FUTURE OF JEWISH
The Day the Jews Agreed to Become Jews
Joshua Hoffman
May 21, 2026

…Shavuot, which starts Thursday evening and ends at nightfall on Saturday, marks the moment the Jews agreed to become something far more demanding, far stranger, and infinitely more enduring: a covenantal civilization built on memory, obligation, learning, and shared destiny. Passover took the Jews out of Egypt. Shavuot began the long process of taking Egypt out of the Jews. This distinction matters more than ever today because modern society celebrates freedom constantly while often fearing responsibility. Sinai teaches the opposite lesson: that freedom alone cannot sustain a civilization. A people also needs purpose, obligation, moral structure, and shared meaning. Passover took the Jews out of Egypt. Shavuot began the long process of taking Egypt out of the Jews. READ MORE