Believers from the three faiths celebrated the holidays: the new year for all, Christmas for Christians, Hanukkah for Jews, and Muslims preparing for the holy month of fasting and prayer, which will start next month, according to the lunar calendar for lunar year 1447, corresponding to 2026 AD.  The Jewish community will celebrate Tu B’Shevat on the fifteenth day of the month of Shevat, which this year coincides with the months of January/ February.

Believers from the three faiths celebrated the holidays: the new year for all, Christmas for Christians, Hanukkah for Jews, and Muslims preparing for the holy month of fasting and prayer, which will start next month, according to the lunar calendar for lunar year 1447, corresponding to 2026 AD.  The Jewish community will celebrate Tu B’Shevat on the fifteenth day of the month of Shevat, which this year coincides with the months of January/ February.  

This celebration is a day to reflect on the nature of God and on what He gave us in His generosity, to appreciate and live in the world He created for us humans. The festival of the trees. New Year for Trees, but also a new year of reflection on the importance of life, which, according to the scripture, is symbolized by trees.  The approach of spring, blossoming, learning from the scripture, the last words of Moses, fruitfulness through righteousness. The symbolism of the tree in scripture is sublime and prompts the faithful to reflect on its spiritual significance as an example across the three religions.

The Middle East is the birthplace of monotheism and the three religions. It is also a place where the tree is part of the culture: the almond tree blossoms first, and the olive tree, so ingrained in the culture, not just for humans but even in scripture. The scientific view of the importance of trees and nature only confirms the scripture’s view of them as a source of life.

The tree has roots underground in the heart of the earth and branches reaching for the sky and God’s eye who blesses their being as he blesses the believers. They existed before us humans, are thousands of years old. In the scripture, they are named as part of our lives, and surviving in a world of good and evil, they symbolize hope and contentment.

Europeans worshipped trees in ancient pagan traditions, particularly in Celtic, Germanic, and Slavic cultures, as late as the Middle Ages, from antiquity through the thirteenth and the fourteenth centuries. Religious rituals were associated with trees, and the pagan custom ended when the Romans, who had embraced Christianity, adopted the Christmas tree, the log, and changed December twenty-fifth from the celebration of the pagan god Mithras to the celebration of the birth of Christ. The Christianization included converting pagan temples into churches and rebuilding the empire into Byzantium, far from Rome’s paganism.  

In Judaism and Christianity, trees are often referred to as symbols of life, in Deuteronomy 20:19, which refers to the human being as a tree of the field, as a tree of life in Proverbs 3: 17-18, and in Proverbs 11: 28-30 “The fruit of righteousness is a tree of life”. In Genesis, trees had a primordial meaning in the garden of heaven, like the Tree of Life, and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, which was not permitted for humans to eat from, unlike all the other trees of the garden. The Tree of Life is also mentioned in the New Testament, in the Book of Revelation, 22:1-2.

In Islam, the tree is deeply rooted in Middle Eastern culture, to the point that people plant a tree to celebrate the birth of a child. The tree planted in his or her name symbolizes life, blessing, and growth. In chapter 95, the Quran states that God swears by the fig, the olive, and Mount Sinai. In chapter 53: 14-18, Sidrat al Muntaha, meaning the Lote Tree of the farthest boundary, is mentioned as part of heaven:

“At the Lote Tree of the most extreme limit, near which is the Garden of Eternal Heaven. While the Lote Tree was overwhelmed with (heavenly) splendors. The (Prophet’s) sight never wandered, nor did it overreach. He certainly saw some of his Lord’s greatest signs”. 

Also, the Tree of Immortality ( Shajarat al khulud) mentioned in the Quran 20:120, the tree of blessedness or repentance. The word “tree” is mentioned 27 times in the Quran. The tribes of Yatrib, Al-Aws, and Al-Khazraj pledged allegiance to the Prophet Mohamed under a tree mentioned in the Quran 48:18:

“Indeed, Allah was pleased with the believers when they pledged allegiance to you ˹O Prophet˺ under the tree. He knew what was in their hearts, so He sent down serenity upon them and rewarded them with a victory at hand.”

The description of the olive tree in the chapter of light (Ai-Nur): Quran 24:35.

“Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. His light is like a niche in which there is a lamp, the lamp is in a crystal, the crystal is like a shining star, lit from the oil of a blessed olive tree, ˹located˺ neither to the east nor the west, whose oil would almost glow, even without being touched by fire. Light upon light! Allah guides whoever He wills to His light. And Allah sets forth parables for humanity. For Allah has ˹perfect˺ knowledge of all things.”

The olive tree is a symbol of culture, identity, belonging, and resilience in the Middle East and North Africa. The olive branch means peace and blessing, and the oil light and anointment.

Before going to battle, after being attacked by the pagans, the Prophet Mohamed would instruct his companions to fight only against those who fight them and to not cause harm to women, children, the elderly, to not destroy homes or cut trees. The tree is not only a source of food but also a symbol of life and is almost sacred. 

The Jewish tradition celebrates Tu B’Ishvat, the new year of the trees, and the symbolism of the tree when the trees blossom in the holy land, especially the almond trees, whose green almonds are also part of the Palestinian tradition to dip in salt and enjoy as a symbol of the beginning of spring and the taste of spring. The celebration is a Seder similar to the Passover Seder, but with nuts, fruits, and ritual meals, including four cups of wine or juice (changing from white to red) and 15 symbolic fruits/nuts: dates, figs, grapes, berries, pomegranates, olives, etc. In Mediterranean countries, the pomegranate is deeply embedded in culture; even in ancient Greece and Arab culture, it was used as both a fruit and a drink. The first cup of white wine or juice symbolizes the leafless trees of winter. The second one, with some red wine or juice, represents the first blossoming of spring; the third cup, with half red and half white, represents late spring; and the last cup, with only red wine or juice, represents the coming of summer, with the trees in full bloom. The Tu B’Shvat Seder proceeds in stages, like the growth of a tree and of a human. In the entire Mediterranean basin, planting trees is an ecological and spiritual act, since the scriptures mention trees.

If we take the time to look at nature, we will see how lucky we are, and how many blessings God bestowed on us, and the symbolism the earth teaches us. If we love the gift of God, we love peace and harmony among humans because we have so much in common, including the word of God we share in our hearts, whether we are Jews, Christians, or Muslims. The same blessing from the same God teaches us that we are not different. In this time of conflict and a world of hostility and uncertainty, an interfaith Tu B’Shvat Seder opens so many hearts and gives so much hope to all.