In the fourth century of the Common Era there were three major calendars in use in the Roman Empire to which one could synchronize life. Each choice spoke volumes regarding one's allegiance and relationship to the Creator.

The most popular calendar was adopted by Constantine - the Pontifex Maximus, or "High Priest of paganism". Constantine was the head of the new and improved religion of the Roman Empire. He used the Babylonian Sun calendar of his predecessor, Julius Caesar, and incorporated the festivals of pagan deities as "holy days." The birth of Tammuz (the re-incarnated Nimrod) on the winter solstice (originally December 25th, before the procession of the Equinox) and the re-incarnation of Nimrod's wife as Easter, the queen of heaven and goddess of sexual desire (on the first SUN day after the Vernal Equinox), were the highest days on the pagan calendar.

The Biblical calendar, which was used until the Egyptian captivity, was kept as Israel's national calendar from its reinstitution with the revelation of Torah at Mt. Sinai, till our great dispersion by Rome. The head of each month was reckoned by the sighting of the first sliver of the new moon - as verified by at least two competent witnesses, and the head of the year was determined when the barley in the Promised Land reached the stage of aviv - an agricultural term referring to the maturity of the barley crop.

In the fourth century, another calendar entered the picture - this one being introduced by exiled Pharisees. They used Babylonian mathematics to calculate the moment that the unseen moon was in "conjunction." This was the moment that determined the beginning of the new month for the Pharisee. Though the beginning of the Pharisaic year was determined without regards to the condition of the barley in the land of Israel, by adding an additional month on a calculated basis, the Feast of Passover remained in the spring of the year. To sanctify their new calendar, the Pharisees convened a Sanhedrin - a ruling body that had previously been neutralized in its legal authority by the Roman Government - but still wielded power over anyone who would willingly submit to their authority, purportedly passed down from Moses directly to them.

According to the Pharisees' own documents, in the year 28 C.E. (the year of Y'shua's resurrection) the Sanhedrin was evicted from the Hall of Hewn Stones on the Temple Mount for the crime of conspiring to pay witnesses to make a false report on their behalf. This admission of guilt and its consequence to the Sanhedrin is still a required legal recitation that was recently submitted by the exiled Sanhedrin in the mid-1990's case: the Republic of Texas vs. the United States of America. The cause for this move by the Roman authorities was also cited by Matthew, as recorded in his 1st century chronicle of the life and ministry of Y'shua:

[Matthew 28:11-15] Some of the watch (Roman guard assigned to secure the tomb of Y'shua) came into the city, and showed unto the chief priests all the things that were done. And when they (the priests) were assembled with the elders (Sanhedrin) and had taken counsel together (conspired to commit fraud), they gave large money (bribery) unto the soldiers, saying, say ye (bear false witness), his disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept (dereliction of duty punishable by death). And if this comes to the governor's ears (their commanding officer), we will persuade him, and secure you. So they (the soldiers) took the money, and did as they were taught (lied): and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day (near the end of the first century).

The Pharisee controlled Sanhedrin was stripped of their authority to judge criminal matters by the Roman legal system, which condemned them as a band of conspiring criminals incapable of judging others. The Pharisees, however, continued to rule over their own followers by adding and removing commandments to and from the Torah at their discretion. Their final act before disbanding into exile was to change the times and moedim of YHWH. They did this by calculating a calendar of convenience, using mathematics as the new standard for determining the beginning of months and years. The Feasts are regularly kept on the wrong day if one uses the Pharisaic calendar, and this year they will be kept in the wrong month!

Just weeks before his crucifixion, Y'shua warned his disciples (and all who had ears to hear):

The sages and Pharisees sit in the seat of Moses (they purport to have Mosaic authority) therefore, whatsoever HE (Moses) commands you to do and observe, that DO! But do not follow after the takanot (laws which change or negate Biblical law) and ma'asim (acts of the Rabbis which supersede Torah) of the Pharisees, because they say (they follow Moses) but they do not do (what Moses said to do)! [Ancient Hebrew text of Matthew 23:2-3 as transcribed by Shem Tov Ibn Shaprut in 1380 C.E.]

