Messianic Jews & Jesus birth
"Tyler G. Nally" (tnally@csci.csc.com)
Wed, 27 Dec 1995 13:44:15 -0600 (CST)
Hey Saints!
I thought ya'll would like to see this. It came from CHRISTIA.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MESSIAHMAS ?
------------
Most Gentile Christians wouldn't bother to speculate about the time when
Y'shua (Jesus) was born. They celebrate it on December 25th even though
they may suspect that there is no Biblical basis for choosing that date.
However, there are some Messianic Jews who believe that they know, with a
reasonable degree of certainty, the time of year when Y'shua was born.
Taking into account certain Jewish customs and traditions, it's not
difficult to calculate it.
There is quite a wide consensus of opinion that Y'shua was born at some
time during the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashana (New Year) and Yom Kippur
(Day of Atonement), or at Succot (Tabernacles) which follows soon
afterwards. These festivals normally occur in the Autumn, about September
or October, but it varies from year to year because the Jewish calendar is
based on the cycles of the moon and doesn't fit in with the Gregorian
calendar.
The calculation of the time of Y'shua's birth begins with Z'chariyahu
(Zechariah), the father of Yochanan (John) the Baptist. According to Luke
1:5 he was a priest of the order of Aviyah. He was performing his duties,
burning incense in the Beit HaMikdash (Temple), when an angel appeared and
said his wife Eli-Sheva would conceive and bear a son, and he would be
called Yochanan (John).
The order in which the priestly families performed their duties is given in
1 Chronicles 24:7-18. According to the Mishnah, the cycle begins on the
first Shabbat (Sabbath) of Nisan, and each family of priests would minister
in turn for one week. Since there are 24 families, each family would
minister about twice a year. The cycle would be delayed slightly because
all priests, regardless of their families, were required to be at the Beit
HaMikdash (Temple) for the three festivals of Pesach (Passover), Shavu'ot
(Pentecost) and Succot (Tabernacles).
The family of Aviyah was eighth in line, so Z'chariyahu would have had his
first period of duty during Sivan (about June) and his second period during
Kislev about six months later. There is no way of knowing for sure which
period of duty is referred to in Luke's Gospel, but if we suppose it is the
first period we get some very interesting results.
Z'chariyahu finished his first period of duty about the middle of Sivan.
Because of his unbelief, G-d struck him dumb, but his reproductive system
was still working. He went home to his wife and she became pregnant. Count
off 40 weeks, the usual period of gestation, and we get to the month of
Nisan the following year. Beginning on the 14th of Nisan, and lasting for
eight days, we have the festival of Pesach (Passover), which roughly
coincides with Easter on the Christian calendar. This raises the distinct
possibility that Yochanan the Baptist was born at Pesach, which coincides
with the Jewish expectation that Eliyahu (Elijah) would come at Pesach. The
Jews always put an extra cup of wine on the table at Pesach, in the hope
that Eliyahu will come and drink it.
If Yochanan the Baptist was born at Pesach, Yeshua must have been born
during the High Holy Days or at Succot. In Luke 1:26 and 36 we are told
that Y'shua was six months younger than John.
When the decree went out for everyone to go to their home town to be
registered, Yoseph and Miriam set off for Beit Lechem (Bethlehem). They
would have set out in good time, before Miriam was fully 40 weeks pregnant,
because she wouldn't want to be jogged into childbirth while riding on a
donkey. Besides, they would have wanted to complete the journey before Rosh
Hashana.
We are given a clue about the time of the birth by the angel who appeared
to the shepherds and said "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great
joy that will be for all the people". (Luke 2:10). There are actually two
clues here. Succot is a festival of joy, and it is also known as the
"Festival of the Nations (or Gentiles)". The angel was actually giving them
a greeting for the Festival of Succot. This is the only festival where the
nations are positively encouraged to participate. (Z'chariyahu 14:16-19).
During Succot, the Jews contruct flimsy shelters called "Succot", using
wood and leaves, and eat or sleep in them. This is to remember how they
were completely dependent on God as they wandered around for forty years in
the desert when they came out of Egypt and were led by "a pillar of cloud
by day, and a pillar of fire by night." Because of this, they celebrate
that "G-d is with us" (Emmanu-El).
