In the April/May issue of the Prove All Things, I addressed "What is the turn of the Year or years end?" This was proven by showing that the word turn in the Bible, is when the sun crosses the equator from the Southern Hemisphere to the Northern Hemisphere. The astronomical term is called equinox. "Each March at a particular instant, around the 20th, the sun is directly above the equator. This is called the Spring equinox. In September around the 22nd, the sun is again above the equator at the Autumnal equinox. These times are the astronomical beginning of spring and fall" (Source: U.S. Naval Observatory, Day, Night Not Equal on Equinox).

God declares we are to "Grow in grace (unmerited pardon) and knowledge" (2 Peter 3:18). Five years ago when the Church of God, In Truth started, I wrote on page 6 and 7 of the booklet "Postponements, Another Mystery of the Ages" the equinox is the time when the night and day are equal in length! I took my definition from the Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, copyright 1975. On page 386 it states, (1.) Either of the two times each year when the sun crosses the equator and day and night are everywhere of equal length, being about March 21 and September 23rd. (2.) Either of the two points on the celestial sphere where the celestial equator intersects the ecliptic. Another quote was from "Astronomy" by Meir H. Degani, Sc.D copyright 1963, "The path traced out by the sun on the celestial sphere is known as the ecliptic. It is inclined 23 degrees 27' with the earth's (or celestial) equator. The points of intersection of the two orbits are called equinoxes."

Both agree on the definition of an astronomical equinox, from which I took my information when preparing the "Postponement" booklet. "God declares the heaven is His glory" (Psa. 19:1-6). All time on earth is calculated from the heavens. The two turns (equinoxes) have been used to calculate time from before Israel went into captivity. Evidenced by Stone Henge in England and the Great Pyramid in Egypt.

I will now address the True conjunction (a term used by the Church of God, In Truth) for the new moon versus the molad or mean conjunction. The molad or mean conjunction is when the new moon is half way through the conjunction phase. When the earth, moon and sun are in total alinement. Rabbi Nathan Bushwick writes in his book, "Understanding the Jewish Calendar," page 71, "As the moon moves around the Earth, there is one moment it is exactly between the Earth and the sun. At that moment the Earth faces the dark side of the moon. Already for about a day before this moment the moon has not been visible from any point on the Earth and it will remain invisible for about a day more. This moment is call the molad, the birth of the new moon. We (Jews) use the molad as the official beginning and end point of the cycle of the moon." Molad is Hebrew for the word "birth or renewal." The Hebrew calendar uses the mean conjunction when the earth, sun and moon are aligned. Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary defines "mean" (1.) Occupying a middle position: intermediate in space, order, time, kind, or degree. (2.) Occupying a position about midway between extremes. (A) being near average (B) middling (C) being the mean of a set of values: average: intermediary.

The true conjunction occurs the instant the sun and moon (not the earth) come into conjunction and when the sun's light strikes the face of the moon at an angle which makes it not visible to us on the earth. The true conjunction of the moon is the instant when the sun and moon come into conjunction. This instant happens everywhere on earth at the same time. The Church of God, In Truth calculates that instant of conjunction from Jerusalem time zone to see what date this occurs, using sunset to sunset (24 hour) time as the time for the new moon day.

In the book "Astronomical Tables of the Sun, Moon, and Planets," by Jean Meeus, copyright 1983, he states under Phases of the Moon, section 4 page 1, "With an accuracy of one second of time these instants are expressed in Ephemeris time." This time is seconds or sometimes minutes from (Greenwich, England) universal time. Ephemeris time is a uniform measure of time defined by the orbital motion of the planets (Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary). The following is several quotes from "Phases of the Moon and Percent of the Moon Illuminated" U.S. Naval Observatory, "The new, first quarter, full, and last quarter phases of the moon are instantaneous phenomena." "It is not unusual for a person to state that the moon was full, or at first or last quarter, on dates that are a few days removed for the instants. When these phenomena actually occurred." "Technically, the phase new moon ---are defined to occur when the excess of the apparent ecliptic (celestial) longitude of the moon over that of the sun is 0"." The dates and time of the phase of the moon computed are instantaneous and well defined." "At new moon the part of the moon illuminated by direct sunlight is zero percent."

I have bolded, underlined and Italicized the words "instantaneous and instants" for proof of the true conjunction that the Church of God, In Truth uses, verses the mean (molad) conjunction. Webster's Dictionary defines the words: Instant: (1) an infinitesimal space of time (2) a point in time separating two states. Instantaneous (1) done occurring or acting without any perceptible duration of time. (2) done without any delay being purposely introduced. (3) occurring or present at a particular instant."

Data above is for the Feast of Trumpets in 1998, the time and date of the new moon phase. "Astronomical Tables of the Sun, Moon, and Planets" by Jean Meeus, states in section 4 page 14, "September 20 at 17:02 is the true conjunction of the new moon phase." "Moon Times" by Zephyr Services for Computers, calculates the conjunction of the new moon phase for September 20 at 17:04. Two minutes different. 17:04 is 5:04 PM Greenwich, England time. We now have to add two hours for Jerusalem time because Greenwich, England is two hours west of Jerusalem. In Jerusalem it is now 7:04 PM plus we must add one hour for daylight saving time which makes it 8:04 PM in the evening of September 20, 1998 in Jerusalem. The Church of God, In Truth does not go by the Gregorian calendar. We go by God's calendar changing a day's date at sunset. Sunset in Jerusalem on September 20 (Gregorian time) is 18:41, which is 6:41 PM, now add 1 hour for daylight saving time and you have sunset time of 7:41 PM. At 7:41 PM Jerusalem time September 20th is over for the Church of God, In Truth, September 21st has begun. Twenty-three minutes later the instantaneous true conjunction of the new moon phase begins. According to the Astronomical tables the new moon in Jerusalem is September 20th at 20:04 PM and the molad (Jewish calendar calculation) is September 21st at 0655 AM, that is about 11 hours difference between the true astronomical conjunction and the molad. From both calculations this makes the Feast of Trumpets falls on September 21, 1998.