5.0851 Rs: Afro-American E-Mail; Date Coincidences (4/90)
Elaine Brennan & Allen Renear (EDITORS@BROWNVM.BITNET)
Wed, 22 Apr 1992 22:15:44 EDT
Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 5, No. 0851. Wednesday, 22 Apr 1992.
(1) Date: 20 Apr 1992 20:55:55 -0400 (EDT) (24 lines)
From: Prof Norm Coombs <NRCGSH@RITVAX.BITNET>
Subject: African American email group???
(2) Date: Wed, 22 Apr 92 09:26:45 -0500 (37 lines)
From: Alan D Corre <corre@convex.csd.uwm.edu>
Subject: Easter and Passover
(3) Date: Wed, 22 Apr 1992 08:30:52 (10 lines)
From: koontz@bldr.nist.gov (John E. Koontz)
Subject: Re: 5.0847 Rs: ...; Easter/Passover Coincidence
(4) Date: Wed, 22 Apr 92 09:21:30 EDT (19 lines)
From: "Paul F. Schaffner" <USERGFNK@UMICHUM.BITNET>
Subject: Easter/Passover
(1) --------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 20 Apr 1992 20:55:55 -0400 (EDT)
From: Prof Norm Coombs <NRCGSH@RITVAX.BITNET>
Subject: African American email group???
A recent posting asked if there were an African American email group. So,
far as I know there is not. I have been trying to start one for maybe a year
and a half. My institution is not too eager to use its listserve capability
in a major way. This might change now that we have better connectivity. I
think, however, it would be better to have a host institution where there was
an entire department related to African American studies. This would have the
person power to stand behind it. One college wanted to assist in the idea for
about a year but was unable to get its African American studies department
interested in electronic communication or not enough so to respond to the idea.
If someone with good connections can assist in providing a home, I'd be
eager to volunteer some person hours to assist in some of its functioning.
If I am wrong and there is such a group, I'd be very happy to learn that
also.
Norman Coombs
Rochester Institute of Technology
(2) --------------------------------------------------------------47----
Date: Wed, 22 Apr 92 09:26:45 -0500
From: Alan D Corre <corre@convex.csd.uwm.edu>
Subject: Easter and Passover
The Jewish Calendar is lunisolar. In former times the authorities in
Jerusalem declared a new month on the basis of testimony that the new moon
had been observed. Since twelve lunar months are appreciably shorter than a
solar year, a full month had to be intercalated every three or four years.
This was similarly done by observation; if the authorities were convinced
that the lambs were not ready to be born, and signs of spring were not
appearing in the fields, they intercalated a month. Subsequent to the time
when the current mode of determining Easter was fixed, this ad hoc method
was replaced by a calculated calendar based on the nineteen year cycle
discovered by the Greek astronomer Meton (5th century BCE) who made calculat-
ions astonishingly accurate for his time. According to this fixed calendar, the
first day of Passover cannot occur on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday. This is
a side-effect of provisions built into the calculated calendar which prevent
the Day of Atonement falling on a Friday (which would make preparation for
the Sabbath difficult) or a Sunday (which would make preparation for the
fast difficult) or the Seventh Day of Tabernacles falling on a Sabbath (since
this would make the ceremony of beating the willow difficult.) Accordingly
Passover can vary rather substantially in terms of the solar year, and does
not have to fall on Sunday. Actually it occurs rather rarely on Sunday
(perhaps twice in a couple of decades) and this produces special
difficulties for observant Jews who have special rules how to remove their
leaven in such a case.
In 325 the Council of Nicea decreed that Easter should occur on the first
Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox.
So there is now no connection between the formulas that produce Passover and
Easter, and, as has already been pointed out, this is no accident.
I might add that some Jewish authorities hold that the sages used
calculations even in the time when actual observation of nature was used.
I'll be pleased to send the code for a visually equivalent Jewish/Civil
calendar that I published a while ago to anyone that would like to have it.
I have to stress that this has to be compiled in order to work. It displays
a parallel Jewish and civil calendar for any year you designate. If you want
a copy, send me a message at corre@convex.csd.uwm.edu.
(3) --------------------------------------------------------------19----
Date: Wed, 22 Apr 1992 08:30:52
From: koontz@bldr.nist.gov (John E. Koontz)
Subject: Re: 5.0847 Rs: ...; Easter/Passover Coincidence
I believe that the timing of Easter (and other events in the liturgical
calendar) has often been a bone of contention between Christian sects, e.g.,
the argument over the timing of Easter between the Celtic and Roman churches
in the British Isles. Thus, there has been no Christian unity, historically
speaking, on the timing of Easter.
(4) --------------------------------------------------------------23----
Date: Wed, 22 Apr 92 09:21:30 EDT
From: "Paul F. Schaffner" <USERGFNK@UMICHUM.BITNET>
Subject: Easter/Passover
A brief and convenient list of references having to do with the early
Christian dating of Easter can be found (as often) in the Oxford Dictionary
of the Christian Church, ed. F.L. Cross (2nd ed. by F.L. Cross & E.A.
Livingstone) (Oxford, rev. 1983), s.v. "Paschal Controversies" and
(especially) "Quartodecimianism" ("the early custom in some places of
following Jewish practice in always observing Easter..on the 14th day of..
Nisan, whatever the day of the week, and not (as elsewhere) on the following
Sunday.") The day of the week aside, the date of Pasch for both Jews and
Christians has always been tied nominally to the lunar calendar; divergences
have arisen from competing methods of calculating the lunar cycle, for
which the complexity of the problem and the inaccuracies of ancient
astronomy seem chiefly to have been responsible.
Paul Schaffner
U. of Michigan