And so, the birth of Y'shua at Succot fulfils another prophecy: "The virgin
will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him
Emmanuel - which means, "God is with us". (Matt. 1:23, quoting from
Yishaiyahu (Isaiah) 7:14).
If this is not enough, we also have to consider the type of dwelling in
which Y'shua was born. Had it not been for the inconvenience caused by the
census, he would have been born in a house like all other children. But he
wasn't, he was born in a succah (or stable), a flimsy dwelling where
servants of a household slept, or where they kept sheep and cattle. This
was to indicate that G-d had come to earth to dwell with (and serve)
humanity. Also in Yochanan (John) 1:14 we read about how "The Word became
flesh and made his dwelling (Tabernacled) among us." - another obvious
reference to Succot.
Eight days later, according to Luke 2:21, he was circumcised. NOT in the
Beit HaMikdash (Temple) as some suppose, but in Beit Lechem, probably in
the Succah where he was born. Miriam would still be ceremonially unclean
for 33 days after the circumcision according to ViYikrah (Leviticus) 12.
Besides, she would be unlikely to travel to Y'rushali'im (Jerusalem) so
soon after the birth even though it was not very far.
If the day of his birth was the first day of Succot, the day of his
circumcision would be the eighth day of Succot which, like the first day,
is a day of sacred assembly. (ViYikrah - Leviticus 23:39). On this day, or
traditionally the day after, Jews complete their annual cycle of Torah
readings and start again from Bereshit (Genesis). It is called Simchat
Torah (Rejoicing of the Law), and is considered to be a time of
"fulfillment" of the Torah. The circumcision of Y'shua at this time
indicates how he had come to be the goal to which the Law and the Prophets
pointed (Matt. 5:17-18).
When the days of Miriam's purification were over (33 days after the
circumcision), they would have made their way to Y'rushali'im to sacrifice
a pair of doves or young pigeons. (Luke 2:22-24). Then they went back to
Natzeret (Nazareth) (Luke 2:39).
Every year they went to Y'rushali'im for Pesach. (Luke 2:41). During one of
these visits, probably when Y'shua was two years old, they went to Beit
Lechem and stayed, not in a succah or stable, but in a house. (Matt. 2:11).
They were visited by the Magi, and then had to flee to Egypt to escape from
Herod because he was killing all the male children two years old and under.
Starting from Z'chariyahu, the father of Yochanan the Baptist, and his
first period of duty in the Temple, and doing a few simple calculations, we
arrive at a result which gives a new and profound meaning to many passages
of Scripture, and for that reason, we think Y'shua is very likely to have
been born at Succot.
So what are we going to do now? Are we going to continue observing
Christmas on December 25th (which incidentally has pagan origins), or are
we going to switch to celebrating the birth of Y'shua at Succot? If we do
(and we don't have to become Jewish to do it) we will be creating the
conditions in which Z'chariyahu 14:16-19 can be fulfilled. People will say
"Since we are celebrating the birth of Y'shua at Succot, why not do it in
Y'rushali'im?". Up to a point, this is already being fulfilled by large
numbers of Christians who go to Y'rushali'im for a Tabernacles celebration
each year, but it could get even bigger.
In Israel it's impossible to miss these festivals, but for the benefit of
those in the Diaspora the 1996 dates are:
Rosh Hashana (New Year) Fri. 13 September
Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) Sun. 22 September
1st Day of Succot (Tabernacles) Fri. 27 September
8th Day of Succot Fri. 4 October
Simchat Torah (Rejoicing of the Law) Sat. 5 October
The Jewish day begins at sunset which means, for example, Rosh Hashana
begins at sunset on Fri 13th September.
Compiled from various sources by Uri Marcus, Haifa, Israel
submitted by Lambert Dolphin
http://www.best.com/~dolphin/
dolphin@best.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bro. Tyler
--
__ Bro. Tyler Nally On-Line Oneness Apostolic __
__| |__ tgnally@prairienet.org (when playing) __| |__
|___ ___| tnally@csci.csc.com (when working) |___ ___|
| | back2nat@netmar.com (when answering q's about merchandise) | |
| | http://www.prairienet.org/~tgnally/homepage.html | |
|__| http://netmar.com/~back2nat (WWW eco-sensitive storefront) |__|
http://netmar.com/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/~back2nat/Chatter
"When I was young, I was given a dollar to be good.
Now I'm good for nothing."