What is Shavuot?

Shavuot is celebrated exactly seven weeks after Passover; it commemorates the giving of the Torah at Sinai and celebrates the late spring harvest. These three hallmarks of the holiday gave rise to its names: Shavuot means “weeks”; Z’man matan torateinu is the season of the giving of our Torah; and Chag habikurim refers to the festival of first fruits, when the farmers of Israel would bring first fruits of the harvest to Jerusalem as a sign of thanksgiving.

Many unique customs are associated with Shavuot. Moroccan Jews begin the evening festival meal by reciting the Kiddush (the blessing over the wine) and then taking a few matzot that have been saved from Passover, breaking them into small pieces and blending them with a mixture of milk and honey.The matzah, a reminder of the escape from Egypt, combines with the sweetness of the newly received Torah. Moroccan Jews taste the matzah, milk and honey mixture before the meal to symbolize that Shavuot is the conclusion of the Exodus from Egypt. One could say that we left Egypt in order to have the experience of collective revelation at Sinai and receive the Torah.

Many communities decorate their synagogues and homes with flowers on the eve of Shavuot. Jewish tradition teaches that although Mount Sinai is in the desert, when the Torah was given to the Jewish people it bloomed with flowers. Syrian Jews bring bouquets of flowers to the synagogue. An old custom among Ashkenazi (Eastern European) Jews was to create paper cuts of flowers, particularly roses, to display in the windows of their homes for this holiday.

From The Jewish Parent Page, Union for Reform Judaism.