Creator's Holidays

Celebration and community are innate aspects of the human experience. Our creator has built these desires into us because he is a relational god. There are 7 holy days that he has ordained for us to enjoy, one of them being the weekly sabbath. These are special days that he has written in the stars for us to remember and participate in every season. They are prophetic which means they tell a story of his plan for mankind and remind us that he is trustworthy and true. These are times for reflection, celebration, growth, and renewal. Check out the scripture below that gives a summary of these holy days and use the fellowship finder to locate a group you can celebrate with.

Leviticus Chapter 23

And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Speak to the children of Yisra’el, and say to them, ‘The appointed times of יהוה, which you are to proclaim as set-apart gatherings, My appointed times, are these:

‘Six days work is done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a set-apart gathering. You do no work, it is a Sabbath to יהוה in all your dwellings.

These are the appointed times of יהוה, set-apart gatherings which you are to proclaim at their appointed times.

In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, between the evenings, is the Passover to יהוה. And on the fifteenth day of this month is the Festival of Unleavened Bread to יהוה – seven days you eat unleavened bread. On the first day you have a set-apart gathering, you do no servile work. And you shall bring an offering made by fire to יהוה for seven days. On the seventh day is a set-apart gathering, you do no servile work.”     And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Speak to the children of Yisra’el, and you shall say to them, ‘When you come into the land which I give you, and shall reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the first-fruits of your harvest to the priest. And he shall wave the sheaf before יהוה, for your acceptance. On the morrow after the Sabbath the priest waves it. And on that day when you wave the sheaf, you shall prepare a male lamb a year old, a perfect one, as a burnt offering to יהוה, and its grain offering: two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering made by fire to יהוה, a sweet fragrance, and its drink offering: one-fourth of a hin of wine. And you do not eat bread or roasted grain or fresh grain until the same day that you have brought an offering to your Elohim – a law forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. 

And from the morrow after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, you shall count for yourselves: seven completed Sabbaths. Until the morrow after the seventh Sabbath you count fifty days, then you shall bring a new grain offering to יהוה. Bring from your dwellings for a wave offering two loaves of bread, of two-tenths of an ĕphah of fine flour they are, baked with leaven, first-fruits to יהוה. And besides the bread, you shall bring seven lambs a year old, perfect ones, and one young bull and two rams. They are a burnt offering to יהוה, with their grain offering and their drink offerings, an offering made by fire for a sweet fragrance to יהוה. And you shall offer one male goat as a sin offering, and two male lambs a year old, as a peace offering. And the priest shall wave them, besides the bread of the first-fruits, as a wave offering before יהוה, besides the two lambs. They are set-apart to יהוה for the priest. And on this same day you shall proclaim a set-apart gathering for yourselves, you do no servile work on it – a law forever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.

And when you reap the harvest of your land do not completely reap the corners of your field when you reap, and do not gather any gleaning from your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the stranger. I am יהוה your Elohim.’ ”

And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Speak to the children of Yisra’el, saying, ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you have a rest, a remembrance of blowing of trumpets, a set-apart gathering. You do no servile work, and you shall bring an offering made by fire to יהוה.’ ”

And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “On the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. It shall be a set-apart gathering for you. And you shall afflict your beings, and shall bring an offering made by fire to יהוה. And you do no work on that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before יהוה your Elohim. For any being who is not afflicted on that same day, he shall be cut off from his people. And any being who does any work on that same day, that being I shall destroy from the midst of his people. You do no work – a law forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. It is a Sabbath of rest to you, and you shall afflict your beings. On the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you observe your Sabbath.”

And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, Speak to the children of Yisra’el, saying, ‘On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the Festival of Booths for seven days to יהוה. On the first day is a set-apart gathering, you do no servile work. For seven days you bring an offering made by fire to יהוה. On the eighth day there shall be a set-apart gathering for you, and you shall bring an offering made by fire to יהוה. It is a closing festival, you do no servile work. These are the appointed times of יהוה which you proclaim as set-apart gatherings, to bring an offering made by fire to יהוה, a burnt offering and a grain offering, a slaughtering and drink offerings, as commanded for every day – besides the Sabbaths of יהוה, and besides your gifts, and besides all your vows, and besides all your voluntary offerings which you give to יהוה. On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you gather in the fruit of the land, observe the festival of יהוה for seven days. On the first day is a rest, and on the eighth day a rest. And you shall take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of good trees, branches of palm trees, twigs of leafy trees, and willows of the stream, and shall rejoice before יהוה your Elohim for seven days. And you shall observe it as a festival to יהוה for seven days in the year – a law forever in your generations. Observe it in the seventh month. Dwell in booths for seven days; all who are native Yisra’ĕlites dwell in booths, so that your generations know that I made the children of Yisra’ĕl dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Mitsrayim. I am יהוה your Elohim.”

