Tu B’Shevat

Below, check out photos from our 2019 Interfaith Tu B’Shevat Seder with Parkway United Church of Christ and Turkish American Society of Missouri…

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January 20-21, 2019

Tu B’Shevat, the “New Year of the Trees” or “Birthday of Trees,” is the Jewish Arbor Day. The holiday is observed on the 15th of the Hebrew month of Shevat. Tu B’Shevat is a spring festival, perhaps marking planting. In the 17th century, Kabbalists created a seder of fruits for Tu B’Shevat similar to the Passover seder. Israelis and Jews worldwide plant trees, and Reform Jews have turned the holiday into one of environmental awareness.

Tu B’Shevat reminds us to care for our environment.

“When God created Adam, God took him and showed him all the trees of the Garden of Eden and said to him ‘See My works, how beautiful and praiseworthy they are. And everything that I created, I created it for you. Be careful not to spoil or destroy My world – for if you do, there will be nobody after you to repair it.” Midrash Kohelet Raba

Tu B’Shevat Resources

Learn more about Tu B’Shevat at reformjudaism.org, including a history, recipes, crafts, and customs and rituals including the types of fruits required for a Tu B’Shevat seder. Visit www.reformjudaism.org/jewish-holidays/tu-bishvat.

The Jewish Environmental Initiative of St. Louis, part of the St. Louis Jewish Community Relations Council, created a Haggadah for anyone who wants to host a Tu B’Shevat seder. These seders traditionally include four glasses of wine – white, white with a little red, white that’s mostly red, and red – and three types of fruits – those edible inside and out, those with inedible pits, and those with an inedible exterior. Download the JEI Tu B’Shevat Haggadah