Welcome to Ahaba.com's Shabuoth section. You can learn what time minyanim are by clicking on our schedule... In addition, you can review the halachot regarding this special holiday, which commemorates our receiving of the Torah from Hashem.

On the sixth of Sivan, after 49 days of the counting the Omer (seven full weeks), the holiday of Shabuoth begins. The holiday's name, "Shabuoth", means "weeks" in Hebrew. There are seven full weeks counted from the second day of Pesah until Shabuoth.

It is important to learn as much as one can during this holiday, for this holiday is the commemoration of the giving of the Torah to Bnei Yisrael. There is no better appreciation we can show Hashem, then by learning and being involved in His missvot.

According to our tradition, we are allowed to pray Arvit and make Kiddush even before it becomes night on the 49th day, just as we pray arbit early during the summer months (after Pelag HaMinha).

Why was the Torah not given immediately? Why was there a delay of seven weeks until Matan Torah?

When Israel came out of Egypt, they had been physically crippled by strenuous labor and hard work. In addition, Israel was also spiritually unprepared to receive Hashem's Torah. Both these aspects affected their ability to prepare for accepting the Torah. Therefore, they were given the misva of Sefirat Ha'Omer (link), which for forty-nine days prepared them both physically and spiritually for Matan Torah. Hashem said ,"Let them take pleasure in the Man (manna) and the fresh spring water and the silav (fowl) and then I shall give them the Torah."