Late Fall and Winter Biblical Inspired Holidays - Hanukah and Purim

Hanukah (also spelled Chanukah) -popular but not an original/commanded festival. Late Fall or winter.

9th Biblical month. Chanukah/ Hanukah, The Festival of Lights or Feast of Dedication.

This is not one of the original Biblical festivals. Chanukah celebrates the people returning to God culture and overcoming their oppressors, the Greeks. The temple was cleaned and the miracle menorah oil lasted 8 days until more oil could be made. Lit oil = Holy Spirit or presence of God. It is also seen as the Jewish version, the replacement for Christmas in terms of decorations and gift-giving.

It is an 8 branched Menorah (special candlestick holder). The regular temple menorah is a 7 branched Menorah, and its imagery is part of the New Testament, in Revelation 1-3. The Servant candle is the Savior in the midst/middle of the Menorah who lights all the rest. It's such beautiful imagery with the angels giving messages to each of the 7 churches.

Chanukah was mentioned in the New Testament, in John 10: 22

22 ¶ And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.

23 And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch.

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Purim, or the Fast of Esther. It's another popular but non-Pilgrimage holiday. Winter.

12th Biblical month. This is the story of Esther from the Old Testament and how the people's lives were saved. Jews like to wear Biblical costumes, and have noisemakers to drown out the enemy's name (Haman) when the Book of Esther is read. Treats are popular too. Esther was a courageous young woman who became queen to a gentile King. He was deceived by his evil advisor, Haman (who hated the Jews and was looking to get more power).

Fall Biblical Holidays: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot

Rosh Hashanah - Feast of Trumpets. Early Fall, sometimes very late summer

7th biblical month. The trumpets were considered a call to worship as well as a warning. From Elul 1, the month preceding Rosh Hashanah, up until Yom Kippur, these are called, the 40 days of Repentance. The last ten of those days, are called the (Ten) Days of Awe. During the Days of Awe, God is weighing and deciding if you will get another year of life.

The Trumpets are also supposed to herald the return of the Messiah, and his Coronation. Fall was also the season of the Fall of Adam, and so, the Creation story is also recounted during Rosh Hashanah.

It is thought that this 40 day time period (Elul's 30 days + 10 Days of Awe) corresponded to the Jesus' 40 days of fasting and prayer prior to the beginning of his ministry. After that fasting, he went into the synagogue and proclaimed the Jubilee! Luke 4: 16-21

p.s. the Jubilee is every 50 years and is part of the Israelite calendar.

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Yom Kippur - Day of Atonement Fall.

7th Biblical month. Yom Kippur, which falls in September or October, is a fasting holiday. The courts in heaven are decided on the fates; emphasis on groups, nations, and the world. Was there sufficient repentance to merit life and blessings? Or blessings being withdrawn, and possibly judgment, destruction or death?

During the Days of Awe, they repent, confess, make restitution as possible, ask for forgiveness as individuals and as a community, and fast and pray all day in the house of worship on Yom Kippur. They wear white, and have other prohibitions along with the fasting. Some go to the mikveh (ritual pool) and get immersed the day before.

It's interesting that some of the stock market crashes have been in October, because some markets operate from October to the following end of September.

The Biblical Flood was in the Eighth month (Cheshvan 17), after what would've been Yom Kippur & Sukkot. The people had rejected the last call for repentance. Might Noah and his family, with the animals, entered the ark during Sukkot, in the 7th month? Read next about Sukkot...

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Sukkot - The Feast of Tabernacles; {Sh'mini Atzeret and Simchat Torah.} Fall.

7th Biblical month. This is the third pilgrimage festival.

It's a 7 day festival shortly after Yom Kippur. It commemorates the time when the Israelites lived in temporary housing in the wilderness.

Modern day keepers of this holiday will build or put up a temporary hut or shelter (or maybe even a tent) and spend quite a bit of their personal time including sleeping and eating, in it. Some invite a guest to share a meal with them.

They will also waive the lulav and etrog every day (except Sabbath). The Lulav is a palm and willow branch set, and the etrog is a citrus that resembles the looks of a lemon. It all has symbolic meaning.

Sh'mini Atzaret is the 8th day, added on. Sometimes it is called the Great Last Day or Great and Last Day. Simchat Torah goes along with it, and it means Rejoicing in the Torah / Instruction. It has dancing around with the Torah Scrolls.

In John 7:37-39, during the end of the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus pronounced himself as the Living waters of salvation, at the Feast's water libation ceremony.

Some people think that King Mosiah's speech in beginning of the book of Mosiah, was given at the Feast of Tabernacles.

Zechariah 14:16-17 This feast will still be celebrated in the Millennium, as commanded by the Lord.

Spring Biblical Holidays: Passover, and Shavuot (which later became Pentecost)

Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Early - Mid Spring.

