News Brief05:59 AM

(IsraelNN.com) Friday is the 33rd day, which is four weeks and five days of the counting of the Omer, the measure of barley that was harvested in ancient times at the beginning of the 49-day counting period and brought to the Holy Temple as a sacrifice. The end of the counting period coincides with the evening before Shavuot, the festival of the first fruits that also marks the handing down of the Torah on Har (Mount) Sinai. The blessing over the counting of the Omer is recited at night and is omitted during the day if one forgot to count.

It is called Lag b'Omer, "Lag" comprising the two Hebrew letters lamed and gimmel, which have a numerical value of 33. It is marked as the day there was a respite during the period that 24,000 students of Rabbi Akiva died at the time of the Roman occupation and the Bar Kochba uprising. Mourning customs that are observed during the counting of the Omer are lifted on Lag b'Omer, and haircuts, dancing, singing and weddings are permitted.

One custom, observed mainly by Ashkenazi Jews, begins the semi-mourning period from the eve of the second night of Passover until Lag b'Omer. The other custom, more prevalent among Oriental Jews, marks the first day of mourning from the first day of the Hebrew month of Iyar until the month of Sivan.