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Brit-Am Now no. 1571
The Lost Ten Tribes of Israel Movement
14 September 2010, 7 Tishrei 5771
Contents:
1. Answer to the Criticism of Angelo Bennetti and Remarks Concerning Rosh HaShana.
2. G. Forrester: Geo-Political Parallelism Between Mongolia and Germany and the Finns of Finland
3. Brit-Am Efforts are Appreciated!
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1. Answer to the Criticism of Angelo Bennetti and Remarks Concerning Rosh HaShana.
"Angelo Bennetti" wrote:
Re
Brit-Am Now no. 1569
#1. Rosh HaShanna: Three and a half-Day Brit-Am Break
It is not new year, it will be the 7th month - the memorial of blowing trumpets - ha Ethanim 1st Kings 8:2
Don't follow made up stuff
Shalom
Brit-Am Reply:
Brit-Am, Movement of the Ten Tribes, is just that. We are interested in the Ten Tribes. On the whole we try to avoid theological discussions and inter-faith dialogue. Our purpose is not to explain or defend Judaism.
Nevertheless certain recurring attitudes such as that reflected in your remark do turn up and now and then need to be dealt with.
[We do not however wish to engage in an ongoing discussion on these matters. Please try and keep your correspondence with us connected to matters concerning the Ten Tribes and their identification.]
You said:
"Don't follow made up stuff".
This shows an anti-Jewish prejudice that is widely spread.
The Sages do not make up things. They merely, on the whole, directed the people as to how to apply the Law on day-to-day basis in a practical manner.
This was their Biblical-given duty.
Deuteronomy 17:
8 If a matter arises which is too hard for you to judge, between degrees of guilt for bloodshed, between one judgment or another, or between one punishment or another, matters of controversy within your gates, then you shall arise and go up to the place which the LORD your God chooses.9 And you shall come to the priests, the Levites, and to the judge there in those days, and inquire of them; they shall pronounce upon you the sentence of judgment.
10 You shall do according to the sentence which they pronounce upon you in that place which the LORD chooses. And you shall be careful to do according to all that they order you.
11 According to the sentence of the law in which they instruct you, according to the judgment which they tell you, you shall do; you shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left from the sentence which they pronounce upon you.
12 Now the man who acts presumptuously and will not heed the priest who stands to minister there before the LORD your God, or the judge, that man shall die. So you shall put away the evil from Israel.
13 And all the people shall hear and fear, and no longer act presumptuously.
It should also be remembered that Ezra and Nehemiah had the Biblical status of Prophets. They lead the Jews back from Babylon to rebuild the Temple. They also established the Great Assembly which had 120 members. The Prophets Haggai, Malachi, and Zechariah were members of the Great Assembly.
Later the number of members was reduced to seventy in accordance with the number established by Moses (Exodus 24:1,9).
This was the Sanhedrin. The Sages received their authority through authorization by the Sanhedrin.
This was a direct continuation of Prophetic Biblical Authority.
[You may have a problem with this but we are not in the business of dealing with individual issues.]
As for Rosh HaShanna being the New Year Day this shows the trouble with direct translation.
You may have been mislead due to a semantic confusion.
In our English-speaking world we have one New Years Day (1 January) and no other.
We do however use other dates to begin and end different matters. We have for instance the Fiscal Year. This is used for accounting and banking purposes. Many financial institutions close their doors on or just before the end of the Fiscal Year to facilitate a final auditing or what not.
In Australia it begins on July 1.
In Canada, Hong Kong, and India, on April 1.
UK on April 6.
USA on October 1.
In some countries (such as Ireland at present) it corresponds with the regular New Year and begins on January 1.
[ In the Brit-Am headquarters in Jerusalem we seem to begin a new fiscal year every time the need for an appeal arises! This mkay be quite often but not so much as it would seem.]
In Hebrew terms the first day of the Fiscal Year would be considered a New Years Day for Finance.
Thus the Mishna (Rosha HaShana 1:1) lists four different New Years Day. There are different New Years Day for the tithing of newborn animals or for first fruit-offerings to the Temple etc.
The actual counting of the Months begins from the month of Nissan in the Spring (Pesach time).
What we call New Years Day (Rosh HaShana) is listed as the first day of the seventh month (Tishrei) as you pointed out.
Just because the 1st day of Tishrei is referred to as Rosh HaShanna (Head of the Year) does not mean that the numbering of the months has been changed.
Rosh HaShanna is mentioned in the Bible as the day of "Zicaron Terua, Mikra Kodesh" ("a Day of Remembrance of Blowing the Shofar, a Holy Calling-Together", Leviticus 23:24).
Or in conventional translation:
Speak to the children of Israel, saying: "In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation (Leviticus 23:24).
