I have placed all my files in a shared Google drive which you can locate by clicking this link.
Many of the files are related to a Jewish Calendar class series that I ave in my temple several years ago. These are usually located in folders with names like "Session 1. There are other assorted files on various topics such as history of the calendar, as well as tables and charts related to calendar statistics and other facts.
Feel free to download and share any files with your friends and neighbors. If you find an error, have a question, wish to comment or would like to see a specific topic addressed, please post a blog entry. Be patient, as I review each blog entry prior to posting it publicly. Unfortunately, I get many spammers and mischievous people who post weird and inappropriate entries, so I post only those blogs that are useful.
Thursday, September 14, 2017
Monday, June 13, 2016
What Have Jews Done Lately?
The title of this post is a pun. By "lately" I don't mean "recently". I mean, "in a late fashion".
Regarding time, I grew up confused. My father's side of the family was Hungarian - notorious for being late. Weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, and all affairs started late. People showed up late and kept others waiting for them. No apologies. It was expected to be late. My father would buy antique clocks and watches and sometimes fix them. I'm almost sure that he gave me a watch that ran backwards; just to make me late!
My mother's side of the family was Germanic. They were always early. Every clock in my grandmother's home was 10 minutes fast, because my grandmother always worried about being late. I lived in my granparents' home for most of the winter months, and only during that tuime did I come to my school classes early. My teachers thought that after about 3 months of being late, something finally sank in.
Well, if we look at the Judiac calendar, and follow its trend, it turns out that my father's side of teh family may have had the right habit. The Judiac calendar has always ran late, even before the fixed calendar was established around 4th Century CE. The reason why it was "late" is that Rosh Hodesh, the official start of the month could not occur exactly at the point of the New Moon, because the moon was not visible, then. Two witnesses first had to see the smallest crescent of the moon, whcih occured about 6 hours after conjunction. (More on that in a future article.) Then, they had to travel to Sanhedrin, the Supreme Court to testify. Sometimes, it took up to 2 days for witnesses to arrive.
The current fixed calendar carries over this problem. When you calculate the fact that the fixed calendar is based on a mean of the lunar cycle, and it is not exact, you will discover that each month has shifted significantly over the course of many millenia. The Rosh Hashanna postponement rules add further delay. The placement of leap years, which adds an extra month to the Judaic calendar every 2 or 3 years also cuases some delay.
All of this is discussed in this article. At the end, you will find several links to calendar tools and other web sites that further discuss the math involved in the calculations. Eventually, I will try to move these links to the hoime page of the blog so you can access them more easily.
Regarding time, I grew up confused. My father's side of the family was Hungarian - notorious for being late. Weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, and all affairs started late. People showed up late and kept others waiting for them. No apologies. It was expected to be late. My father would buy antique clocks and watches and sometimes fix them. I'm almost sure that he gave me a watch that ran backwards; just to make me late!
My mother's side of the family was Germanic. They were always early. Every clock in my grandmother's home was 10 minutes fast, because my grandmother always worried about being late. I lived in my granparents' home for most of the winter months, and only during that tuime did I come to my school classes early. My teachers thought that after about 3 months of being late, something finally sank in.
Well, if we look at the Judiac calendar, and follow its trend, it turns out that my father's side of teh family may have had the right habit. The Judiac calendar has always ran late, even before the fixed calendar was established around 4th Century CE. The reason why it was "late" is that Rosh Hodesh, the official start of the month could not occur exactly at the point of the New Moon, because the moon was not visible, then. Two witnesses first had to see the smallest crescent of the moon, whcih occured about 6 hours after conjunction. (More on that in a future article.) Then, they had to travel to Sanhedrin, the Supreme Court to testify. Sometimes, it took up to 2 days for witnesses to arrive.
