The lunar Islamic calendar as God designed it, with God's prohibition of intercalation, the day beginning at sunset, and how to calculate the start of each lunar month. Also covers why submitters are always in the minority, the dates of Ramadan for 1997 to 1998, and Masjid Tucson's interfaith soup kitchen and new interfaith study group on the scriptures of Judaism, Christianity, and the Quran.
Since the lunar calendar consists of 12 months
of alternately 29 and 30-day month, the lunar year has 354 days. Actually
the period between the two new moons is 29 days, 12 hours, 44 minutes
and 3 seconds.
This discrepancy between the length of the lunar year and the solar year
was not respected by the ancient people who tried to fight the system
by trying to adjust the lunar calendar to fall on the same time with the
solar calendar. in the early calendars, public authorities tried to predict
well in advance on what days of the year the new moons were to be celebrated.
Devoted respect for this ancient custom was prescribed to the Greeks by
an oracle. It thus becomes clear how important it was to the ancients
to discover some period that would make the same phases of the moon come
around on the same dates of the year. This discovery has come down to
us under the name of Meton, who announced it to the
Greeks in 433 BC when they were assembled
for the Olympic games.
It was as follows: Any phase of the moon returns after an interval of
29 1/2 days, and it turns out that 19 solar years contain exactly 236
lunations. Thus after 19 years, the same phases of the moon come back
on the same dates of the year so that it is enough to note these dates
for a period of 19 years so as to be able to predict them in advance for
all subsequent periods of the same length.
However, it seems 19 years designed by God Almighty was too long for
the impatient human beings, so they tried to adjust the lunar calendar
by a process of intercalation. Intercalation consists of inserting an
extra month into the normal 12-month period every few years. In primitive
civilizations, this was done whenever the seasons and their appropriate
months did not coincide. Usually the priests, who were responsible for
religious observances, decided when intercalation
was necessary.
The Babylonians realized the 19-year lunar cycle, established a 19-year
cycle in which 7 years contained 13 months, and the rest 12 months. The
Jewish calendar in use today uses a similar method. It, too, is based
upon the cycles of the moon, like the ancient Babylonians, the Jews use
intercalation based on a 19-year cycle.
The Islamic calendar, which turned out to be actually the real lunar
calendar as designed by the One and Only God, is the same calendar used
by the Babylonians and the Jews with the exception of intercalation. God,
as He promised in the Quran to correct the corruption that happened to
the old religions, prohibited intercalation.
Altering the Sacred Months is a sign of excessive disbelief;
it augments the straying of those who
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Islamic Calendar
have disbelieved. They alternate the Sacred Months
and the regular months, while preserving the number of months consecrated
by God. They thus violate what God has consecrated. Their evil works
are adorned in their eyes. God does not guide the disbelieving people.
(9:37)
Therefore the Islamic calendar year always has 12 lunar months,
which alternates in length between 29 and 30 days. This makes the
Islamic calendar year 11 1/2 days shorter than solar year. The real
problem of the lunar calendar happened when the people of this earth
failed to realize that God created the sun and the moon and He absolutely
meant for us to have a lunar calendar as much as He meant for us
to have a sun and a moon. All the attempts made to fix the lunar
calendar to the solar calendar failed because God meant for us to
have these two wonderful calendars.
The sun is never to catch up with the moon—the
night and the day never deviate—each of them is floating in
its own orbit. (36:40)
Islamic Day
The Islamic day as we can now appreciate is the same day used by
the oldest civilization, the same as the Hebrew day, begins at sunset
and ends at the next sunset. In the Story of Creation, in the Bible,
it says “And there was evening and there was morning one day.”
Evening marked the beginning of the new day. In the Quran, God almost
always mentions the night before the day.
And He is the One who created the night and the day,
and the sun and the moon; each floating in its own orbit. (21:33)
To calculate when a new lunar month
begins, we need to know mainly two facts, the first is the exact
time of the birth of the new moon and the second fact is the sunset
of the same day of the birth of the new moon. Remember that when
we talk about a day, we mean an Islamic day that begins on sunset
and ends on sunset. The new lunar moon begins theoretically on the
birth of the new moon, but begins practically on the first sunset
after the new moon is born. So if the new born is born after a certain
sunset, the day of this moon will belong to the going month and
the new month will begin with the following sunset.
