we will do” (Exod. xix. 8). The shofar thus awakens us to greater watchfulness and activity in the purification and sanctification of our heart.
The third name, “Day of Memorial,” seems to be a modification of the second; but it has a more general meaning. The second name, that reminds us of our duty as God’s peculiar people, suggests also the idea that God, who declared us to be His people, watches over us; that what we do, we do in His presence. He perceives, notes, and remembers all our deeds, words, and thoughts. When, therefore, we appeal to the goodness of Him, who remembers all His creatures and provides for the wants of every one of them, we must not forget that He is also just. This idea, again, suggests the fourth name, יום הדין “Day of Judgment,” the day on which we are judged according to our deeds, both our merits and our shortcomings being taken into account.
The essential elements in our Service are the three sections in the Amidah of Musaf: מלכיות, זכרונות and שופרות. They chiefly refer to the three fundamental principles of our religion: (1) Existence of God, a Being that is King of the universe; (2) Divine Justice, and (3) Revelation. Ten passages are quoted [[405]]from the Bible in support of each of these principles.
Tradition has fixed the 1st of Tishri as the date of several events in the history of Israel, e.g., the birth of Isaac, the binding of Isaac (עקדה), and the birth of Samuel (B. T. Rosh ha-shanah 10b). Hence Gen. xxi. and xxii. are read on the two days of New-year, in addition to the paragraph on the sacrifices of the Festival (Num. xxix. 1–6).
From the Prophets, we read on the first day 1 Sam. i. 1 to ii. 10, on the birth of Samuel, and the prayer of Hannah praising the justice of God; on the second day, Jer. xxxi. 2–20, a prophecy concerning the restoration of Israel.[106]
The Sabbath between New-year and the Day of Atonement is called שבת שובה because the haphtarah, taken from Hosea (xiv. 1 seq.), commences with the word שובה and is an exhortation of Israel to return to God.
יום כפור “Day of Atonement.”
The tenth day of the seventh month, Tishri, is the most important of all the Holy-days. It is the Day of Atonement, on which “God will forgive you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the Lord” (Lev. xvi. 30). [[406]]
“Ye shall do no manner of work; it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict yourselves: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath” (Lev. xxiii. 31, 32).
The Day of Atonement is therefore a day of resting, fasting, prayer, and spiritual improvement.
It is a day of rest, and the prohibition of work is the same as on the ordinary Sabbath.
The fasting begins the 9th of Tishri—ערב יום כפור—about sunset, and lasts till the beginning of night on the following day. The phrase, ועניתם את נפשתיכם “Ye shall afflict yourselves,” is explained by Tradition to signify the total abstinence from all kinds of food and the gratification of other bodily desires (Mishnah, Yoma viii. 1). The reason of this commandment may be the following: The principal source of sin is the gratification of our bodily appetites; תשובה “return” to the right way must therefore include the earnest attempt to control, and when necessary to suppress, such appetites. Fasting is such an attempt. But it must be borne in mind that fasting is only one of the duties we have to fulfil on the Day of Atonement, and that the other duties are equally essential.
תשובה “return,” is the principal object of the celebration of the Day of Atonement; it implies the following four steps:—
1. Consciousness of sin, ידיעת החטא. We must again and again examine ourselves and try to discover our failings; our actions and our words must pass in review, and we must remember that, however good we may [[407]]be, no man is righteous upon earth “that doeth good and sinneth not” (Eccles. vii. 20).
2. Confession of sin, ודוי.[107] On the discovery of sin, we must have the courage to confess our guilt before him against whom we have sinned; if it is against God alone that we have sinned, we make silent confession before Him; if we find ourselves guilty of an offence against our fellow-man, we must confess our sin to him.
3. Regret, חרטה. Having discovered and confessed our sin, we should feel pain and remorse, alike for the evil we have done and for the good we have left undone.
4. Amendment, עזיבת החטא. The regret should be followed by a firm resolve to abandon the way of evil, and not to sin again, even if occasion be given for a repetition of the sinful act.
There are five Services on the Day of Atonement: [[408]]
(1) Evening Service, מעריב;[108] (2) Morning Service, שחרית; (3) Additional Service, מוסף; (4) Afternoon Service, מנחה; (5) Concluding Service, נעילה.[109]—The [[409]]confession of sin, ודוי is the most essential and characteristic element in the Services of the Day of Atonement.
In the Morning Service we read Lev. xvi., and Num. xxix. 7–11, on the sacrifices on the Day of Atonement; in the Afternoon Service, Lev. xviii., on forbidden marriages. The Lessons from the Prophets are: in the morning, Isa. lvii. 14–lviii. 14, on our duties on the fast-day; in the afternoon, the Book of Jonah, illustrating the effect of sincere repentance, and Micah vii. 18–20, on Israel’s repentance.