From Eliyahu:

Shalom friends,

Are you wondering why I am sending you a Tsiyon News today and why it has an odd photo of Middle Eastern men looking through a telescope?  We don't always send a Tsiyon News announcing the start of the month. We are doing so this month because New Moon sightings you may find on the internet are conflicting and confusing. This photograph will help you to clear up some of the confusion, as we answer some common questions which frequently arise concerning Holy Time, and in specific when the start of this second month of the year begins.

Criteria

Q. I have been watching for the New Moon sliver each month for a while now. Sometimes Tsiyon announces the New Moon the same day as my sighting, sometimes not. Besides that, when I look at other sources on the internet I often see the New Moon sighting reported on different dates. With all of this confusion, how am I going to know I've got the right start of the month?

A. There is such a thing as too much information. Most of the people and groups that sight the New Moon Crescent to start the month use different criteria from one another. If you just accept all of these different sightings you are bound to be confused. Here at Tsiyon we use the criteria for establishing the new month given by YHWH in the Scriptures.

Here is a summary of the Scriptural criteria:

1. Observed without assistance (not using technology to find it, its meant to be a sign seen by the naked eye)

2. Observed by two or more witnesses (as Scripturally required to establish a fact)

3. Observed before sunset (if it is after sunset, it is attributed to the following Hebrew day)

4. Observed from the Land (this is the place where everything starts and where we are returning)

OK, now let's explain each of these:

1. Observed without assistance - This is easy. Ancient Israel had no binoculars or telescopes. The New Moon crescent, as observed with the naked-eye, was the start of the month as originally defined by YHWH to Israel. That eliminates calculated calendars since they ignore the first sighted sliver of the Moon. That eliminates the New Moon listed in the Farmer's Almanac, on your wall calendar, and even the Jewish calendar etc. In modern astronomy, what they call the "New Moon" is really the conjunction, when the Moon and Sun have the same ecliptic longitude. At this phase, the lunar disk is not visible to the unaided eye, so is not a "sign" of the new month. This is not the same as the sighted New Moon of Scripture, so you can't go by the New Moon listed for any calculated calendar. Obviously, the Moon "sighting" as in the picture above must also be eliminated, because, if you need a telescope to see it, then it is not a "sign" of the new month. This is going to eliminate most sightings you may locate on the internet, because they probably do not mention how their sighting was done, so you don't know if technology was used. However, you do know what our criteria are, as listed here, so you can have confidence in our sighting.

2. Observed by two or more witnesses - "..at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established" (Deuteronomy 19:15). There must be at least two authentic sightings to establish the month.

3. Observed before sunset - If it is after sunset, the next Biblical day has started already, before the observation, therefore the sighting must be a sign for the upcoming Hebrew day.

4. Observed from the Land - Holy Time was given for the Holy People in the Holy Land. The scattered remnant of Israel in all the various countries of the world are in exile from our Land. This is an anomaly because of the disobedience of our forefathers - not the normal state of our nation. Holy Time was meant for Israel, in our Land, so it is rightly counted from starting there. If you don't see that then you don't understand yet what it means to be part of the Remnant of Israel. Keep praying about it and eventually this will click for you.

Taking a look at the criteria listed above, we can see that the New Moon observations reported by some as having been observed on May 5, 2019, or on May 6, 2019, do not meet the Scriptural criteria for the New Moon in one or more respects. For example, look at the picture above. A very big telescope tells you this sighting is disqualified by point (1) above. There would be no further reason to consider this sighting, but for the sake of illustration, we will continue to do so. As to point (2) since all witnesses shown are not sighting the moon with the unaided eye this point fails as well. Going to the next point, the sky in the picture is dark, obviously after sunset, so that is probably not right either. Finally, they are looking at the sky in Pakistan, not Israel, so this does not work for Holy Time either. Of course, the picture is a sighting to establish their Ramadan fast, so is intended for Muslims, not us - so it is probably just fine for Muslims. However, these kinds of sightings are often accepted by the uninformed or the misinformed in trying to establish their calendar, so beware.

When people learn about Holy Time, they naturally want to go outside, look to the sky, and see the sign their loving Father has put there in the sky for His people as a sign to them, as a means of communicating with them from the Creation itself. So often, when people do this, they quickly discover new things about the Father they had never previously known. We encourage this. I cannot tell you the exact number of people who have told me they went out to observe the new sliver of the month, seeking it, searching the sky, earnestly wanting to spend Holy Time with Him.  Sometimes they will quickly discover the weather or something else in their location isn't optimal for viewing the New Moon sliver. This is when something wonderful can happen.  From time to time, observers report, He will part the clouds just long enough for the Moon to be observable before the clouds close back over the New Moon sliver. This is a wonderful way in which YHWH sometimes connects with those who are seeking Him through Holy Time. Holy Time is more than just a personal experience though. It is a national experience as well, meant to bind all of His Holy People together for His set appointments with Him and with one another, wherever we may be in the world.