SEVEN
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Self-Portrait with Seven Fingers
(detail)
Marc Chagall, 1912
(According to a Yiddish saying,
doing something with seven fingers,
means doing it well).
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Dear readers,
According to tradition,
Shavuot, the Feast of the Harvest, was observed seven weeks after
the second day of Passover by bringing the firstfruits of the land
as an offering to the Temple in Jerusalem. Shavuot is the Hebrew
word for weeks, from the rootword sh-v-a (seven). The Bible
stipulates that these offerings (bikkurim) were to be brought
only from the seven species of the Land of Israel, despite the fact
that Israel was blessed with many other choice products (see
Nogah Reuveni's article). Under the inspiration of these thoughts,
we chose to devote Edition 18 to SEVEN.
Enjoy
this month the following articles:
The seven
commandments of the sons of Noah, by Moshe Greenberg
Sabbath curiosities: things you didn't know
about the seventh day of the week
Pitfalls of the seven species of the Land of
Israel, by Nogah Hareuveni
Seven charges R. Akiva gave to his son Joshua
The gift of seven years: A rabbinic tale about
Elijah the prophet
The seven-branched menorah: an evolving
Jewish symbol, by Ida Huberman
Magical procedures times seven, by Joshua Trachtenberg
Shiv'a: Seven days of mourning, by Anita
Diamant
Shemittah: remission of debts every seven years,
by Jeffrey H. Tigay
A Hebrew lesson: rootword sh-v-a
Enjoy
also our expanded Shavuot edition
with articles covering the origins, customs, and art of the festival.
Wish
you a Hag Sameah, a joyous festival of Shavuot....
SEVEN
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