Israelis prepared to celebrate the Biblical feast of Shavuot on Tuesday. The feast, which the Bible proscribes as an occasion to offer thanks to God for the food He provides and offer the first fruits of agricultural production to the priests of God, is marked in modern times by all-night study sessions to mark God’s giving of the Torah to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai and cheesecake parties. However, the ancient tradition has also been revived in modern Israel as several farming families make a trip to the residence of the President of the State to give him some of the fruits of their vineyards, orchards and greenhouses. This year, a large delegation of kibbutznicks and their children came with milk, cheese and yogurt they’d produced in their communities, which President Shimon Peres, who grew up on a kibbutz himself, joyfully received. “The Zionist cow is a great tool of diplomacy,” said Peres. Read More
