Figure 7.1 is not perfect, however. Ezra’s arrival in Jerusalem (the Torah in hand to help the returning exiles find out who they are) on the 1st day of the 5th month (Av) can be seen as a hit with the events at the start of Creation Day 5. But we are hard pressed to understand what the death of Moses’s brother, Aaron, on 1 Av has to do with that Creation Day. Nevertheless, there are sufficient correlations seen to recommend we stay on this path. And maybe the most intriguing is the way it connects Jesus’s circumcision to not just Light, but Life.

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That, as was shown in earlier chapters, was the culminating act of Creation Day 1. It was the real third and final Light of that Day. And it set the stage for all that transpired in Creation Days 2 through 6. But its relevance to Jesus’s circumcision is still unclear, suggesting that we’re going to need a much better grasp on the significance of the ritual to get this right.

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To begin we already know, from the ceremony they attach to it, that to the Jewish people, the 8th day removal of the newborn male’s foreskin is not just some insignificant cosmetic procedure, as it is to many non-Jewish peoples today. It was (and still is) a rite of passage and a physical sign that the individual is bound to the covenant God had made with their founding forefather, Abraham. [17] It is a source, therefore, of pride by which you are separated from the animals and other uncivilized groups. And it is a permanent reminder of being one of God’s chosen. You could also see in it a sign of your obedience to God that you even submitted to the procedure.

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But the location of the sign is important, too, because unlike the outward physical signs seen in other cultures around them in ancient times, theirs was an intimate, and very personal sign. The other cultures lorded their piercings and their tattoos, wanting everyone to see them. But by their nature, circumcisions do not lend themselves to such boasting. They were meant rather to be extremely low profile, a sign that the recipient alone was normally aware of. It was a permanent sign and, yes, a source of pride. But humility played just as big a role by insisting it stay private.

  

Even at that, though, circumcisions may still sound a little barbaric to our modern ears. But we need to remember two other things, very important. First, the Word never asked anyone to do anything He wouldn’t do Himself (which we’ve seen many times, already). And second, we need to also understand that the Rite of Circumcision (like most Jewish rituals) was a foreshadowing of a much greater Christian reality. And in this case, it is representative of the Sacrament of Baptism, which gives life to the soul by the removal of Original Sin. [18]

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And that would seem to be a core understanding for arriving at a resolution of this riddle. It tells us that just as it was at the start of the 2nd Day of Creation when the Word brought life into the world, so it was at the start of the 2nd month in 8 BC when the Word submitted to a rite that prefigures the life-giving Sacrament of Baptism.

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And this, in turn, gives us the means to solve another ancient riddle. As some may have noticed, there’s something very peculiar about the numbering of the months on the Hebrew calendar. Its new year begins on the first day of the month of Tishri. But Tishri is not its 1st month. It may have been so in the original calendar. But it was seemingly changed to Nisan as a direct command by God to Moses during the time of the Exodus from Egypt. [19] Jewish and Christian scholars all have their opinions as to why God should do this. But the 2/3rds Rule now adds another, because in making Iyar the 2nd month it allows us to more readily see how vitally important it is we are baptized. For the soul it, is a matter of life and death! [20]

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So we have our explanation as to how the holiday of Rosh Chodesh Iyar is fulfilled in Christ’s circumcision. But the original problem has not yet been fully eliminated. The solution assigns a higher status to the first days of the first 7 months on the Hebrew calendar. But it has not provided a reason for elevating the 1st day of the 2nd month over the 1st days of months 3, 4 or 5. So there are still 3 arguments in opposition to this solution.

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This was beginning to look, therefore, like the Anomalies section of this book (Appendix A) might have another entry until it was realized that Rosh Chodesh Iyar was also a Sabbath in 8 BC. And back in Jesus’s day (as well as today) Rosh Chodesh celebrations that coincide with Sabbaths are the most auspicious. The Sabbath just prior to every new month is, itself, distinguished by the title, Shabbat Mevarchim. [21] But those falling directly on the Sabbath rank nearly as high as Special Sabbaths. And as such there are special practices and readings associated with them. [22] So on the very day that Christ's body was being circumcised, we can also now know that the following passage was being read in the Temple and all the synagogues.

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From new moon to new moon, and from sabbath to sabbath,

all flesh shall come to worship before me, says the LORD. [23]

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There is much to think about here. And with Christ’s Body representing the Church, we can even see an eschatological dimension being added to the events of the day. [24] The bottom line, though, is that the problem is now resolved. It is not the 2nd month that elevates this Rosh Chodesh over the others. It is its connection to the Sabbath. And in the course of arriving at that realization we've also uncovered a great deal more to contemplate on the Feast of the Circumcision than Christians have had in the past.

