Pasadena’s Jewish Community Will Mark Shavuot 2024 Focused on Torah, Israel, and Unity

The Pasadena Jewish community is preparing for Shavuot 2024, a significant Jewish holiday celebrating the revelation of the Torah, with events planned from June 11 to 13. 

Chabad of Pasadena and the Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center have planned a series of engaging programs to commemorate this important occasion.

“It’s the holiday that commemorates God giving us the 10 Commandments at Sinai,” Rabbi Chaim Hanoka, Executive Director at Chabad Pasadena, said. 

Chabad’s celebrations will include an all-night Torah study session on June 11, featuring various speakers, classes, lectures, and a variety of food options and snacks to keep participants engaged. The event aims to prepare participants spiritually for the reading of the Ten Commandments the following day. 

“We have a tradition to stay up all night on the first item to work to study Torah as a means of preparing ourselves for the reading of the 10 Commandments the next day,” Rabbi Hanoka said. 

Services on June 12 will include the reading of the Ten Commandments, followed by a luncheon and a later reading for children with an ice cream party in the early evening.

On June 13, morning services will be held, including the Yizkor prayer, a memorial prayer for those who have lost loved ones, followed by a sit-down lunch.

The Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center’s Shavuot programming will focus on the current situation in Israel. 

Rabbi Ben Goldstein, interim rabbi at the Temple and Center, said many of its members are interested in “going deeper on these topics.” The synagogue will host a Tikkun Leil Shavuot program over Zoom on the evening of June 11, featuring two to four speakers. One speaker will discuss global antisemitism before and after October 7, while the other will discuss how the Israel-Gaza war is part of a larger struggle confronting the West.

“I don’t know that I’m hoping they take away a specific message,” Rabbi Goldstein said. “I’m hoping they feel more empowered and informed about what’s going on.” 

PJTC will also hold Shavuot services on June 12 and 13 at 9:30 a.m., accessible via Zoom for members and available upon request for non-members.

To learn more about Chabad of Pasadena’s Shavout event, visit https://www.chabadpasadena.com/templates/articlecco_cdo/aid/6457011/jewish/What-Is-Shavuot.htm. 

For information about the  Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center’s celebration, visit https://www.pjtc.net/shavuot.