What is Shavuot?
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Shavuot is a Jewish holiday that falls on the sixth day of the month of Sivan.
Shavuot is a celebration of the day that the Ten Commandments were given to Moses and the Jewish people at Mount Sinai.
Shavuot is connected with Passover and the Counting of the Omer. This seven week period of Counting starts on the second day of Passover and ends with Shavuot. The period of counting signifies the anticipation the Jewish people had for the giving of the Torah and their commitment to serving G-d, after being freed from their enslavement to Pharaoh on Passover.
Shavuot also has connections to the time of harvest in Israel. Traditionally barley would be harvested during Passover finishing with the wheat harvest at the time of Shavuot.
Shavuot marked the time when an offering of grain and Bikkurim (first fruits) would be made at the Temple in Jerusalem.