Mbostrom2's Blog

Kristallnacht is a German word meaning, Kristall (crystal, glass) nacht (night). It is also known as ‘The Night of the Broken Glass“. It was the night of the planned Nazi attack to destroy the property of the Jews, nationwide. In this one night of terror, 1,250 synagogues were burnt to the ground or destroyed; overe 91 Jews were killed;  30,000 Jews were thrown into concentration camps; 7,000 Jewish businesses were destroyed; and thousands of Jewish homes were ransacked.  This night was November 9, 1938. On the Hebrew calendar it was Cheshvan 15, 5799. This year it fell on October 23, 2010.

Below are photos of a burned out synagogue in Berlin and headlines from the NY Times.

So, has it changed much? Are God’s covenant people loved or hated in the world today? Here is a report I just got in from Jerusalem, reported by Jerry Golden of The Golden Report:

Jews in Europe Entering a New Dark Period   Israel National News   Oct 19th
   The European Jewish Congress warns that a recent wave of anti-Semitism, some of which was officially sanctioned, has left Jewish communities in grave danger.  EJC President Dr. Moshe Kantor sums up: “We are entering a very dark period for Jews in Europe.” Recent instances of official anti-Semitism, of which there have been a number, include an event that occurred in Antwerp, Belgium.  A respected government-funded Catholic school hosted a “Palestine Day,” replete with anti-Semitic references and activities for youngsters.  One stall at the event was entitled “Throw the soldiers into the sea,” and children were invited to throw replicas of Israeli soldiers into two large tanks of water.  Last weekend, an event organized for Jewish children in Malmo, Sweden, was attacked by a gang of thugs who shouted “Heil Hitler” and “Jewish pigs.” The gang entered the site of the event and damaged property. The EJC has called on European governments and the EU to launch a campaign against intolerance and anti-Semitism.
In England, France and the Netherlands Jews are now afraid to let their Jewish identity be known in public. Jewish men are wearing hats instead of their Kippots (Yarmulkes) in an attempt not to be attacked on the streets by Islamics and neo-Nazis.

It is easy for us to look back at the Holocaust and ask ‘why didn’t people do something’?  Let me ask you, What are you doing? Are you speaking up? Are you being heard? Bad things happen when good men do nothing.

For Zion’s sake I will not be silent,

Mary

 Cheshvan is the eighth of the twelve months on the Jewish “lunar” sacred calendar and second in the civil calendar. This month has 29 days, sometimes 30. In a “complete” year (shlemah year), which has 355 or 385 days long, both Cheshvan and Kislev have 30 days.  This year Cheshvan has 30 days.  This year it begins at sundown October 8th to sundown November 7, 2010.

 Cheshvan (hesvan) is call the month of bool, a name that stems from the word for “flood”. The flood began on the 17^th of Cheshvan, and ended the following year on the 27^th of Cheshvan. On the following day, the 28^th of Cheshvan, Noah brought his sacrifice to God and God swore never again to bring a flood upon the earth to destroy all mankind, and then revealed the sign of His covenant with the world, the rainbow. For this reason, it is called “MarCheshvan” or ‘bitter Cheshvan’.

I Kings 6:38 calls this month Bul. “And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which [is] the eighth month” Bul means ‘increase, produce’ from the root meaning ‘rain, showers’, referring to this being a month of showers.

Kristallnacht, the Night of the Broken Glass of 1938, falls on the 15^th of Cheshvan (October 23, 2010). This commemorates when the Nazis youth gangs roamed through Jewish neighborhoods breaking windows of business and homes and burning synagogues. The began the violence against the Jewish people in Germany. 75,000 businesses were destroyed, 26,000 Jews were arrested and sent to concentration camps for defending themselves & property. 91 Jews died and this began the Holocaust.

Letter- nun, (noon) the 14^th letter in the Aleph-Bet and has a numerical value of 50 (representing freedom and fullness of life). The pictograph of this letter is a fish and in ancient symbols it is seen as a fish darting through water. Nun is also seen as a sprout of vegetation. Both of these pictographs denote action and life. The word “please” is made up of the letter aleph & nun, aleph representing an ox and nun representing action. Asking please is an “sign of strength”.

• 7– “Deliver Dew and Rain” prayers are added for rain in Israel
• 11– Jewish Mother’s Day commemorating the death of Rachel, wife of Jacob (Israel)
• 12– Assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (1955), not a national memorial day
• 15– Kristallnacht, Night of the Broken Glass 1938
• 17– If no rain has fallen yet in the month, special prayers are prayed this day for rain
• 17– Great flood began 1656 (2105 BC) and Noah and his family were the only survivors
• 17– 960 BC Solomon’s Temple completed, but dedicated the following year in Tishri, the month of Isaac’s birth. This month  is believed to be the future dedication of the Third Temple
• 18– 1990, Assassination of Rabbi Meir Kahane, Jewish leader, founder of the American Jewish Defense League and former Knesset member, was assassinated in New York by an Egyptian terrorist
• 23– 127 BC, according to Talmudic tradition, this was the date the stone of the altar was defiled by the Greeks and removed from the Holy Temple
• 27– 2104 BC, in the Jewish year 1657 the ‘earth dried’ (Genesis 8:14) after the great flood of Noah’s family 365 days on the Ark. On this day, God is said to have commanded Noah to “Come out of the ark” and repopulate, settle and civilize the earth.