In case of Ramadan, for example, if the new moon is born on 11:00
a.m. on the 10th of February, the fasting will begin after the Fajr
(Dawn) of the 11th of February. On the other hand, if the new moon
is born after the sunset of the 10th of February, (for example at
11:00 p.m.,) the new month would begin at sunset on the 11th, and
the fasting will begin at Fajr (Dawn) on the 12th of February.
They ask you about the phases of the moon! Say, “They
provide a timing device for the people, and determine the time of
Hajj....” (2:189)
It is a well known fact that it takes at least six hours to appreciate
a new crescent in the sky after the birth of a new moon. Several
factors will affect the ability of man to witness the new crescent
with his naked eyes, for example, weather conditions, the season,
the amount of moisture in the atmosphere, the angular distance of
the moon from the sun, the observer’s situation and so on.
God gave mankind from the early civilizations the knowledge to
calculate the time of birth of the new moon. He also taught us to
start our day after
sunset. Combining these two factors,
the beginning of the new lunar month at sunset of the next lunar
day guarantee enough time for the new moon to have a visible crescent
somewhere in the sky. This way of calculating the Islamic month
is totally Quranic and does not take into consideration the political
differences between ruling parties in the Muslim world, differences
that should have no place in calculating God’s calendar.
References:
Quran: The original Arabic text.
Quran: The Final Testament. Authorized English version. Translated
from the original by Rashad Khalifa, Ph.D.
Calendars: A First Book. By Necia H. Apfel, 1985.
The Space-age Solar System. By Joseph F. Bauher, 1988.
Astronomy: Second Contact. By Tom Bullock, 1989.
A Brief History of Time From The Big Bang to Black Holes. By
Stephen W. Hawking, 1988.
The Flammarion Book of Astronomy. By Gabrielle Camille Flammarion,
1964.
The Story of The Jewish Calendar, By Azriel Eisenberg, 1958.
The Moon: Earth’s Natural Satellite. By Franklin M. Branley,
1972.
The Moon. By George Gamow, 1971.
Wheel of Time. By Harry Zarchy, 1957.
Calendar Art. By Leonard Everett Fisher, 1987.
World Encyclopedia.
Atef Khalifa, M.D.
Page 3
Majority vs Minority
Proclaim: "The bad and the good are
not the same, even if the abundance of the bad may impress you.
You shall reverence God, (even if you are in the minority) O you
who possess intelligence, that you may succeed."
Have you ever pondered as to why submitters
are always in the minority? Why is it that those who worship God
alone are always in the minority? Why is it that those who strive
to follow God’s commandments, to create balance and harmony,
to avoid evil mischief are always in the minority?
You are the best community ever raised among the
people: you advocate righteousness and forbid evil, and you believe
in God. If the followers of the scripture believed, it would be
better for them. Some of them do believe, but the majority of them
are wicked. (3:110)
This is nothing new. All we need is to reflect to the time of Abraham
when he advised the idol worshipers to the submission of God alone,
the majority, including his father, rejected him.
Today whenever we encounter our fellow
human beings placed on this planet temporarily, they are either
submitters or rejectors. You will find that the majority to be the
rejectors. We can find rejectors and disbelievers in all forms of
religion as well as within our family unit. Whatever religion one
is following, there will always be an edict to worship other than
God alone. Family members may also bow to these edicts and be easily
consumed by the practices of the majority without knowledge or through
blind ignorance.
When our revelations are recited to them, clearly,
those who disbelieve say to those who believe, “Which of us
is more prosperous? Which of us is in the majority?” (19:73)
Advising family members and friends
can
only lead to two avenues. One is to have factual discussion which
may open their hearts and minds to receive guidance according to
God’s will, hence returning them to submission. The other
is that they will totally reject the presentation of facts based
on the Quranic evidence and remain rejectors.
Retrospectively throughout past history, submitters have always
been in the minority and the rejectors have been in the majority.
God willing may the table change for the future.
If you obey the majority of people on earth, they
will divert you from the path of God. They follow only conjecture;
they only guess. (6:116)
G. Ali
Australia
Reflect to the time of Noah. We find that after his dire warning
to the majority of the people of the consequences of their evil
deeds, the majority rejected him, including his son.
