Festival of First Fruits
Tonight begins Shavuos, The Festival of Weeks, the Pentecost
'Midst the festivities, the holiday's other name,
The Festival of the First-Fruits, sometimes gets lost
Jewish farmers would bring a basket of 'first-fruits' to the Temple
What was the 'big deal?' Why would they eat them there?
They'd been waiting five years to eat that fruit, per Torah law*
Which gave to the festival an atmosphere of profound awe
The land belongs to God Almighty, not to the farmers, its stewards
They can't just take and eat whatever they want
without proper acknowledgment
And perhaps, just perhaps, the festival is partly recompense
For Adam and Eve eating the apple
~ for not acknowledging God's command, a grave offense
*For five years from the time of planting, Jews may not eat of the fruits
growing from the trees of the Land of Israel.
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