Thus did Mosheh speak of the appointed times of יהוה to the children of Yisra’ĕl.

How We Make Sense of the Holy Day Calendar

The permanent Jewish/rabbinic calendar was pre-calculated in the year 359 B.C. It operates on a nineteen-year “metonic” cycle (each metonic cycle has 7 leap years with an additional month), has set intervals for months (each 29 or 30 days), as well as postponement rules for when set-apart days can be rescheduled or extended to accommodate other non-biblical traditions. The metonic cycle is based on a very precise calculation which syncs up the lunar year with the solar year. The rabbis readily profess that their calculated calendar is based on a lunar-solar calendar, however they have abandoned the necessary observance of the heavenly bodies and aviv barley to make it legitimate. 

The forefathers of the rabbis were the pharisees who maintained the sighted calendar in centuries prior.

In this practice the pharisees were implementing what God commanded through Moses by observing the heavenly bodies and aviv barley to determine when to celebrate YHVH's set-apart days. 

Messiah Yeshua's words seem relevant in this instance: 

"The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do." Matthew 23:3

We can re-discover the teaching of the pharisees by sorting through the lunar-solar basis of the calendar and carefully investigating relevant bible passages.

The lunar-solar design finds it's true origin in the brief instruction on how to track time given by our creator in the torah. He gave us two great lights: the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. (Gen 1:16) He said, “Let lights come to be in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and appointed times (moedim/holy days/set-apart days), and for days and years.” (Gen 1:14) Although it is rather simple to understand their function of separating day and night, it requires some attention to their movement and phases to determine the set-apart days and years. For determining years we have to look to a couple more brief yet essential passages.

"Observe the month of Aviv and keep the Passover to YHVH your God, for in the new moon of Aviv YHVH your God brought you out of Egypt by night." Deuteronomy 16:1

"And YHVH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you come into the land that I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest, and he shall wave the sheaf before YHVH, so that you may be accepted. On the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. And on the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a male lamb a year old without blemish as a burnt offering to YHVH. And the grain offering with it shall be two tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, a food offering to YHVH with a pleasing aroma, and the drink offering with it shall be of wine, a fourth of a hin. And you shall eat neither bread nor grain parched or fresh until this same day, until you have brought the offering of your God: it is a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings." Leviticus 23:9-14

Aviv is the state of barley when it is ready to be harvested. Therefore, once sufficient Aviv Barley for a sheaf is observed then the subsequent month/new moon is the first new moon of the year, which would also ensure a sheaf could be brought for the required sacrifice. (This is almost always also the first new moon after the equinox)

***Since the major holy day festivals are intended to be Pilgrimages, the observations (of barley and the moon) should be made in Jerusalem marking the start for the rest of the world during the subsequent revolution of the earth. If the observations made in Jerusalem are not known to someone then sighting the local barley and moon could also suffice. 

Once the first new moon is determined then all the holy days/moedim can be determined based on that.

• Pesach/Passover is the afternoon of the 14th day of the first new moon.

• The week of Unleavened Bread is the 15th through the 21st of the first new moon. (rest on the 15th and 21st)

• First Fruits is the day after the Sabbath that falls during the week of Unleavened Bread. 

  • *the year Yeshua died first fruits was 3 days after passover pertaining to the resurrection of Yeshua

• Shavuot is 49 days after First Fruits. (rest)

We must diligently watch for the seventh new moon when 29-30 days has passed since the sixth new moon because it is only visible immediately at sunset for a brief moment then that next day is…

• Yom Teruah on the first day of the seventh new moon. (rest)

• Yom Kippur is the 10th day of the seventh new moon. (rest and fast)

• Sukkot is the 15th through the 21st of the seventh new moon. (rest the 15th & 22nd.)

***There is no hint or suggestion in Scripture that exceptions are needed for adjusting holy days in relation to the weekly Sabbaths nor adding 2 days of celebration to accommodate the Diaspora- that is only a rabbinic invention.