CATHOLIC INSTITUTE OF WEST AFRICA PORTHARCOURT NIGERIA

OBEHIE CAMPUS

FACULTY: ART AND SOCIAL SCIENCE

DEPARTMENT: THEOLOGY/RELIGIOUS STUDIES

COURSE CODE: RES 122

COURSE TITLE: INTRODUCTION TO OLD TESTAMENT

TOPIC: BREFLY DISCUSS ON 7 MAJOR JEWISH FESTIVAL

LECTURER: REV. FR. BENJAMIN EMMANUEL

STUDIENT: SR. JANEFRANCIS CHINEMEZU ENWEREM

APRIL 2025
OUTLINE
INTRODUCTION
The 7 Major Jewish Festival’s
Evaluation/ Conclusion

INTRODUCTION

Many Christians do not realize that the seven festival which God commanded in Leviticus 23
are still observed by their Jewish neighbors. The feasts, as given to Israel, have a multi-faceted
significance. First there was the seasonal aspect of each holiday, involving agricultural
activities in the land; then the feasts were to be a memorial of God’s dealings with the people
of Israel; and, finally, there may be prophetic symbolism. Many Christians see parallel in God’s
dealings with Israel and with the Church. A study of the feasts of Israel will not only bring
greater understanding of the Jewish roots of our faith; it will teach Christians much about
various themes of God’s dealing with humankind throughout the ages. Leviticus 23 lists these
seven feastival in order of their seasonal observance: Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits,
Pentecost, Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Booths or Tabernacles.

Passover (Pesach)

Passover, the first and probably best known feast, comes in the spring, in the Jewish month of
Nisan, also called Abib. Passover commemorates the redemption of the Hebrews from
Egyptian slavery. On the first Passover each Hebrew household sacrificed a perfect yearling
lamb and sprinkled the blood on the crosspiece and side posts of the door. The “Angel of
Death” passed over the houses which were protected by the blood of the lamb, but where there
was no blood, the first born was slain. In Christian teaching all persons are seen as slaves, in
bondage to sin, and all are redeemed and set free by the blood of the Messiah, the pure and
spotless Lamb of God (I Peter 1:18,19). See (Exo 12, 34), (Lev. 23), (Deut. 16). Modern
Jewish observance of Passover or Pesach, in Hebrew, no longer includes the eating of the
Paschal lamb but the Seder meal is a great visual aid and the menu items have lovely symbolic
meanings. The season begins with a thorough house-cleaning to remove all traces of leaven/
The Haggadah- the guidebook used at the meal- contains narratives from the Bible and history,
songs prayers and proper blessings. The food items are the wine, matzah- unleavened bread,
karpas- parsley or celery dipped in salt water to represent tears, maror- bitter herb (usually
horseradish), haroset – chopped apples and nuts symbolizing the mortar of the bricks in Egypt.
Each element is a reminder of both suffering and redemption.

1.2 THE FEAST OF THE UNLEAVENED BREAD (CHAG HAMATZOT)

The Feast of Unleavened Bread occurs simultaneously with Passover. It begins the day after
Passover eve, and lasts for seven days. Emphasizes purity and separation from sin, symbolized
by the absence of leaven (Exodus 12:15-20). Leaven which causes dough to rise is often
equated with sin in biblical symbolism. Because they are so closely related in time and purpose,
the names are often interchangeable. During Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread the
Jewish people put away all leavened bread or matzah. Leaven in Scripture is usually a symbol
of sin. In Christian symbolism the unleavened matzah portrays the sinless Messiah. Matzah, the
flat, unleavened bread, becomes central in meals, signifying both the haste of the Exodus and
moral purity. Christian’s interpret the matzah as a symbol of Jesus, described as sinless and
pure. Some even draw connections between this words, It is pierced, even as Jesus was pierced
by the nails in His hands and feet and the Roman spear in His side; and it is striped in the
baking, reminding us that Isaiah said, “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was
bruised for our iniquities and with his stripes, we are healed” as prophesied in (Isaiah 53:5).
However, and this is a big however, the piercing and striping is a much more modern
phenomena, caused by modern baking methods and should not be assumed to have existed in
biblical times.

1.3 FEAST OF FIRST FRUITS (YOM HABIKKURIM)

The Feast of First Fruits is directly related to Passover and Unleavened Bread, for it is to be
celebrated on “the morrow after the Sabbath,” which means the day after the first day of
Unleavened Bread. In Bible times this holiday was a feast of thanksgiving for the barley
harvest and an offering of the first yield to God (Leviticus 23: 9-14) the first grain of the
season. The first harvest is viewed as a promise of the larger harvest to come because the
conditions which brought about the first harvest will also bring the rest. Christians see Jesus as
Messiah, the First Fruit whom God raised from the dead. Just as the barley harvest was the
promise of more to come, Christians believe that the resurrection of Jesus promises ultimate
resurrection from the dead. Meaning, this agricultural celebration has deeper theological
implications in Christian tradition, where Jesus resurrection on this day is seen as the “first
fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Corinthians 15:20), promising the future
resurrection of believers. We Christians may appreciate our own interpretation of the
symbolism without expecting our Jewish friends to see the same lessons we see in the Feasts.