Y'shua repeatedly declared that the Pharisees had absolutely no right to add or detract from the Torah. He declared that even he had no such authority! But, the final act of the Pharisaic Sanhedrin was the adoption of a man-made calendar, which has resulted in their followers' alienation from YHWH's clearly appointed times. They claimed divine authority to change the Creator's calendar. Y'shua said they had none. NONE!

Most Jews in the 4th Century rejected the Pharisees' purported authority over the Scriptures and continued to keep the Feasts according to Torah's prescription: the aviv barley and the sighting of the new moon. These stalwarts of Torah truth became known as "Karaites", or "Scripturalists". Through the years, their numbers have dwindled to the point that one Karaite sage noted just a few hundred years ago, "The Karaites have fallen into sin." Even though each Karaite couple recites in their wedding vows to "keep the Feasts of YHWH according to the sighting of the new moon and the aviv barley in the land of Israel", the Karaites had fallen into the convenience of the Pharisaic calendar. But the old sage prophesied that when Israel returns to the Promised Land, the Karaites would once again return to the Creator's reckoning of time.

Fourteen years ago, the son of a long line of Rabbis returned from exile as a former Pharisee turned Karaite. He was compelled to resolve a mystery that had been lost to antiquity; HOW to determine the month of the aviv barley and reckon the Biblical Rosh HaShana, the Head of the Year. His research lasted for over a decade and enlisted the help of scholars and agricultural specialists from around the world. After 10 years of painstaking research and rigorous field inspections, even the Pharisees were convinced that the original criterion for determining the month of Aviv had finally been re-established in the land of Israel. Nehemia Gordon, already known in Israel for his work on the aviv, was introduced to the Messianic and Christian worlds in my 1999 video presentation, "The Great Secret of Solomon's Temple." (available from our Bookstore) Nehemia is recognized in Israel as the foremost authority on the aviv. And even though we have had disagreements on the technicalities of the aviv in the political climate of the second temple period, I have no doubt or disagreement as to his expertise in the field of the aviv barley. If Nehemia says it is the month of Aviv, you can go to the Feast on it!

In the week preceding the new moon, on the evening of Friday March 11, 2005, Nehemia assembled an international entourage of specialists for the annual aviv search. Ruthann Koch, a degreed and certified Agronomist from Colorado, was the attending scientist from the United States. The team found abundant barley in reasonable proximity to Jerusalem which had reached the stage of aviv. Both Nehemiah and Ruthann stated that the volume of aviv barley was far more abundant than either one had witnessed for many years. For the first time in years I was not present for the search in Jerusalem, but was teaching in Costa Rica. I was not expecting the barley to be aviv. I returned to my home in Israel just in time to write this report, and then start preparing for Passover. I, as much as anyone, would like to have another month in preparation - but the Almighty does not spin the universe around my schedule. This is His appointed time, and I don't want to miss it because I have something "more important" on my agenda, or "I already scheduled the feast for next month!"

There were a few others who came to Israel to search for the aviv. I do not know their qualifications, or lack thereof, but they testified that they did not find aviv barley. Their confessed inability to find aviv proves only that they couldn't find aviv, or wouldn't know aviv if it crawled up their pants leg and bit them (which barley will literally do). I do know that two of the most respected and qualified specialists on the planet have given their witness: a substantial amount of aviv barley was found in reasonable proximity to Jerusalem in the days preceding the sighting of the new moon. Their witness stands. A second hand witness, in any case, is inadmissible. A first hand witness that saw nothing is irrelevant.

There remain three calendars for you to choose from to conduct your devotional festivities. You should choose the one that best expresses your personal heart toward the Creator. One places pagan deities before Him - literally, "other gods in His face". Another places man's authority over Him - men who declare that they have the last word over the Creator's schedule (as if He is going to oblige). The third reckoning of time is the oldest, and is represented in the pages of the Astronomically and Agriculturally Corrected Biblical Hebrew Calendar. This calendar recognizes that we should watch and wait to see how the Almighty is moving before making concrete plans for the future. This calendar teaches us that we should not say, "Tomorrow I will do such and such", but rather, "If Yah wills, tomorrow I will do such and such" (James 4:13-16). It also teaches us that our life is but a fleeting vapor dependent entirely on the will of the Infinite One - and that we should keep our eyes on the signs in the heavens and realize that the day of our redemption is drawing near.