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But this is still only part of the story. In chapter 1 it was noted that Jesus would have turned 13 on the very day He was found in the Temple astounding the elders there with His mastery of the Torah. [25] And it being His legal right to publicly expound upon the Torah on His 13th birthday makes it all the more remarkable.

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You could call it His Jerusalem Bar Mitzvah. But, since it happened as a result of Jesus becoming separated from His parents in Jerusalem, it is obvious that any plans they may have had back in Nazareth to celebrate His coming of age would be delayed. And with it being customary for the celebrant to read from the Torah at the synagogue on the first Sabbath after attaining the age of spiritual adulthood, [26] it places that milestone in Christ’s life on the Sabbath that occurred one week after His 13th birthday. That would have been the next available Sabbath, and the Holy Family should have had plenty of time to get back home for it. [27]

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What makes this so interesting, though, is that that Sabbath (on April 17, 6 AD) would have also occurred on Rosh Chodesh Iyar. So what we have here, in this holiday that is connecting now to two rites of passage in Jesus's life, is an indication of two rite of passage Sacraments being foreshadowed. And this second Sacrament would be, of course, Confirmation, the Sacrament that, like a Bar Mitzvah, marks its recipient as having attained spiritual adulthood.

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But Rosh Chodesh Iyar's association with both Sacraments attests also to these two Sacraments being related. And this is yet another validation of Church teaching, which likens them to a sown seed growing to fruition. Or as the Catechism puts it, Confirmation brings an increase and deepening of the life-giving graces of Baptism and in this manner perfects them. [28]

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So that's 2 of the 3 major watershed moments the Gospels have given us of Jesus’s childhood now accounted for. And in the author's opinion, quite spectacularly, because they are found to be not only interrelated, but have also laid the groundwork for 2 of the 7 Sacraments. Given then that the third event from Christ's childhood, His presentation, is sandwiched in between, there is good reason to suspect a Sacrament may be hiding there, as well. So let's take a look and see.

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And it may be recalled from the cursory review it received in chapter 1, that it took place on the Jewish holiday of Shavuot (aka Pentecost). But there is no need to consult NASA to verify that assignment. It is easily deduced through the math. That is, Pentecost is always 50 days after the 1st day of Passover. [29] Whereas Jesus’s birth has been determined to be on the 10th day after the 1st day of Passover. And Scripture has told us His presentation was 40 days after that. [30] So, since 10 + 40 = 50, the Presentation must have taken place on Pentecost.

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It could be argued that there is an uncertainty of maybe a day in the calculation. But with the Holy Family being required by Law to be in Jerusalem for Pentecost, [31] it highly suggests that they incorporated the two events into one, which seals the deal on this being the true holiday to associate with the Presentation. And with Pentecost being a major holiday, there is no need to justify its legitimacy (as was needed with Rosh Chodesh Iyar). There is still a lot to say of it, though, and a lot more than what was stated in chapter 1. But there are some issues, too, involving both the Presentation and the holiday, that will need to be addressed and resolved before getting to the bottom of all that went on that day.

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With regard to the Presentation, for firstborn Jewish males in New Testament times there were commonly 3 important ceremonies associated with their birth. The 1st was their Brit Milah ceremony (or Bris) where the child was named and circumcised. The 2nd was their Pidyon Haben (redemption) ceremony, which took place 30 days after their birth. [32] And the 3rd was a purification ritual required of their mother on the 40th day after giving birth. [33] That (as has already been discerned) would have occurred on the day of the Presentation.

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Now the 1st ceremony (the one involving Christ’s circumcision) has already been adequately discussed. So moving on to the 2nd, the requirement of Jewish families back then to redeem their firstborn male children, it originated as a consequence of the events of the Passover. And for those unfamiliar, here is a brief summary of how it all came about. [34]

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The 12 tribes of Israel had been living in Egypt for several centuries, [35] being the descendants of the 12 sons of Jacob (aka Israel) who had gone to Egypt originally to escape a famine. And they were treated decently there, at first, which is why they stayed. But the longer the stay, the more subjugated they become, such that their relationship with their hosts eventually devolved into one of slavery. So God raised up Moses to deliver them from the hands of the Egyptians and bring them back to their homeland, the Promised Land. To do this God subjected Egypt to several plagues with the intent of convincing the Egyptian Pharoah to let the Israelites go. But the first nine of these plagues, sadly, had the opposite effect. They hardened Pharoah's heart rather than softening it. So God hit them with one final plague.

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At midnight on the 15th day of the 1st month (Nisan) the angel of death was dispatched to slay all the firstborn males in the land of Egypt. The only exceptions were the firstborn male Israelites. They were passed over because the Passover rituals God had prescribed for them through Moses had sanctified them. [36] And Pharoah, on waking to see his own son slain, finally relented his position and let the Israelites leave Egypt. In fact, he ordered them to leave. He would soon after change his mind again and go out in pursuit of the Israelites. But that is another story.

