SPRING APPOINTED TIMES

SPRING APPOINTED TIMES 2024

Pastoral Note: Determining when the barley would be ripe this year was particularly difficult. And though we did our best to make a right determination, we realize some have chosen a earlier date for Passover (a month earlier). We at YH completely understand why you chose the earlier date and respect your decision. In all, we wish to remind everyone that though the timing is important, what’s more important that we do our best to keep the commandment and to “celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Corinthians 5:8).

Q: How does YH determine the head of the year?
A: It’s determined by the sighting of the first new moon after the barley is just ripe enough.
“Keep the month of Abib and celebrate the Passover to Yahweh your God, for in the month of Abib Yahweh your God brought you out of Egypt by night” (Dt 16:1).

Q: My calendar has already determined Passover. It says it’s April 23. Why does YH do it differently?
A: Because we want to do all we can to teach you the difference between what’s biblical and what’s rabbinic. While we don’t disparage those (far from it!!!) who keep the spring appointed times in accordance with Jewish tradition, it’s our desire at YH to do as Yahweh has said. And in doing so, we trust there are further insights to glean about Jesus and the nature of His kingdom.

Q: Will YH host a Passover seder in 2024?
A: Not this year. While we’ll gather for a Passover meal/seder in the future (if/when appropriate), it was never our goal to host a Passover seder this first year – for two reasons. First, Passover is not a novelty. Unless one’s whole heart is fully circumcised and their desire is to heed the rest of the King’s commandments, they really shouldn’t be participating in Passover. Second, the scriptures tell us that the Passover meal should be kept, ideally, within one’s house.

“And you shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood which is in the basin, and touch some of the blood that is in the basin to the lintel and the two doorposts; and none of you shall go outside the doorway of his house until morning” (Ex 12:22).

We’ll be sure to equip fathers and mothers with the tools they’ll need to observe Passover with their families. If you’re single and world rather not be alone on that night, we’ll make sure you have a place a table.

Q: I’ve heard that some families may be observing Passover one day earlier this year, on “the night Yeshua was betrayed.” That’s true, and I (Traver) might be one of them. In other words, if “Scenario 1” plays out, some may observe Passover on the night of March 24 (or April 22) and not March 25 (or April 23). Why is that, and would that also shift the dates of the other spring appointed times?
A: There is, indeed, some evidence to show that there was, roughly, a 24 hour period between Passover and the first day of Unleavened Bread (UB). I’ll teach about this on the first day of UB. And no, it would not shift the other dates.

Q: Will we observe the first and last day of UB together?
A: Yes.

Q: Will we observe Pentecost/Shavuot together?
A: Yes.

Q: What days are “no work” days?
A: The first and last day of UB, and Shavuot. We won’t know the dates, exactly, until the “head” of the year.

Here are a few helpful links for further study:
https://hoshanarabbah.org/blog/2013/12/29/about-abib-barley/
https://nazareneisrael.org/…/aviv-barley-the-head-of…/
https://www.bibletools.org/…/Passover-Kept-Individual…

By linking the above, it’s not our intent to, necessarily, endorse the site or ministry. Rather, we have found some of their content helpful for further study.