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As the countdown to Shavuot continues, I want to encourage our readers to drop me a line or a question and let me hear what's on your mind. I so much enjoy receiving your challenging questions and as always, it is my pleasure to serve you!

1. When did women start becoming rabbis?

Although the rabbinate has existed for more than 20 centuries, women rabbis in the United States did not emerge until the decade of the 1970s. The first U.S. ordained female rabbi was Sally Priesand, who graduated from the Reform movement's Hebrew Union College in 1972–50 years after the Reform Union of Rabbis endorsed the idea of a woman rabbi. In 1985, the Jewish Theological Seminary of American ordained its first Conservative female rabbi -- Amy Eilberg.

2. Why do all Jewish holidays begin at night?

It does seem strange that celebration of Jewish holidays begins in the evening. According to Jewish law, the holiday actually begins at sundown, at which time candles are lit and a blessing is said to usher it in. The custom of beginning a holy day at sunset is based on the story of Creation as depicted in the Book of Genesis: ''It was evening and it was morning, the first day.'' The evening came first! Thus, each new day begins with the sunset of the one before, so that the Sabbath is ushered in as the sun sets on Friday.

3. Why is the Jewish Sabbath on Saturday and the Christian one on Sunday?

For the Jewish people, the Sabbath begins on Friday night and extends through Saturday until nightfall, when three stars emerge in the sky. For Christians, Sunday is their Sabbath. Historically, the Early Church recognized Sunday as the day of worship because it was on a Sunday that the Church believed Jesus rose from the dead. Since the resurrection of Jesus is the focal point of the Christian faith and the confirmation of all that Jesus taught, the first Christians gathered to celebrate this event on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7), which is Sunday.

Undoubtedly, another important reason early Christians worshiped on Sunday was to distinguish themselves from the Jewish community to which many of them belonged before their conversion. Today, with the exception of the Seventh Day Adventists, Christians hold Sunday as their day for public worship. Seventh Day Adventists believe that God's command ''Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy'' referred to the seventh day of the week, since it was on the seventh day of the week that God rested at the completion of creating the world. They also believe that the Early Church was in error when it started a tradition of conducting worship on a day other than that set aside by God.

4. What exactly is Lag B'Omer?

Lag B'Omer is the 33rd day of the Omer period, coinciding with the 18th of the Hebrew month of Iyar (this year it falls on May 2). Termed as a scholar's festival, it is observed as a semi- festival, because on this day according to the Talmud, a plague that had raged among the disciples of Rabbi Akiva was stayed. In Israel, Lag B'Omer is marked by an inspiring pilgrimage of many thousands to the tomb of Rabbi Simeon ben Yochai at Meron. He is believed to have died on this day in the middle of the second century. After the imprisonment of Rabbi Akiva, his teacher, Ben Yochai was forced to hide in a cave with his son Elazar for 13 years. The authorship of the mystical classic known as the Zohar has been attributed to him. Many synagogues in the U.S. enjoy holding picnics on Lag B'Omer. Every year my synagogue has a wonderful picnic at Duke Island Park, and this year the picnic is scheduled for Lag B'Omer.

For many Jews, the primary association with Lag B'Omer is romantic. The seven weeks between Passover and Shavuot, the period in which Jews count the omer, are regarded in Jewish law as a period of semi-mourning during which no marriages are to be performed. But because of Lag B'Omer's happy associations, the rabbis made an exception for this day.

5. Why do some Jews wear beards?

Ktav Publishers, for whom I have had the pleasure of writing many books, has recently published the Jewish beard book – which I would encourage you to read. As a young child, I would see a Jewish man with a long beard and think that he was a rabbi. This was because my grandmother used to take me on visits to her rebbe, and he had an extremely long beard. I of course now know that growing a beard, usually among traditional Orthodox Jewish men, is in keeping with the biblical injunction (Leviticus 19:27) ''You shall not shave the corner of your beard,'' which was apparently a practice of the idolatrous nations of biblical times. Although Jewish law permits use of scissors and clippers, many Jews, particularly Hassidim, do not trim the side locks even of children. They understood the law of not shaving the corners of their beard to mean that one may not shave one's beard using a razor blade or a knife. However, in modern times, with the introduction of the electric razor (considered a pair of scissors rather than a blade), shaving of the beard by strictly observant Jews has become more common, and among Jews who are not Orthodox there are no more beards than in any other demographic group.

Rabbi Ron Isaacs is the spiritual leader of Temple Sholom, a Conservative congregation in Bridgewater. His forthcoming new book is ''Siddur Or Shalom,'' a Shabbat morning prayerbook. Contact him at www.rabbiron.com or ''Ask the Rabbi,'' c/o Rabbi Ron Isaacs, Temple Sholom, P.O. Box 6007, Bridgewater, N.J. 08807.