Greetings Sharon Gilbert and other Five Dovers,

 

This is in response to Sharon Gilbert's query: “Which calendar is right” from September 4. Because there seems to be a great deal of confusion this year (2016) regarding the Feast dates, my husband and I embarked on a journey of research. The results have been very enlightening, offering up lots of interesting and somewhat revolutionary information. It seems we have entered a new and exciting spiritual vista. After a thorough examination of Genesis 1:14, followed by reading a vast array of writings on the subject and conducting considerable research of reference sources, we decided a booklet to pull our findings together was in order. As a result, our brief writing called Calendar Evolution - Good or Bad? was born. The brochure that accompanies the booklet asks the following questions:

 

Why are there multiple dates for the same feast in 2016?

 

Have we always had a 365 day calendar year?

 

Have the rabbinic priests always always been correct in their calendar calculations?

 

Are the Hillel and other forms of the Jewish calendar compromised?

 

How is the Jewish / Hillel calendar derived?

 

How is any calendar derived?

 

Is the use of postponements Biblically appropriate? (Postponements are the rules used to move certain Holy Days to more convenient days of the week.)

 

What calendar was being used during the time of Y'shua (Jesus)?

 

Whose rules are we using to determine the calendar?

 

Are the solar year and lunar year the same?

 

Genesis 1:14-19 tells us that God created celestial time-keeping on the fourth day of creation. What Scriptural references further define timing for the calendar?

 

When does God's year start?

 

When does God begin a month?

 

Does man need to sight the moon?

 

What role does the sun play?

 

What role do the stars play?

 

Does the barley play a role?

 

Does the equinox play a role?

 

Why do we observe both a civil and religious year on the Jewish calendar?

 

Do history and/or tradition have a bearing on our present calendar criteria?

 

Our booklet endeavors to answer those questions. Here are some things we considered:

 

The Hebrew term “chodesh” means “month” as it is translated throughout Torah (Genesis-Deuteronomy), and the remaining Old Testament books contain a very small number of uses relating “chodesh” to the moon. In the Old Testament, the predominant word for moon is “yareach”, which is never translated as anything but moon. What was the actual meaning of “chodesh” in the original manuscripts? Do our English translations induce confused interpretation concerning this important time-keeping concept?

 

Genesis 7 shows us that a precise five month span equaled at least 150 days. There are also many end-time prophecies that work out to exact 30-day months. Twenty-nine day months do not seem to fit anywhere in this picture, and the mention of a thirteenth month is conspicuously absent within Scripture.

 

Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 5:7 that Y'shua is our Passover Lamb. Exodus 12:1-6 explains that this lamb was always slain the evening of Nisan 14, which was Passover. Mark 14 indicates that Y'shua (Jesus) ate His Passover meal with His disciples the evening of Passover, then He was slain by the religious leaders the following day. This is an enigma that has caused theologians a great deal of trouble over the years, but perhaps there is an explanation.

 

With the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, many more historical facts have been brought to light. These historical records show there was more than one calendar in place during the time of Y'shua's ministry. There was also more than one group of Jewish leaders in the religious/political realm of that time (the Pharisees, Sadducees, Zadokit priesthood and Essenes). How do we sort it all out?

 

It seems that God's Holy Days are very important, and it might behoove the Bride to do all she can to determine exactly which days they are. Unfortunately, the results of our research are too involved to present in coherent form in a single post here. However, anyone who is interested, can contact us at 2trees@disciples.com and we will be glad to send you a copy of the booklet. We still have some booklets left from our initial printing, which we are willing to make available at no charge – our labor of love to the body of Y'shua. We hope you will request a copy and let us know what you think of it.

 

Blessings,

 

Karen B