Journey back to the time of Lot who confronted mischieviousness
of his community. He begged the community to uphold the hospitality
he offered to his guests, the majority rejected him, including his
wife, and thus they all suffered the wrath of God.
Going back to time of Moses, he, too, faced the rejectors, not
only from Pharaoh and his consorts, but also from his own people.
Upon receiving the ten commandments, the majority of his people
rejected him and his position. His brother, Aaron, was consumed
in the fervor of worshiping the golden calf.
The majority of those who believe in God do not do
so without committing idol worship. (12:106)
Ramadan
The Month of Fasting
Dec 30, 1997 --- Jan 28, 1998
O you who believe, fasting is decreed for you, as
it was decreed for those before you, that you may attain salvation.
(2:183)
Ramadan is the month during which the Quran was revealed,
providing guidance for the people, clear teachings, and the statute
book. Those of you who witness this month shall fast therein. Those
who are ill or traveling may substitute the same number of other
days. God wishes for you convenience, not hardship, that you may
fulfill your obligations, and to glorify God for guiding you, and
to express your appreciation. (2:185)
The new moon timings to determine the month of Ramadan are as follow:
Dec 29, 1997 at 16:57 GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
Jan 28, 1998 at 06:01 GMT
Therefore, the first day of Ramadan is Dec 30, 1997, and the last
day of Ramadan is Jan 28, 1998.
Page 4
Masjid Tucson Activities
Soup Kitchen
We participate in an ongoing project to help feed the hungry in our town
in cooperation with Casas Adobes congregational church and Congregation
Or Chadash. This project has started over four years ago with soup kitchens
every other month. However, since May 1997, we are able to do a soup kitchen
every month because of the increased interest and contributions from the
community by God’s grace. For each soup kitchen service. representatives
from the three communities get together during every third weekend of
each month.
The volunteers, three from each community (nine total) buy all the necassary
food, prepare and cook it on Saturday at a soup kitchen operated by the
Salvation Army. Six volunteers, two from each community, serve the food
the next day at the Salvation Army location to the homeless and the needy.
At each soup kitchen, hot meals are served to between 180-250 needy people.
In general, more people are served during the winter months. The last
soup kitchen participation was on October 18-19. The next soup kitchen
participation will be on November 15-16, 1997. Soup kitchen activities
are coordinated by Senobar Tafazoli.
Interfaith Study Group Convenes
A new interfaith study group has begun at the ICS Mosque with a lively
and interesting first session on October 7th. The group, which meets at
7:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every other month, discussed the root
texts of each of the faiths assembled: Islam, Judaism and Christianity.
Rabbi Thomas Louchheim from Congregation Or Chadash, a Reform Jewish
congregation, began with a discussion of Genesis, the first chapter of
the Hebrew Scriptures. Although only a few verses were discussed, the
many aspects of interpretation enlivened the discussion. Etymological
connections between Hebrew and Arabic were noted in such words as nefesh
(Heb: an aspect of soul) and nefs (Arabic: consciousness), and ruach (Heb:
spirit, breath; Arabic: knowledge received directly from God).
Dr. Dean Schaff, Director of Education at Casas Adobes Congregational
Church, began with a reading from the New Testament of Matthew 5, the
Sermon on the Mount. The discussion began with a comparison of the words
bless and love and moved on to the human characteristics of rationality,
self-
interest, and utility maximization, and ended
with the idea of feelings as a resonance to the universe which give a
sense of completeness and connection.
Edip Yuksel, a congregant of the ICS Mosque and author of works of religious
commentary, opened the discussion on the Quran, the Final Testament, utilizing
the translation by Dr. Rashad Khalifa. From the frontispiece of this book:
“...the Quran was released into [the prophet] Muhammad’s memory,
with Gabriel’s mediation, over a period of 23 years, 610 AD... The
prophet wrote it down with his own hand...in the chronological sequence
of revelation, with detailed instructions....”
These root texts offer unlimited study opportunities for members of all
faiths. The study group, inspired by the rapport among the three congregations
working together as the Interfaith volunteers for soup kitchen service,
was the idea of ICS Mosque congregant Senobar Tafazoli.
The study group’s next meeting will be on Tuesday, December 2,
at 7:30 p.m. at ICS Center.
Respectfully submitted,
Betsy Sandlin,
Member of the Board,
Congregation Or Chadash
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