Frank W. Nelte
Jewish Calendar Tutorial Worksheet 3 (2013)
YEAR BEING CALCULATED: 2013
PART III: CHECKING THE MOLAD AGAINST THE POSTPONEMENT RULES AND THEN DETERMINING THE KEY DATES FOR THE WHOLE YEAR IN ROMAN CALENDAR TERMS
1.
DATE AND TIME OF THE MOLAD: THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5 at H16 P830, this being 10:46:07 a.m.
2.
EVALUATING THIS AGAINST RULE #1: noon or later? NO!
3.
RESULT: RETAIN THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
4.
EVALUATING THE RESULT AGAINST RULE #2:
Is this a Sunday, Wednesday or Friday? NO!
5.
RESULT: RETAIN THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
6.
IF RULES #1 AND #2 DID NOT APPLY, EVALUATE THE MOLAD AGAINST RULE #3:
Is this a Tuesday after H9 P204? NO!
7.
RESULT: RETAIN THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
8.
IF RULES #1 AND #2 AND #3 DID NOT APPLY, EVALUATE THE MOLAD AGAINST RULE #4:
This molad date is not a Monday. So this rule also does not apply.
9.
RESULT: RETAIN THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
10.
ASSESSING THE RESULTS OF ALL 4 RULES AGAINST THIS MOLAD:
For the year 2013 none of the 4 postponement rules apply to the date of the molad.
11.
NOW DETERMINE THE DATE FOR TRUMPETS:
DAY OF TRUMPETS IN 2013 = THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
12.
NOW EVALUATE TRUMPETS AGAINST THE REAL ASTRONOMICAL NEW MOON DATA:
The real new moon conjunction was on September 5 at 1:55 p.m. The molad was on the new moon conjunction day and no postponements were enacted. Thus Tishri 1 started at sunset on September 4, almost 20 hours BEFORE the actual new moon conjunction. And Tishri 1 concluded a full day BEFORE first visibility of the new crescent was possible. Compare this to the results for the years 2000 and 2002.
WITH TISHRI 1 ESTABLISHED, WE NOW DETERMINE THE REST OF THE YEAR AS FOLLOWS:
STARTING WITH THE DATE FOR TRUMPETS, WE PUT TOGETHER ALL THE RELEVANT DATES FOR THIS PARTICULAR YEAR:
A. ATONEMENT = TISHRI 1 + 9 DAYS = SEPTEMBER 14
B. FIRST DAY OF TABERNACLES = TISHRI 1 + 14 DAYS = SEPTEMBER 19
C. LAST GREAT DAY = TISHRI 1 + 21 DAYS = SEPTEMBER 26
D. DATE FOR NISAN 1 = TISHRI 1 - 177 DAYS = MARCH 12
E. EVALUATING NISAN 1 AGAINST THE ASTRONOMICAL NEW MOON FOR THE FIRST MONTH: NEW MOON CONJUNCTION = MARCH 11, at 10:13 p.m.
Thus Nisan 1 was on the new moon conjunction day. Notice that Tishri 1 also begins on the new moon conjunction day.
F. PASSOVER DATE = NISAN 1 + 13 DAYS: MARCH 25 (Observed the previous evening after sunset)
G. FIRST DAY OF UNLEAVENED BREAD = NISAN 1 + 14 DAYS: MARCH 26
H. SEVENTH DAY OF UNLEAVENED BREAD = NISAN 1 + 20 DAYS: APRIL 1
I.PENTECOST = SUNDAY (in the period from Nisan 15 to 21) + 7 WEEKS: SUNDAY, MAY 19
THAT CONCLUDES ALL THE CALCULATIONS FOR THE JEWISH CALENDAR FOR THIS PARTICULAR YEAR. NOW LET'S EXAMINE THIS YEAR AS A WHOLE.
FINAL EVALUATION OF THE JEWISH CALENDAR FOR THIS PARTICULAR YEAR:
The calculation of the molad of Tishri results in a time just over 3 hours BEFORE the actual new moon conjunction in 2013. None of the postponement rules are applied to this molad. This results in both, Tishri 1 and also Nisan 1, being on the actual days of the lunar conjunctions, and thus clearly on the days before first visibility of the new crescents will be possible. Compare this to the results for the years 2000 and 2002. This molad will cause the whole year to start about 8 days before the end of winter at the time of the spring equinox, and even the Feast of Tabernacles will start 4 days before the end of summer.
CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE NOW COMPLETED THE ENTIRE CALCULATIONS FOR THE JEWISH CALENDAR FOR THE YEAR 2013.
ARE YOU READY TO TRY CALCULATING THE JEWISH CALENDAR DATES FOR ANOTHER YEAR? IT IS REALLY QUITE SIMPLE, ISN'T IT?
Frank W. Nelte