"...at the beginning of your renewed moons*, you shall blow the trumpets" - Numbers 10:10 *Orig. month; "New moon" & "month" are cognates of Hebrew word Chodesh or Hadesekem (Strong's 2320) derived from Chadash (Strong's 2318) meaning "renew"
New Moon Crescent:
The best conditions for first seeing the fourth new moon of the Aviv barley will likely take place in Australia on Saturday evening, June 28th. Israel-based observers will have a slim chance of seeing the crescent with the naked eye, but it is possible they will delay their new month until the following evening.
Australia?
Map from the Astronomical Data Portal (UK Hydrographic Office) @ moonwatch.org
Map from the Astronomical Data Portal (UK Hydrographic Office) @ http://astro.ukho.gov.uk
...The Next Expected Crescent Moon Sighting (5th Month):
The next new moon will be the fifth of the year and is possible to be seen in the South American region on Sunday evening, July 27th. However, the latest sightings will be the following evening from most locations worldwide (including Israel for those starting their months based on the geographical requirement).
Possible: Argentina
Map from the Astronomical Data Portal (UK Hydrographic Office) @ moonwatch.org
Map from the Astronomical Data Portal (UK Hydrographic Office) @ http://astro.ukho.gov.uk
Expected Observation Dates of Biblical Festivals 2014:
All dates may vary based upon actual visual confirmation/trumpet call of the new crescent moon & availability of Aviv barley within the region of the Promised Land
For 2014, the Aviv barley searches in the Fertile Crescent found no positive conclusions until prior to the new moon of March 31st, first reported from Israel. Therefore, the Annual Festival Dates were as follows (all days begin at sundown the evening before date posted):
First Day of Biblical Year^# (Day 1 of Month 1): April 1, 2014
Passover/Pesach Seder^ (Day 14 of Month 1): April 14, 2014 Eucharist is observed on the evening of April 13
First Day of Unleavened Bread/Chag HaMatzot*^ (Day 15 of Month 1): April 15, 2014
Wave Sheaf/Omer Day# (1st day of the week during Unleavened Bread in Promised Land): April 20, 2014
Last Day of Unleavened Bread/Chag HaMatzot*^ (Day 21 of Month 1): April 21, 2014
Feast of Weeks/Counting of Omer (7 Weeks starting with Wave Sheaf Day): April 20 - June 7, 2014
Pentecost/Shavuot* (50th Day starting with Wave Sheaf Day): June 8, 2014
^ - Regions east of Israel will observe the following date (based on global trumpet call)
# Based on barley within Promised Land (Israel) region
* High Day of Convocation (no regular work)
The Seventh New Moon of 2014 will first be seen on Thursday evening, September 25th with first sightings around Australia. This new moon will mark the arrival of the Fall Festivals on the following dates for all locations worldwide. There is a possibility, however, that those following the restrictive Israel-based observation calendar method will be delayed by one additional day depending on sighting conditions. Dates listed below are based on a Global Trumpet Call (all days begin at sundown the evening before date posted):
Day of Trumpets/Yom Teruah*^ (Day 1 of Month 7): September 26, 2014
Day of Atonement/Yom Kippur*^ (Day 10 of Month 7): October 5, 2014
First Day of Feast of Tabernacles/Sukkot*^ (Day 15 of Month 7): October 10, 2014
Last Day of Feast of Tabernacles/Sukkot^ (Day 21 of Month 7): October 16, 2014
Last Great Day/Shemini Atzeret*^ (Day 22 of Month 7): October 17, 2014
^ - Dates based on a global trumpet call (Israel-based observers will likely keep the following date)
* High Day of Convocation (no regular work)
If you would like to provide future reports, I welcome anyone to serve as witnesses to the sighting of the new moon crescent by submitting your sighting via e-mail. Together, as Yah's people, we can all be of one accord with the blowing of a trumpet to communicate to all of His people when the new moon has occurred (Numbers 10:10). We also attempt to post our own sightings and in a timely manner.
Global Observation:
Israel Observation:
