Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1869-09-06

--mOw the Ceremonies were Oh.
seryed--Thefr origin and History.
Yesterday was the beginning of new
year in the Hebrew calendar, and for the
frst time in years occurred on the
Christian Sabbath. 1t was strictly OBJ
served to-day by all true believers
throughout the world; and now at high
noon the pious Jew in Eastern China has
hardly yet closed his fast, or ceased to
pray to the Father of Abraham and the
Prophets. In every synagogue through
out all Chaistendom and the rest Of the
habitable globe the same service was read
in the one language, and the identical
ceremonies we're observed in precisely
the same way as in the synagogue here in
Memphis. The Hebrew ritual knows no
change, and is the same to-day it was
even before the days of David and Solo
mon. Through revolving cycles of time,
revolutions, national commissions, wars,
pestilence and famine, this strongly con-
slant sect have unswervingly chung
to their faith, customs and ira
ditions. From the days of Abraham
to the present time they have known no
shadow Of turning, and no doubt will
continue the same to the day of final
reckoning.
! As the Hebrews form large class of
our most intelligent and respectable citi-
zens, some explanation concerning their
New Year and the various other facts
and festivals now approaching will be of
interest at this time.
Christians reckon time by the Solar or
Roman month, but the Hebrews alto
gether make use of the lunar months,
which consist alternately of twenty-nine
and thirty days. They contend that they
learn from the Scriptures the manner of
making computations by lunar months,
and that Hillel, Prince of Palestine, a
celebrated and learned Rabbi and oppo-
nent of Schammai, most admirably ar
ranged their method of computing the
months of the year. Time reckoned ON
the lunar basis confi cts, of course, with
the solar basis; and, therefore, the differ
enee between the solar and lunar mode
would, in seventeen years, cause the feast
of the Passover to occur in 7ishri,
the seventh month, instead of Nissan,
the first of the months. The Feast of
the Tabernacles, of which we design to
speak when it occurs, and which is
now so arranged as to take place in
autumn, would have happened, &C.
cording to the lunar method of
calculating, in Nissan-from 18th of
March to 10Th of April. To avoid this
imperfection of calculation, the Hebrews
have arranged that every third year shall
consist of thirteen lunar months, instead
of twelve. The additional month is
called an intercslary month. The 18th
day of February, which only occurs once
every four years, is an intercalary day in
Christian computation, and is the only
intercalary day we have The Romans
before the Julian period must have
counted time after the manner of the
Jews, as Livy mentions an intercalary
month. The word simply means an ex.
traordinary introduction of something
among others, whether day, month or
year. The Hebrews, instead of only one
day, introduce whole month, which
always has twenty-nine days, as inter-
GALAXY, and call it Second Adur, or Leap
Year. By this arrangement it will be
found that, in the course of nineteen
years, there are seven leap years-the
first, sixth, eighth, eleventh, fourteenth,
seventeenth and nineteenth.
The reason the Jews pse the lunar
mode OF. calculating time is, that BY the
new moon the ancient Isrselitss regu-
lated all their fsasts and festivals. The
new moon was always the beginning CT
the month. Persons were appointed to
watch from some elevated position
for Ito FIRST appearance, and rep
resent the ssas to the Sanhedrin, who
Immediately made 1t known to tbe-vhola
nation by an extra sacrifice in the tenn
pie and sound Of trumpets or comets |;
hence the Rosh Hoshsns, or Hebrew
! New Year, 10 still called the day of the
| cornet
In early dawn of Jewish civilization,
which is paramount to the first civiliza-
ton known to man, there were no names
for the months, and they even now have
no ssmes for the days of the week, more
than Grst, SECOND, THIRD, fourth, and SO
on to Sabbath, the seventh. We oeca-
sionally find in the Bible, however, names
| given to some of the months, They are
usually descriptive, and are only made
use of to describe the season 10 which
each month occurs. For instance, Moses
| called the first month Abb, which signi-
fes the spring tipo Ct the year. The
Jews, however, during their captivity in
Babylon, learned the Chaldaic names Ct
the months, as they did the 0haldaic
language, and consequently INTRODUCED
into their customs and literature the
first as consequent Of the other.
The Jews also differ from the Chris
| ,;ans in the com mencement of the day.