1st Biblical month. "Pesach," this is the first of the three pilgrimage festivals in the Old Testament. It lasts for Passover night plus 7 days. It commemorated the Israelites' exodus from Egypt after a long bondage. They were to put the lamb's blood on the door. This was one of the symbols meant to lead them to the Savior. He became the Passover Lamb! The sacrament was instituted by Christ the day before his death, at Passover.

Jews set an extra chair out for the Prophet Elijah, at their Passover Seder. Elijah did return to the Mormon Kirtland Ohio temple at the Passover season, on Easter Sunday, April 3, 1836, which was the 2nd day of Passover and the 1st day counting the 50 days until the next festival, Shavuot. Jesus/Yeshua, Moses and Elias also came to the temple on that date.

One day there will be another great Exodus, see Jeremiah 16: 14-15. Also there is Passover imagery in the Word of Wisdom,

D&C 89: 18-21.

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Shavuot - Pentecost. Mid to late Spring.

3rd Biblical month. Another pilgrimage festival, The Feast of Weeks, i.e. Shavuot commemorates the giving of the Mosaic Covenant at Mount Sinai. They were originally given the Enoch Covenant, but that didn't work out, so it was changed and became the Mosaic Covenant or Law of Moses. Shavuot also has ties to the Abrahamic covenant and other ancient events. This holiday occurs 50 days after Passover. The "Counting of the Omer" lasts 50 days until Shavuot.

Jesus/Yeshua after his resurrection, spent 40 days with the disciples and then ascended into heaven. On that day, he told them to wait at Jerusalem for 10 more days. 40+ 10 = 50 days. Why? See Acts 2&3. The outpouring of the Spirit in many languages was the beginning of the post-resurrection Church. "Pentecost."

Sometime after Jesus' resurrection he went to visit the Nephites and Lamanites in the Americas.

I love religious art because if you have "eyes to see" you can learn things.

Our Young Men (which also means the Young Women too).

I have an idea which could help our church Young Men.  It's a little unusual but hear me out.

I will explain first.  Economic and social stress is weighing heavily on a lot of people.  Part of Zion is getting people more self-sufficient.  How can we be self sufficient, really, when the stores are so essential to people?  Many people struggle to have a years' supply of food, and other necessities.

What if parents saved money, if possible, only for a one-year local mission for their son?  What if the children only did local missions and lived out of the home? Usually there are plenty of people to convert within 10 miles!! 

Then later the son finishes the mission, and works for a year, saving more money.  Then hopefully land can be bought.  Ideally the father could buy 10 acres or more in a small town or suburban-rural, less expensively -- planning to divide that up amongst his children.  Then each son (and siblings can help) would build a modest 1 or 2 bedroom home with one of the outer walls constructed so it would be easy to add onto the home later on.  Some teens are opting to build a "tiny home" to get experience.  Or they could buy a fixer upper home.

A possibility would be to build a 3-bedroom, 2- bath home (exterior part), but only finish inside one bedroom and one bath at a time.  After the modest home is built, then the son can go to community college or other training (whatever fits the budget).  He has a home ready and that can be a selling point to attract a good girl to him as she will likely be impressed that he has done things to be ready to be a husband and a father.

https://tinyhouseexpedition.com/young-couple-builds-clever-cozy-20k-shipping-container-home/

Can you imagine how it would be if the guy doesn't go into a marriage carrying college debt and won't have to get a 30+ year mortgage?   The purpose of the land purchase would be so each child can have a 2-acre lot which hopefully would be sufficient to have large gardens.  To feed a large family.  The church works hard to get more converts, but sometimes it is just easier to convert and retain converts by raising a good family with more than 2 or 3 children (and those people raise children too a generation later).  If the bills are low, the wife can stay home with the children and raise them right.  I am not saying that single mothers or married working mothers automatically do a bad job at raising their kids, but in terms of time with the kids, keeping them safe (as mothers generally love or are more attentive towards their children more than teachers or childcare workers do) it is better when there are two good parents and only one of them has to work outside the home.  

There are a lot of things socially about public school (from peers or teachers) that is so unsavory.  So if a mother or group of mothers are willing to teach the children, they could home school them in a good environment.  I understand that things can be different in each family.  Some mothers wish they could be at home during the day with their children, but can't.

Anyways, it is time that we re-think how to do things.  It's obvious that many Americans are suffering and it's time to do things differently that benefit OUR families.  It's not always about the Church and people far far away.  The Church has billions and billions of dollars and often, unless you're an immigrant or certain profile which is politically popular (as the media is trying to teach you who to feel sorry for), you won't get much sympathy or help.  It's time to help us and stop so many of our precious dollars going to landlords, banks, taxmen, insurance men, and overly wealthy churches.  Time to help us and ourselves.  Time to prepare for harder times because they are upon us now or soon.