Messy(anic) Calendars

You’d think that in a year like this year where most folk are pretty much aligned regarding the calendar a good messianic would have cause for satisfaction. Not for this one, however. I have been smacked right between the eyes as to how fragmented the movement is in this regard. And it discourages me.

Let me lay out for you the various permutations of which I am aware. This doesn’t even include the lunatics (lunar sabbatarians).

• Rabbinic “Hillel II” calendar
• When do you celebrate Shavuot
• Shavuot always on a Sunday
• Shavuot on the 50^th day, whenever it falls within the week
• New Moon Calendar
• When do you recognize the new moon
• Conjunction
• Molad
• First sighting
• Actual visual sighting
• Theoretically visible sighting (a position just introduced by the Karaites)
• From where is the sighting valid
• Anywhere
• Israel
• When do you recognize the month of Abib/Nisan
• When green “abib” ears of barley are found is Israel prior to the new moon (there could be a whole treatise written on the determination of when the ears are “abib”)
• The first new moon after the spring equinox
• The first new moon closest to the spring equinox
• When do you actually eat the Passover
• Evening of 13^th/14^th
• Evening of 14^th/15^th
• When do you celebrate Shavuot
• Shavuot always on a Sunday
• Shavuot on the 50^th day, whenever it falls within the week

This is a mess. It is the source of endless contention within the movement. We are always tempted to get puffed up (like leavened bread?) about the correctness of our particular understanding. When will Bible students of good will find a way to bring unity to this situation?