Rabbi’s Monthly Message

While some holidays, like Yom Kippur and Passover, have always taken a central place in the Jewish calendar, others tended to be left in the rear view outside of Hebrew School celebrations. One example is Tishah Be’av, a Jewish mourning day which is now most often observed in the context of Jewish summer camps. But a more even striking example of this is Tu Beshvat, which we celebrate at the end of January. 

Tu Beshvat simply means “the 15th day of the month of Shvat” and was originally observed in the Biblical period by tithing fruit. The farmers would calculate all the produce they grew up until that date, and would pay a tithe to the Temple priests accordingly. After the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, the practice became obsolete and likely would have been completely forgotten had the rabbis in the Mishnah, writing over a hundred years later, had not come up with some exceptional marketing! They creatively gave the holiday a new name – “Rosh Hashanah (New Year) for the Trees.” 

Despite its celebratory name, Tu Beshvat never developed a true ritual or custom and remained mostly unobserved until Rabbi Luria attached a mystical meaning to the holiday in the 16^th century. One of the people who were influenced by Rabbi Luria’s creative interpretation of the holiday was a man named Shabbatai Tzvi, a young Jewish man who believed that he was the Messianic figure the Bible foretold in the prophets. Tzvi proclaimed himself to be the Messiah and many Jews followed him until he ended up converting to Islam (albeit under duress). Rabbi Alon Levkovitz writes that, “some remained loyal to him even after his death and in his honor the believers celebrated Tu Beshvat as Shabbatai Tzvi Day (mainly because he was known as a “Tree of Life”) with a festive meal, modeled after the Passover Seder. The ritual feast included eating 30 fruits, drinking 4 cups of wine and the recitation of prayers and of biblical readings.” Despite this unique origin story, the Tu Beshevat seder took hold and to this day, many Jewish communities still celebrate this holiday with a seder and eating fruits

Moreover, the holiday is one of environmental awareness. It is a recognition of the interconnectedness of our lives with the trees and flora around us. The holiday comes at a time when the sap begins to run up and down the almond trees in Israel as the cycle of blossoming and blooming begins once again. The other custom that has grown from this, particularly since the founding of the State of Israel, is planting trees in the Holy Land as a way of building a deeper connection to the Land. As it is written in Midrash Kohelet Raba 7:28: 

“When the Holy One of Blessing created the first human He took him and showed him all trees of the Garden of Eden and said to him ‘See My works, how beautiful and praiseworthy they are. And everything that I created, I created it for you. Be careful not to spoil or destroy My world – for if you do, there will be nobody after you to repair it.’”

I look forward to celebrating Tu Beshvat with you on January 30^th with a small seder at our Coalition Shabbat service. Until then, I hope you have a Shanah Tovah (of the trees, that is)!