Calendar Confusion—Who Has the Authority to Decide the Calendar?
Why is having the correct calendar so important when it comes to obedience to YHVH Elohim’s biblical laws? Simply this. Moedem is the Hebrew word meaning “appointed times” and referred to special occasion (e.g. the biblical Sabbath and feast days) when YHVH commanded his people to meet with him. He gave them a calendar by which they could fulfil his command of meeting with him on specific days, namely, on his biblical feasts (Lev 23). When the Israelites celebrated his feasts on the wrong days, or in ways that he had not specified and that were unacceptable to him, he accused them of inventing their own holidays—something he decries (Isa 1:13–15). Therefore, having the right calendar, so that YHVH’s people can worship him when and how he commanded is essential.
The modern rabbinic Jews have a calendar called the rabbinic or Hillel 2 calendar, which was invented in A.D. 360. As the modern Jews admit, and we have discussed elsewhere, this is not the calendar of the first century when Yeshua and his disciples lived (for a fuller discussion of the biblical calendar extant in Yeshua’s time, see https://www.hoshanarabbah.org/pdfs/cal_demyst.pdf). In fact, it is usually inaccurate in that the dates that it lists on its calendar for the biblical feasts are usually off by several days, and are out of sync with the lunations of the moon. The biblical feasts are in sync with the moon’s cycles (a subject we discuss elsewhere); therefore, the Hillel 2 calendar is out of sync with the biblical calendar making it inaccurate (for a fuller discussion on the history of the Hillel 2 calendar, see https://www.hoshanarabbah.org/pdfs/new_moons.pdf).
The question therefore remains, do modern disciples of Yeshua follow the Hillel 2 calendar, even though it is inaccurate, or do they follow the biblical criteria that tell us how to determine the calendar, or do they wait for the modern Jews to form a new judicial council of spiritual leaders (called a Sanhedrin) to begin following the biblical methods for determining the yearly calendar, which, hence, will determine the dates of the biblical feasts each year?
The Bible is clear that there is no need for Yeshua’s disciples to follow an inaccurate calendar, nor to wait for the rabbinic Jews to form a Sanhedrin to declare the dates for the biblical feast. Yeshua conferred the authority of the Sanhedrin upon his disciples and upon their successors in Matthew 16:17–19 and 18:18–20. There Messiah gave his apostles, the New Testament church leaders, the authority of the Jewish Sanhedrin (the Supreme Court of the ancient Jews) to make legally binding rules (called halachah). This would include new moon and aviv barley sightings. No longer, do the disciples of Yeshua have to wait for a Jewish sandhedrin (the rabbinc Jewish judicial court) to form, or for their predecessors (including the modern rabbinc Jewish leaders) to tell them how to follow the Torah with regard to the biblical calendar. Yeshua gave that authority to his apostles (and to their spiritual successors down through the ages) to make those decisions, and he declared that heaven would honor or endorse those decisions as long as they don’t violate the basic principles laid out in Scripture. We see the apostles using their Yeshua-mandated authority in Acts 15 at the first Jerusalem council.
With regard to individuals now determining the biblical calendar outside the aegis of the Sanhedrin, some modern rabbinc Jewish authorities have this to say in an article on their website at the current re-established Jewish or nascent Sanhedrin website referencing the instructions of the last Sanhedrin that disbanded in ca. A.D. 359–360:
Jewish calendar fixed on basis of astronomical calculations, celebration of new moons and holy days no longer dependent on announcements by the Sanhedrin. Theodosius forbids Sanhedrin to assemble, reaction to Julian’s pro-Jewish stance. Calendar adopted at clandestine, and maybe last meeting. (Note: Julian ruled after Sanhedrin disbanded by imperial decree) (http://www.thesanhedrin.org/en/index.php?title=Historical_Overview)
Hillel 2 (Eretz Israel) Issued the Jewish calendar based on the lunar year. Previously, only the Sanhedrin could announce the new month and oncoming festivals. Due to the dispersion, every individual had to be able to determine the exact days for himself. (ibid.)
So a modern Bible believer not only has a mandate from Yeshua himself to determine the dates of the biblical feasts, but, based on the above-mentioned evidence, the last Sanhedrin gave that prerogative to the individual as well.
Here is a link to a free printable biblical calendar: https://www.hoshanarabbah.org/calendars.html
“Yeshua conferred the authority of the Sanhedrin upon his disciples and upon their successors in Matthew 16:17–19 and 18:18–20. There Messiah gave his apostles, the New Testament church leaders, the authority of the Jewish Sanhedrin (the Supreme Court of the ancient Jews) to make legally binding rules (called halachah).”
I find this troublesome, and would like some clarity.
The Sanhedrin never had any genuine authority, so how could it be conferred by Yeshua upon the Apostles? Especially when we consider Yeshua’s command not to employ the hierarchical structures such as the ones they and the gentiles used? (Matthew 20:25, Mark 10:42, Luke 22:25, etc.
And the authority to make binding halacha?
They had ‘the authority’ to call people back to Torah, to truth, etc., but not to add to Torah by making new halacha, right?
Who are supposed to represent the Sanhedrin today? According to what biblical standard?
Isn’t it true that there will never again be an authorized Sanhedrin to command anything?
Thanks for your response in advance.
What became known as the Sanhedrin or the Great Council was established at the time of Moses as recorded in Eoxd 18:20–26. By the time of first century, the Sanhedrin ruled the Jewish country under the Romans. They had the legal power to do just about anything as long as it didn’t violate Roman law. They also couldn’t put someone to death without Roman consent (e.g the case of the death of Yeshua).They also had the legal authority to determine the new moons/months, and to make rulings about the barley (with the help of the priests who were part of the Sanhedrin). This is a matter of biblical and historical record. So I’m not sure what you’re having trouble with. The facts of history are the facts of history.
The only reason I brought this whole subject up as it relates to the calendar is because many believers who are keeping the biblical feasts believe that they don’t have the authority to determine the calendar dates, since historically, it was the Sanhedrin who did this. This is why they default to the error ridden Hillel 2 calendar. I’m trying to tell people that it’s the Torah-Word of Elohim that we must follow, not men, and that the elders in the body of Yeshua have the authority to make these decisions, and that we don’t have to wait for a new Sanhedrin to make rulings that will put us back on the biblical calendar as per the Torah.
The Sanhedrin was the ruling elders of Israel in Yeshua’s time. Now we have spiritual elders hopefully in each congregation who will do this, even as the apostles did in the first century. The NT lays out clearly enough the organizational structure of the early church as pertaining to how the elders were to be servant leaders, but that is another discussion and was outside of the discussion of the article I posted on the biblical calendar.
Thank You Natan for link to the calendar..most helpful. I had seen :heard some people chatting re dates for Passover this year and someone over here mentioned March 22nd.??
So i was wondering.