The current fixed calendar carries over this problem. When you calculate the fact that the fixed calendar is based on a mean of the lunar cycle, and it is not exact, you will discover that each month has shifted significantly over the course of many millenia. The Rosh Hashanna postponement rules add further delay. The placement of leap years, which adds an extra month to the Judaic calendar every 2 or 3 years also cuases some delay.
All of this is discussed in this article. At the end, you will find several links to calendar tools and other web sites that further discuss the math involved in the calculations. Eventually, I will try to move these links to the hoime page of the blog so you can access them more easily.
Sunday, January 18, 2015
Shabbat Mevarchim Hachodesh - Announcing the New Month in Synagogue
I am viewing some of the comments, and have decided to answer them as posts. Blogger has a restriction on editing comments - even your own! It's quite annoying, but, the post is the work-around.
One of the questions asked is:
Is Mevarchim Chodesh for us the equivalent of Kiddush HaChodesh for our ancestors?
This is a great question. I pondered about this one some time ago. I found an excellent site that addresses various aspects of Jewish prayer, www.beureihatefilah.com. It has articles on so many topics. Almost all the articles are PDF files. One caveat - Often, I have discovered that articles contain "supplements" related to some topic other than what the link may have said. These supplements may serve useful interest in other areas. In short, the site author has done an amazing job, but, this is a small flaw.
Getting back to the question at hand, I am summarizing some ideas taken from this particular article from that site.
One of the original sources is Siddur Rav Amram Ga'on, about the 9th Century. It seems that the Yehi Ratzon opening prayer as well as the announcement of Rosh Hodesh was initially done after the Torah reading on Rosh Hodesh, itself. So, it seems clear that the announcement was not meant to commemorate the original Birkat Hachodesh - sanctification of the New Moon. Similarly, he cites various liturgical poems found as part of the Cairo Geniza, which als oindicate that one of these poems was recited as part of Grace after Meals on Rosh Hodesh - also indicating no connection to any announcement on the prior Shabbat.
Technically, what would actually be the reason to make any announcement of Rosh Hodesh if we assume that everyone in the world follows a fixed calendar and the date of Rosh Hodesh was known or could be easily found by just looking at the calendar?
There are 2 parts to this answer. The reason to announce in the first place is hinted to by Rav Amram Ga'on and it was done when Karaites, sticking to the strict law of the Torah, tried to convince everyone that the New Moon should be publicly declared only by sighting of the New Moon, as it had been done originally. As discussed, on my site, this system was changed at the end of the existence of the Sanhedrin around 4th Century C.E>, and from that time the fixed calendar was used. Thus, to counter the Karaites' cliaim, an announcement of Rosh Hodesh in synagogue was deemed necessary. Of course, this was initially done on Rosh Hodesh, itself, only as a public decleration to counter the Karaites.
I have listed just one source & reason mentioned in that article. There are other related reasons. Regardless, it was deemed necessary to publicly announce the date of Rosh Hodesh. Shabbat was most likely considered the best time to do so as this was a more asserted time when the public was likely to gather in the synagogue to hear this announcement.
One of the questions asked is:
Is Mevarchim Chodesh for us the equivalent of Kiddush HaChodesh for our ancestors?
This is a great question. I pondered about this one some time ago. I found an excellent site that addresses various aspects of Jewish prayer, www.beureihatefilah.com. It has articles on so many topics. Almost all the articles are PDF files. One caveat - Often, I have discovered that articles contain "supplements" related to some topic other than what the link may have said. These supplements may serve useful interest in other areas. In short, the site author has done an amazing job, but, this is a small flaw.
Getting back to the question at hand, I am summarizing some ideas taken from this particular article from that site.
One of the original sources is Siddur Rav Amram Ga'on, about the 9th Century. It seems that the Yehi Ratzon opening prayer as well as the announcement of Rosh Hodesh was initially done after the Torah reading on Rosh Hodesh, itself. So, it seems clear that the announcement was not meant to commemorate the original Birkat Hachodesh - sanctification of the New Moon. Similarly, he cites various liturgical poems found as part of the Cairo Geniza, which als oindicate that one of these poems was recited as part of Grace after Meals on Rosh Hodesh - also indicating no connection to any announcement on the prior Shabbat.