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What is important here, is that, since they'd been sanctified, all firstborn males of the nation of Israel were to be considered the property of God and inducted into priestly service. [37] But that system didn’t last very long, and the tribe of Levi ended up taking over all the priestly duties. [38]​ This did not, however, relieve the firstborn males of the other 11 tribes of their debt to God. And the same applied to their livestock. All firstborn males of the clean animals in a household’s possession, for instance, were to be taken to the priests and sacrificed. [39] On this there were no exceptions. They belonged to God. But since an unclean animal (like say a donkey) cannot, by Law, be sacrificed, any firstborn male of that stock in one’s possession was to be redeemed by sacrificing a clean animal (a lamb, generally) in its place. [40] Male children, if they were firstborn and not of the Levite tribe, had to also be redeemed, and their price was 5 shekels. [41]

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The interesting thing about Luke’s infancy narrative, however, is that he tells of Jesus being born and circumcised, says nothing of any redemption ceremony, and skips ahead instead, some 33 days, to the Presentation, which was coincidental with Mary’s purification ritual. [42] And in that account, Mary’s purification offering (two pigeons and two turtledoves) is exactly as is required by the Mosaic Law for poor families. [43] But there is no mention of any money changing hands at that time, either. So the 3rd Gospel seems to be making a very strong point here, by omission, that for Jesus, there was no redemption ceremony.

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But there shouldn’t have been one anyway. The Christ child was not to be redeemed. He was to be our sacrificial offering, that we might be redeemed. And the Holy Family, apparently, somehow understood that.​​​​​​ In lieu, then, of the standard redemption ritual (common to most firstborn Jewish males of that time), the Bible tells us Jesus had the opposite. He had a presentation. And although it's a bit unusual, it was not unheard of.

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To get a clue as to what may have been going on here, one place of interest is the Mosaic Law requiring all recipients of certain miraculous healings to present themselves to the priests. [44] And we see these types of presentations occurring in Christ’s ministry, too. [45] But even without the written Law to tell us to do this, it’s only natural for anyone who’s been blessed by a supernatural encounter to want to report it to the religious authorities, Such a feeling must have also played a part in the Holy couple's decision to present their miracle child to the Temple. And what better time to do it, than the day they were required by the Law to be there?

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So that explains their motivation. But there was also a practice for families back then to consecrate their child to the Temple for service to God, regardless of the child’s gender, birth order or ancestral tribe. And they might choose to do this for any number of pious reasons. The ancient oral traditions tell us that Mary, herself, was consecrated to the Temple in her infancy. [46] And so apparently, was Jesus. In His case, though, after being presented to the priests for consecration, He was not handed over to them to be raised as one of their own. He would be raised, instead, by His parents.

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But we should not view that as some private family decision that had no effect on anyone but themselves. That’s because Christ’s consecration at His presentation (or the consecration of any child to God) is essentially the same as being consecrated into a priestly order. So whether anyone at Christ’s presentation consciously recognized it or not, that’s what was happening.

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He was not, however, being inducted into the standard Levitical (Aaronic) priesthood that day. For Jesus, since He was not a Levite and was not going to be raised by Levitical priests, it was a consecration, instead, into a higher order. Scripture calls it the order of Melchizedek, [47] which is a fancy way of saying that Christ’s priesthood would not be limited to the needs of only one pocket of humanity. His would have a universal ministry and authority. [48] And the consequences to the world for that distinction are understandably enormous.

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Hand in hand with that recognition, is another marvelous insight coming to us from the time of the Judges. [49] It is a foreshadowing, found in the 1st Book of Samuel, wherein a devout woman named Hannah, beseeches God for a miracle during the time when she and her husband have travelled to the temple of Shiloh to offer their yearly sacrifice (a likely reference to Passover). [50] Being childless and desperately wanting a male child, she tearfully promises that she’ll gladly dedicate the baby’s life to God if only her prayer can be answered. And God, having heard the prayer, blesses her with a viable pregnancy, soon after they return home.

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Overwhelmed with gratitude for the miraculous conception and subsequent birth, she pledges to keep her vow as soon as her newborn has been weaned. So she skips the annual pilgrimage the following year in favor of travelling alone to Shiloh shortly thereafter (a reference probably to Pentecost), to present her infant son, Samuel, to the high priest, along with an offering of a three-year-old bull, an ephah of wheat and a skin of wine. [51] And that offering, is also very appropriately tied in with the holiday we’ve just linked to Christ's presentation, [52] because from the Jewish perspective, there is much more to Pentecost than most Christians realize.