1.4 SHAVUOT OR THE FEAST OF WEEKS (PENTECOST)

Shavuot, or the Feast of Weeks, also is calculated from the first feast, Passover. It comes fifty
days after the Passover Sabbath, thus the name Pentecost which means “fifty.” This is a Greek
name, but the Jewish people call it “Shavuot,” which is the Hebrew word for “weeks”.
Shavuot is also a harvest festival, thanking God for the wheat harvest. In Israel today it is
customary to adorn the synagogues with plants and flowers, symbolic of the first-fruits. In the
synagogue it is usual to read from the book of Ruth, and also the Ten Commandments and the
account of Mount Sinai. According to oral, tradition, this day is the day that Moses received the
Law on Mount Sinai. On Shavuot, the priests offered two loaves of bread made from the newly
harvested grain. Unlike other offerings, these loaves were baked with leaven. These two loaves
are seen by some as a type of God’s people, both Jews and gentiles, given eternal life and made
one. The proper scripture references are: (Ex. 19 & 20); (Num. 28:28); (Deut. 15). Traditions
include eating dairy foods and staying up all night studying Torah. The Hebrew date is Sivan
6-7. The festival has great significance in Christian theology as Pentecost the day the Holy
Spirit descended upon the apostles (Acts 2), birthing the Christian Church. The two loaves
offered during Shavuot, baked with leaven, are seen by some theologians as representing Jews
and Gentiles united in God’s plan.

1.5 FEAST OF TRUMPETS (ROSH HASHANAH)

After Pentecost, there is a long time lapse before the next feast. Some Christians see in this
symbolism of the present age of waiting for the return of the Messiah. Then in autumn, in the
month of Tishri, the seventh month of the Jewish calendar comes the Feast of Trumpets, more
commonly known as Rosh Hashanah meaning “Head of the Year” This marks the beginning
of the civil year and is the Jewish New Year’s Day. In (Leviticus 23:24) God commanded the
blowing of trumpets on the first day of the seventh month to call the congregation of Israel
together for a very solemn assembly. According to Jewish teachings, Rosh Hashanah is the
beginning of ten days of judgment when all the children of men pass before the Creator. The
righteous are written into the Book of Life, the wicked are condemned and those who are not
wholly righteous nor wholly wicked are given ten days to repent and thus escape judgment.
Many Christians believe that those who are written in the Lamb’s book of Life need not fear
final judgment, but look forward to Messiah’s return with the trumpet sound and the voice of
the Archangel to bring us into His Sabbath rest and the final judgment ( 1 Thessalonians 4:16).

1.6 DAY OF ATONEMENT (YOM KIPPUR)

The ten days of repentance and introspection lead into the most solemn day of the Jewish year,
Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It has become a time of fasting, prayer, and confession.
Also a day to seek divine forgiveness. It was the only time in Bible days when the high priest
could enter the Holy of Holies. He went in before the Lord with the blood of a sacrificed
animal to beg forgiveness for the sins of the people (Lev. 16,23 25: Num.29). Today there are
no animal sacrifices because there is no Temple. The Jewish people rely on repentance and
God’s mercy for forgiveness of sins. (Lev. 17:11) teaches that atonement is in the blood and
Christians see the crucifixion of Jesus as a fulfillment of this atonement or covering. The
Christian theology sees Jesus crucifixion as the ultimate fulfillment of Yom Kippur’s atoning
work (Hebrews 9:11-12). His sacrifice grants believers direct access to God, that is the veil of
the Temple being torn in two, signifying that the way had been opened into the Holy of Holies.
Both Jews and Christians expect a great and final Day of Atonement prophesied in Zechariah
12:11 and 13:1 when all people will see the Messiah.

1.7 FEAST OF TABERNACLES OR BOOTHS (SUKKOT)

The seventh and final feast is the Feast of Booths or Tabernacles, known in Hebrew as Sukkot.
In Bible days this was the final fall harvest festival a time of ingathering at Jerusalem. The
Jewish people built booth-like structures and lived in them during the feast as a reminder of the
4o-years temporary dwellings the Israelites had in the wilderness journey (Leviticus 23:33-44).
Even today many Jewish people build open-roofed, three-sided huts for this festival. They
decorate them with tree boughs and autumn fruits to remind them of harvest. Everyone in
Israel, who was able, came up to Jerusalem for this harvest festival every year. To remember
the fragility of life and divine protection. The Temple worship for the festival is marked by
joy, hospitality and the ritual pouring of the prayers for the winter rains. It was at this time that
Jesus cried out, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink.” (John 7:37 -38) After
Israel’s final Day of Atonement, the Feast of Booths will be celebrated again in Jerusalem
(Zechariah 14:16) Booths speak of the final rest, as well as the final harvest. In Christian
understanding, John wrote in Revelation 21:3, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and
He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people and God Himself shall be with them, and
be their God.” Christians see this as the fulfillment of His promise, “I am Alpha and Omega,
the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life
freely.” (Revelation 21.6).

1.8 EVALUATION

Each of the above festivals portrays a significant historical events and conveys high level of
theological themes such creation, liberation, revelation, repentance, atonement, divine
protection and joy in the Torah. They foster communal unity, encourage moral reflection and
strengthen the bond between the Jewish people and their covenant with God. Collectively,
these festivals serves as a dynamic map for spiritual renewal and continuity of Jewish tradition.

CONCLUSION

The Jewish festivals serve as a vivid chronicle of God’s faithfulness, covenant and divine
providence in Jewish history. They are more than ritual observances the embody a living
theology that binds the community to its past, nurtures its present, and guides its hope for the
future. For Christians, these festivals illuminate profound theological truths about redemption,
resurrection, and the kingdom of God. Studying them deepens interfaith understanding and
enriches spiritual heritage for believers of both traditions. These holy days, rooted in sacred
scripture and tradition, remain timeless beacons of faith, remembrance and divine promise of
God to his people.
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