Technically, what would actually be the reason to make any announcement of Rosh Hodesh if we assume that everyone in the world follows a fixed calendar and the date of Rosh Hodesh was known or could be easily found by just looking at the calendar?
There are 2 parts to this answer. The reason to announce in the first place is hinted to by Rav Amram Ga'on and it was done when Karaites, sticking to the strict law of the Torah, tried to convince everyone that the New Moon should be publicly declared only by sighting of the New Moon, as it had been done originally. As discussed, on my site, this system was changed at the end of the existence of the Sanhedrin around 4th Century C.E>, and from that time the fixed calendar was used. Thus, to counter the Karaites' cliaim, an announcement of Rosh Hodesh in synagogue was deemed necessary. Of course, this was initially done on Rosh Hodesh, itself, only as a public decleration to counter the Karaites.
I have listed just one source & reason mentioned in that article. There are other related reasons. Regardless, it was deemed necessary to publicly announce the date of Rosh Hodesh. Shabbat was most likely considered the best time to do so as this was a more asserted time when the public was likely to gather in the synagogue to hear this announcement.
Thursday, December 11, 2014
Comments and Suggestions, please
So far, no comments. I don't know if people are reading the blog and have nothing to say, are shy, or what? So, please comment or post when you can.
Next week is the last class. I will delve into Keviyot and a few statistics. If possible, I will explain how Keviyot affect the annual Torah reading, and perhaps, other related items. If there are any specific topics or questions that you'd like me to answer, please post.
I hope that in a sense, we can continue some of the class ideas via the blog. I'm thinking, perhaps, of publishing a monthly newsletter to include some "fun facts" about the calendar. It will depend on my time and learning curve.
Happy Chanukah to you and your family.
Next week is the last class. I will delve into Keviyot and a few statistics. If possible, I will explain how Keviyot affect the annual Torah reading, and perhaps, other related items. If there are any specific topics or questions that you'd like me to answer, please post.
I hope that in a sense, we can continue some of the class ideas via the blog. I'm thinking, perhaps, of publishing a monthly newsletter to include some "fun facts" about the calendar. It will depend on my time and learning curve.
Happy Chanukah to you and your family.
Reminder about how to locate files
It appears that people are having trouble locating the class files. Click this link to view the files. I have placed files related to each session in their own session folders. There are additional files in the top-level folder.
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Subscription box added to Blog
I am a bit new to Blogger. As I have time, I disscover some useful simple gadgets that I can add to the site.
So, you will notice near the top just above all the posts, there's a box where you can type your email address. That will subscribe you to the list, and you will get a daily digest of all posts for that day (if there are any. It's quick and simple. You can always opt out of the posts, whenever you decide.
So, you will notice near the top just above all the posts, there's a box where you can type your email address. That will subscribe you to the list, and you will get a daily digest of all posts for that day (if there are any. It's quick and simple. You can always opt out of the posts, whenever you decide.
Sunday, December 7, 2014
Folders for Session 1 and Session 2 files
If you have been viewing the Shared drive since Sat. night, you may have noticed some changes. I have created separate folders for each session and moved files into these folders. Look for them, there.
Session 2 is quite comprehensive! There are 2 slide files. Part 1 includes some left-over topics that we did not have time to view last week. Part 2 contains new information.
I will be adding several tables (Excel files) to supplement some of the slides, and they will be used in class. If you can print and bring these, that helps. Otherwise, I will try to have copies available on Thursday.
Session 2 is quite comprehensive! There are 2 slide files. Part 1 includes some left-over topics that we did not have time to view last week. Part 2 contains new information.
I will be adding several tables (Excel files) to supplement some of the slides, and they will be used in class. If you can print and bring these, that helps. Otherwise, I will try to have copies available on Thursday.
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