Search results for: ""Bikurim""

Introduction to Agriculture
All of the Jewish festival holidays had an agricultural element to them.
 
Agricultural laws include Kilayim, Orla, Reishit, Teruma/Ma'aser, Shmita, and Yashan, as well as special laws applying only to fruit trees. Some of these laws still apply today by Torah law (d'oraita) while others, such as First Fruits (bikurim), only apply when the Jerusalem Temple stands and so are not practiced now. Others are observed today as "practice" for when the Temple is rebuilt.
Introduction to Firsts (Reishit)
Jews thank God for His blessings by giving Him the “first” (reishit) of various products (as well as a tenth/ma'aser of agricultural and other wealth). 
“First” applies to:
  • First-Born/Petter Rechem
    • First-born male children/petter rechem (redeemed with money; see Introduction to Pidyon HaBein).
    • First-born male kosher domestic animals (calf, lamb, kid)/petter rechem (in Temple times: sacrificed on altar; now, permanent holy status--see Selling Mother Animal before Birth of Petter Rechem.
    • First-born male donkeys/petter rechem chamor (redeemed with sheep/goat; holiness of both the donkey and the sheep or goat then disappears).
  • Dough/Challa
In Temple times, given to cohen; now, see When To Separate Challa (Hafrashat Challa).
  • First Fruits/Bikurim
In Temple times, the Jew (man or woman) brought the bikurim fruits to the area between altar and Temple building; only the man said the
  • First Shearing/Reishit HaGeiz
Portion of sheep's wool (reishit ha'geiz) (given to cohen).
Note All of the above have holy status except for the wool and the human petter rechem.