Dairy Food on Shavuot

Delivered at the OU Israel Center, 4 Sivan 5784 / June 10, 2024

Rabbi Manning's series for 2024 has been sponsored

לעילוי נשמת ברנה בת בנדית וזליג בן קלמן

• There is no explicit mention in the Torah, the writings of Chazal or the festival piyutim of customs to eat milky foods on Shavuot.
• Yet there are widespread customs to eat milky foods on Shavuot. Some have a milk meal in the evening and meaty lunch. Others understand that the mitzva of eating meat for simchat haChag should be at night, and so have a dairy lunch. Many Chassidic communities have meat meals but a dairy kiddush in the morning. What are the origins of these minhagim?