The Counting the Omer reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Apr-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Counting the Omer

The Counting of the Omer is a 50-day count begun on the second day ofPassover and culminating in the holiday of Shavuot. The barley harvest in Israel begins during Passover; the omer is a Biblical measure of volume of grain. An omer offering was brought to the Temple on the second day of Passover and was the signal for the allowance of "chadash" grains.

Many Jews adopt certain customs related to mourning during this period, until the 33rd day of the Omer, called Lag b'Omer.

This is the "Counting the Omer" reference article from the English Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.