Repairing the World on Tu B'Shvat - 1   

       

Spring blossoms

Shana Tova (Happy New Year)

“He will be like a tree planted near water.”  (Jeremiah 17:8)

Today, Wed, Feb 4, 2015 in Israel and around the world celebrating Tu B’Shvat (the 15th of the Hebrew month of Shvat)—the Jewish holiday that recognizes a time of renewal and the stirrings of a new season by celebrating the New Year for Trees. While this holiday is not mentioned in the Bible, it is associated with the Biblical tithe of produce.

 Harvesting olives at Nazareth Village, a
re-creation of life during the time of Messiah.

Hillel, Yeshua, and the New Year of Trees

“I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing love for ever and ever.”  (Psalm 52:8)

The oldest reference to this holiday is found in the Talmud (first and second century book of rabbinic decisions), where it is called Rosh HaShanah La’Ilanot (New Year of the Trees). The rabbis placed special emphasis on trees. For example, the Me’Am Loez (an 18th and 19th century Bible commentator) writes: “Man’s life is dependent on trees, and the tree is so important for the existence of the world that the sages established a special blessing for those who go out in [the Hebrew month of] Nisan and see blossoming fruit-producing trees.  [The blessing says] ‘nothing is lacking from His world and He created good creations and good trees for the benefit of man.’” Traditionally the holiday is referred to as Hamisha Asar B’Shvat, which means Fifteenth of Shvat.  In modern Israel, it became Tu B’Shvat.

 A child selects fruit at an outdoor market in Tel Aviv.

If the idea of a New Year of Trees sounds strange, the Mishnah (rabbinic discussions that make up the Talmud) list four separate new years in Judaism.

1. The first of the month of Nisan (usually coincides with April), which is the new year for counting the reign of kings and for ordering holidays;
2. The first of Elul, which is considered as being the new year for animal tithes;
3. The first of Tishrei (usually coincides with September), which is used as the new year for calculating Jubilee and Sabbatical years; and
4. The fifteenth of Shvat, which is the beginning of the agricultural year for planting and sowing, according to Hillel, a first century sage who dominates mishnaic rabbinic thought.  (Rosh Hashana:2a)

Hillel headed one of two main houses of Pharisaic practice, lived in Jerusalem, and died in AD 10.  While he might have died a couple of years before 12-year-old Yeshua (Jesus) stayed behind at the Temple to discuss questions of the Law, certainly some of Hillel’s talmidim (disciples) were present. The Talmud sages supported Hillel, making the 15th of the Hebrew month of Shvat the date for determining the beginning of the agricultural cycle for the purpose of Biblical tithes. 

Yeshua Among the Doctors, by James Tissot

  

Biblical Tithing of Fruit

“When you enter the land and plant any kind of fruit tree, regard its fruit as forbidden.  For three years you are to consider it forbidden; it must not be eaten.  In the fourth year all its fruit will be holy, an offering of praise to the LORD.”  (Leviticus 19:23–24)

Distinct Biblical laws refer to tithing the fruit of trees.

 The term orlah (literally, uncircumcised) refers to the prohibitions mentioned in Leviticus 19:23 against the eating of fruit from trees during the first three years after they are planted. The term Neta Reva'i refers to the fruits of the fourth year and the commandment in Leviticus 19:24 to bring a tithe of the fourth year fruit crops to the Temple in Jerusalem, for they are holy. In determining when these years begin and end, Tu B’Shvat became the cut-off date for calculating the age of fruit-bearing trees. Among Orthodox Jews, these practices are still used today, and fruit that ripens on a tree before it is three years old is restricted from use.  Fruit that ripens on or after Tu B’Shvat during its third year is considered as being permitted for use.

 Harvesting dates at Ein Gedi, a desert oasis that is west of the Dead
Sea in Israel.

Modern Tu B’Shvat and the Tu B’Shvat Seder

In modern-day Israel, Tu B’shvat is celebrated as a day that emphasizes ecological awareness.  Many Israelis are out and about today planting trees to renew the environment.  Even schoolchildren can be seen at the national forests planting seedlings. Today, as well, in the classrooms and at special meals celebrated in homes and synagogues, all forms of dried fruits such as apricots and prunes, along with almonds, are enjoyed. On this special day, people are making a point to eat the seven species of Israel that are listed in the Torah (Deuteronomy 8:8)—wheat, barley, olives, dates, grapes, figs, and pomegranates.

A variety of dried and fresh fruit is served during a Tu B'Shvat seder.

The abundant produce of modern day Israel offers a broad choice of fruits with which to celebrate the holiday.  So, in addition to the dried figs, dates, raisins, and carob eaten by previous generations, there are now oranges, avocados, bananas, pomegranates, olives, and almonds to share during Tu B’shvat seder meals. This special meal or seder arises in the traditions of the 16th century kabbalist Rabbi Yitzhak Luria of Safed (known as ARI or Lion) who began the seder as a way of giving special recognition to the fruits and trees of the Land of Israel. Thus, he introduced the eating of fruit into the holiday. He taught that eating ten specific fruits and drinking four cups of wine while reciting specific blessings would bring spiritual perfection to the world.  The custom has been renewed in modern day Israel where it is celebrated by religious and secular alike. The proper blessing before eating any fruit is: Baruch Atah Adonai Elohenu Melech HaOlam boray pri ha-aitz. (Blessed are you God, King of the Universe, Who creates the fruit of the tree.) [A few fruits, such as pineapple, have a different blessing—the last word is changed to ha-adama, meaning the land.] 

The etrog (citron), which is highly fragrant and represents the heart of the
man who is pure and righteous, is used during the festival of Sukkot.  The
above etrog is very large.  Typically, they are the size of an avocado
or mango.