Important Dates in the Lives of Jesus and Mary 

The Gospel of John adds that the day was both Friday, the preparation day of the Sabbath, (Jn 19:31), and 

Nisan 14, the Preparation Day of the Passover, (Jn 19:14). Yet Nisan 14 would have only fallen on a Friday 

that year if Nisan 1 was determined by calculation and coincided with March 25. In 

A.D.

 19, the astronomical 

new moon of March 25 occurred at 06:11 hours JST, and the new crescent moon would have been visible the 

evening of March 26 (see Appendix I, Chart 1). So, Nisan 1 would have been March 25 by calculation, but 

March 27 by observation. The year of 

A.D.

  19 for Christ's death fits my understanding that the Jewish 

calendar at that time was determined by calculation, not observation. 

Calendar Rules 

    In the modern Jewish calendar, sometimes the start of a month in the Jewish calendar is delayed a day, or 

even two days, to prevent the Sabbath (Saturday) or the preparation day of the Sabbath (Friday) from 

interfering with a holy day. For example, the start of the month of Tishri is not permitted to occur on 

Wednesday, Friday, or Sunday. If Tishri began on Wednesday, then Tishri 10 (Yom Kippur) would fall on 

Friday. This would cause a conflict between the obligation to rest and worship God on the Day of Atonement 

(Lev 23:26 32), and the need to prepare for the Sabbath, working on Friday, so as to be able to rest and 

worship on Saturday (Lev 23:3).  

    Tishri 1 is also not permitted to fall on a Friday, because then the first and last days of the Feast of 

Tabernacles, days of solemn rest (Lev 23:33 36), would also fall on Fridays. This situation would present a 

conflict between the need to work on the preparation day of the Sabbath, and the holy days of rest at the start 

and end of the Feast of Tabernacles. Tishri 1 is also not permitted, in the modern calendar, to fall on a Sunday, 

because then the first and last days of the Feast of Tabernacles, days of solemn rest, would also fall on a 

Sunday. Having two days in a row when one cannot do any work (Saturday and Sunday) would be difficult. 

To avoid such conflicts, the modern Jewish calendar is arranged so that Tishri does not fall on Wednesday, 

Friday, or Sunday. 

    In the ancient Jewish calendar, both before and after the transition to a calculation based start of each 

month, there were similar rules affecting the start of Tishri and other months. The rule that Tishri cannot start 

on a Wednesday or Friday is an obvious necessity, due to the obligation, on Friday, to prepare for the Sabbath 

and the obligation to rest on certain feast days. This rule must have been observed, even in ancient times, for 

the obligations of those days have always been held in high regard by the Jews. The rule that Tishri cannot 

begin on a Sunday was, I suggest, not observed in ancient times. If Tishri 1 falls on Sunday, then the first and 

last days of the Feast of Tabernacles also fall on Sundays. This results in two days of rest in a row. People must 

prepare well on the preparation day of the Sabbath, so that they have food and necessities for two consecutive 

days. But there is no essential conflict with the obligations of faith. 

    My reconstruction of the Jewish calendar during the Ministry of Christ (

A.D.

 15 19) shows that Tishri 1 fell 

on a Sunday in 

A.D.

 16. Blessed Anne Catherine states:  the people were still busied with preparations, 

because with the close of the coming Sabbath, the Feast of Tabernacles began. 

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 Since the Feast of 

Tabernacles that year began on Sunday, the first day of Tishri must also have been a Sunday. 

    Similar considerations affect the start of the month of Nisan, in both the ancient and modern Jewish 

calendars. The first day of Passover, Nisan 15, is a holy day of rest and worship of God (Lev 23:5 7). This day 

is not permitted to fall on a Friday, because then the preparation day of the Sabbath would interfere with the 

first holy day of Passover. Thus Nisan cannot begin on a Friday. On the other hand, the preparation day of the 

Sabbath, Friday, can coincide with the Preparation Day of the Passover, Nisan 14. This was the case in the 

year of Christ's Crucifixion (Jn 19:14, 31). 

    Since Nisan 15 cannot fall on Friday, Nisan 14 cannot fall on Thursday. Since the Passover meal is held on 

the evening of Nisan 14, the Passover meal does not ever occur on a Thursday evening in the modern 

calendar. And, even in ancient times, Nisan 14 could not fall on a Thursday. So, when Jesus and the disciples 

held the Passover meal on Thursday evening, they were celebrating the Passover meal a day early. According 

to Blessed Anne Catherine, this was permitted to the Jews from Galilee since ancient times, due to the large 

number of sacrifices of lambs required at the Passover at Jerusalem.

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