The Jewish people have followed a Bible reading program since Ezra & Nehemiah’s days. These reading are the same world-wide and which unifiesall the Jews to God’s plan for thier lives each week.

On Tishri 22 (September 30, 2010 on the solar calendar this year) the Torah reading schedule will end and will begin the annual cycle on the next Shabbat, which is Tishri 24 (October 2) this year. The reading October 2 will go back to B’resheet (“In the beginning”), which is the first book we know as Genesis.

The Torah (first 5 books of the Bible, Books of Moses) is broken into 54 readings that are sung or read in each of the sysnagogues each year. This accounts for adding a leap month each year, which will happen this year. Non leap years double up readings on some Shabbat services.

The Haftarah (‘concluding portion’) is a short reading from the Prophets that will have some relation to the Torah portion.

Shimchat Atzeret (Eighth Day Assembly) the readings will be:

• Torah: Shimchat Torah (“Joy in the Torah”), Deuteronomy 33:1-34; Genesis 1:1 – 2:3; Numbers 29:35- 30:1
• Haftarah: Joshua 1:1-18
• Suggested NT: Romans 7:21-25

Psalm 119:105, “Thy word [is] a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”

The Hebrew calendar is a ‘lunar’ calendar, meaning it begins on the new Moon, the full moon is mid month and when the moon ends waning the month has ended.

The Gregorian calendar is a ‘solar’ calendar, based on the Sun.

The Hebrew calendar has 7 leap years in 19 years. When they have a leap year they add an entire month. It is always added to be the month before Nisan, when the Biblical year begins (Passover). The leap months are added to keep sync with the Sun (solar) cycle.

This next year that begins September 9, 2010 is Tishri 1, 5771. These are the years counted since the creation of Adam. This year will have 13 months, the last two months are Adar I and Adar II. The Feast of Purim is always the month before Nisan, so this next year Purim will be Adar II.

In 2008, both the solar calendar and lunar calendars had leap years. The solar added the 29th to the month of February and the lunar added Adar II to the end of their year. (FYI, Presidential elections and Summer Olympics are on a leap year- so does that mean we take a giant leap of faith when we go to the polls?) The next solar leap year will be 2012.

The Hebrew Tribe of Issachar was gifted with the complex understanding of the times (I Chronicles 12:32). This is done by an understanding of the heavens lights that rule the day and night. Without knowing the leap year timing, the children of Israel would not be in the correct season to go up for the appointed Feasts of the Lord.

It is interesting to note that the root word of Issachar is Nasa, meaning ‘to lift , to advance, arise, bring forth, carry away, exalt, high, hold up, lofty, raise up“. What a coincidence  that our space program, NASA, lifts off into space, keeping us informed with the heavenly signs.

Every Hebrew month has a Tribe, Constellation and Hebrew letter associated with it. These hold keys to our promises for that month and help us to pray in line with God’s timing and to get our lives into time with His specific appointed times. 

Tishri (Tishrei) is known as the ‘seventh month’ in the Bible according to the Biblical Calendar and is the ‘first month’on the civil calendar. The name of Tishri is never found in the Bible since it is a Babylonian name. It is called the ‘seventh month’ and one time called ‘Ethanim‘, meaning ‘enduring‘, meaning permanent streams still flowed. (I Kings 8:2) 

This is the most Holy Day (holiday) intensive month on the Jewish Calendar. This month begins the numerical year change from 5770 to 5771, the years since Creation. (Much controversy: Rabbinical teaching states that there are 165 missing years, which would actually put us 5936 if this is the case. Whatever the case, we are nearing the time that the 7th Day of Rest begins if 1 day = 1,000 years, 2 Peter 3:8)

TRIBE- Ephriam,  Ephraim is the 2nd born of Joseph and his name means ‘double portion’. He was the 2nd born, but always mentioned first because of his leadership qualities. His symbol is a cluster of grapes, in remembrance of the double portion of grapes the 12 spies brought from the Promised Land. The only 2 spies that had a good report were Joshua from the Tribe of Ephraim and Caleb from the Tribe of Judah. Both Tribes of Judah and Ephraim have leadership and kingly qualities which resulted in the splitting of the land with King Jeraboam (north, Ephraim) and King Rehaboam (south, Judah). His weakness was idol worship and strength was his leadership qualities (Joshua & Samuel)

CONSTELLATION / MAZAL- Libra (the Scales) The Hebrew word is Mazanaim, ‘the scales weighing’.  This month’s constellation symbolizes the divine judgments of Rosh Hashanah & Yom Kippur, when men’s deeds are weighed in judgment. God created everything in perfect balance in the universe, but man was given a free will to choose and because of Adam all men have sinned, therefore all of our righteousness is as ‘filthy rags’. Without Jesus paying the price for our sins, we could never measure up to God’s righteousness. Now we have been made righteous.  

LETTER- Lamed  This letter is the 12th letter of the Hebrew Aleph Bet having a numerical value of 30. The pictograph of Lamed is of a cattle goad or shepherd’s staff and is the tallest letter of all and is considered to be the heart of the Aleph Bet. Lamed symbolizes 1) control 2) to prod or urge forward 3) to go toward or forward 4) a tongue 5) learn 6) teach. Each stanza of Psalm 119:89-96 begin with Lamed and tell us that God’s authority controls and protects us like a shepherd’s staff. This is a month to learn of righteousness, or “God’s ways of doing and being right“.