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From the Bimah
April 2005

During this leap year, Iāve been asked by a number of you for an explanation of the Jewish calendar. I hope you find the following helpful.

The Hebrew calendar is based largely on a lunar cycle. During the moonās orbit (lunation), there is a moment when it intersects both the Earth and the Sun. Typically, the moon is not on the same plane as the Sun, otherwise we would experience solar eclipses regularly. During that monthly lunar conjunction, the moon is not visible to us. After it reappears, we mark it as a new moon, or a new month. In Hebrew we refer to the moonās appearance as a Molad, or the moonās birth.

The lunar month is 29.5 days (approximately). Added up, the twelve lunar months equal 354 days. Of course, the solar year is 365 days (literally, 365.25 days). Meaning, 11 days differentiates these two calendars. To complicate matters more, Jewish law dictates that Jewish holidays appear in their proper season. So, for example, Passover must occur in the spring, Shavuot in the early summer, Sukkot in the fall, and so forth. In order for the holidays to remain in sync with their proper season, the Hebrew calendar inserts an extra lunar month seven times over the course of a nineteen year period. Think of it like this: compared to a solar calendar, over a 19 year span there is a gap of nearly 209 days. That figure is the equivalent of seven lunar months. The month added is called Adar Sheni, or Adar II.

One last point, Purim which we celebrated on the night of March 24th was observed during the Hebrew month Adar II. The question then becomes why didnāt we celebrate it on the 14th of Adar I? After all, that is when we traditionally mark the day. The rabbis ruled that when there is a leap year, Purim is observed during Adar II because of its proximity to Passover. The rabbis understood Purim as a holiday of redemption. While itās not the central theme of the festive day, the Scroll of Esther does record the redemption of the Jewish People.

Like Purim, Passover also emphasizes redemption, but not just for the Jew. Passoverās hope for redemption is a hope shared by all people; all people have the right to live freely; all people have inherent God-given value and dignity. Whenever there is a leap year, Purim is pushed back a month, insuring that it remain some thirty days from Passover.

So, the next time you think the holidays are early, or late, view them in relation to the season, not the solar calendar. As we enter the spring, Passover is upon us. Rebirth, renewal and redemption--enhanced by the springtime, brought to you by a calendar moored by the seasons -- calibrated by the rabbis. Happy Passover!

Rabbi Michael Gotlieb