Got a mobile?

Links to "Old" Pages
(will eventually be moved to a different URL)

• Holidays
• Hebrew
• Learn
• Kashrut

The Renewal Fund can now accept PayPal!

UK Taxpayer?
Please read this!

Stay informed with our latest updates!

Do you buy stuff online?

Easy Fundraising is our new initiative to help raise cash for the Shul renovations. For every online purchase you make from over 2000 retailers, a small %age of their profit comes to us instead! All you have to do is visit the Easy Fundraising site first, then the retailer - and shop as normal.

It really is that easy, and does not cost you anything!

Please register now, and start donating to a good cause right away!

At the moment in Aberdeen, we are counting the Omer. This is a period that lasts for fifty days and represents the time between the Exodus from Egypt and the giving of Torah on Mount Sinai, which is celebrated as Shavuot.

The word Omer literally means "a sheaf", as in a bundle of grain stalks tied together; but also means a specific amount, as in "an omer of grain". The word "omer" therefore also came to be used to mean an offering, brought to the Temple during the 50-day period.

At a more spiritual level, the 50-day count is a period of self-growth. While in Egypt, the Jews had spent over 400 years living amongst one of the most depraved and idolatrous societies on Earth. Immediately after departing Egypt, they were not spiritually developed enough to receive or appreciate the gift of Torah, hence the 50-day waiting period until they finally reached Sinai.

The fifty-day Omer period is tinged with sadness, and no-body quite knows why. Perhaps this is connected to the origins of the harvest offering, where at this point farmers would be anxious as to whether the coming season would yield adequate produce. It may also be related to the destruction of the second Temple, after which of course people could no longer bring their ceremonial offerings of the first barley and wheat.

During this fifty days, we are prohibited from holding weddings, which are joyous occasions; this may be as a result of Roman influences, as one of their beliefs was that during this time the spirits of the dead returned to Earth and could not be appeased by weddings - only funerals.

However, there is some good news! On the 33rd day of the Omer count, the sadness is suspended and on that one day, weddings may be held. It is also traditional for young children to have their first haircut on this day (the hair is not cut during the rest of the Omer period).

Lag B'Omer (the 33rd day of the Omer count, which this year falls on 9 May) is widely observed in Israel, where children celebrate by dressing as hunters, practicing with bows and arrows, lighting ceremonial bonfires or picnicking in the woods. Above is a picture of one of the sculptures at Kirkhill Forest, on the outskirts of Aberdeen.

Last year, in slides.... please see the Events page for more!