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The feasts of Passover (Pesach) and Pentecost (Shavuot) are interrelated holidays with both having something of a dual nature. [53] But one side is much better known than the other. The 1st day of Passover, for instance, is seen, from the more popularized perspective (that of the events of the Exodus) as a commemoration of the Israelites being released from slavery in Egypt. And the holiday of Pentecost is seen (from the same point of view) as a commemoration of Moses receiving the Law on Mt. Sinai 50 days later. It is easy, to see, then, why that side of these holidays is so well known. For Christians they foreshadow two of the most significant events in Church history, specifically mankind’s release from the tyranny of sin at Calvary and the fledgling Church receiving the Holy Spirit, 50 days after that. [54]

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But the other, lesser-known, side of the two holidays is the a seven-week grain harvest ceremony that extends from the 2nd day of Pesach, or Passover (the Feast of Unleavened Bread) to its convocation ceremony, Shavuot, or Pentecost (the Feast of Weeks). [55] But Shavuot's alternate name, the Feast of First Fruits, [56] is much more descriptive, because along with the grain harvest, the first fruits of the other harvests continued to be brought in and offered up from this date on until Shmini Atzeret (the convocation ceremony at the conclusion of Sukkot).

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But getting back to the grain harvest rituals that started the year’s festivities, they commenced, on the second day of Passover, with a lamb slain and immolated as a holocaust offering, a first fruits presentation to the Temple of raw wheat flour mixed with oil as a cereal offering, and a measure of wine presented as a drink offering. [57] And then they ritualistically counted each day (as required by Scripture) [58] until Shavuot when the ceremony was completed with the presentation of a second cereal offering in the form, this time, of two loaves made of wheat. [59]

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So let's now put all this together. In the Presentation (on Pentecost), we have Mary making an offering for sin and the baby Jesus being consecrated into the universal priesthood on the very day that bread is being offered up in the Temple as the culmination of the events of Passover (which began with a lamb and a measure of wine being offered up). And the parallels here to the Catholic Mass could not be more striking.

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Also, when it is considered jointly with His circumcision and His Bar Mitzvah, all 3 of the Church’s Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Holy Communion and Confirmation) are now spectacularly accounted for in Christ’s own journey to spiritual maturity in our world (and in the proper order). [60] But this only serves to triply emphasize how seemingly unjust it is that Jesus’s birth should be so lacking by comparison. Once again, we can be assured that there is more to this Christmas slight than meets the eye.​​​

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For starters, one could argue that the Hebrew calendar actually does provide observances that could be used to defend the lapse. And they are both associated with the Nativity by way of it being on the anniversary of the Red Sea crossing. One of those commemorations, Kriyas Yam Suf (which translates to: the splitting of the sea) is observed at the end of the 7-day Passover festival. That is the traditional understanding of when the parting occurred, although Scripture doesn't give the precise day. [61] The 2/3rds Rule, nevertheless, agrees with that tradition, but not entirely. It does not accept that the parting and the crossing were completed on the same day. And so it associates the timing of the commemoration with the parting, not the crossing, which positions it much better with the onset of Mary’s labor, not Jesus’s birth. [62]

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The most relevant, therefore, of the 2 observances, is Shabbat Shirah (the Special Sabbath that commemorates the song sung by the Israelites immediately after they'd crossed the Red Sea). That would be the best fit with the timing of the Nativity. And it fits, too, because Jesus was born on a Sabbath. It was the first Sabbath after the end of the Passover festival, making it the same Sabbath the Israelites would have sung their song. So that would seem to be the perfect observance to connect to Jesus’s birth, but for one tiny problem. For some very odd reason Sabbath Shirah is observed 11 months later and midway into the 11th month, Shevat.

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It might be tempting, therefore, to suggest that the ancients made a mistake in its placement. But this could hardly have been a mistake. They knew from Scripture the exact month and the approximate day in that month when the crossing occurred. So the most logical location they could have chosen for this Special Sabbath is the first Sabbath after the Feast of Passover. Its placement, therefore, on the 11th month is mysterious. It may have made perfect sense to those who first established the date for this Special Sabbath, But theirs is a rationale that has not survived to modern times, [63] and is indicative, perhaps, of the involvement of a higher power.

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Its current location on the calendar does, after all, seem to fit extremely well with the day Jesus sent His Apostles out on their first missions (which was noted and discussed in chapters 4 and 5). And since it is not the 2/3rds Rule’s job to second guess the Holy Spirit, the original problem remains, but now in the form of a question. Specifically: Why should God have shown preference to commemorating the day the Apostles were sent out on their first missions over the day that Jesus was born?

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It is a question that will seemingly require our digging into the heart of Christianity to find a solution. And Figure 7.2 (a calendar displaying the month of Nisan in the year of the Nativity) provides, perhaps, a light to show us the way.​​​​

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