God's True Conjunction
GOD'S TRUE CONJUNCTION VERSUS MAN'S MEAN CONJUNCTION
The True conjunction is a term used by the Church of God, In Truth. The mean conjunction is the term used by man when the new moon is half way through the dark moon conjunction phase.
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 [mean], 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 [middle of the dark moon] conjunction when the earth, sun and moon are aligned.
Mean Conjunction
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."
True Conjunction
The true conjunction occurs the instant the sun and moon (not the earth) come into conjunction, when the sun's light strikes the face of the moon at an angle which makes it not visible to us on the earth. To say it another way the true conjunction of the moon is the instant when the sun and moon come into conjunction and begins the dark moon phase. This instant happens everywhere on earth at the same time. The Church of God, In Truth calculates that instant of conjunction of the dark moon phase 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.
We have come to realize that most calendars, computer programs are calculated using the mean conjunction of the moon--NOT THE BEGINNING OF THE DARK MOON PHASE. In the past we have used Jean Meeus book "Astronomical Tables of the Sun, Moon, and Planets." BUT, he does not tell us that his calculation are from the mean [or middle] of the dark moon phase that occurs hours after a true conjunction!
The following are 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." What they say, they do not practice!!!
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. 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."
The instant the moon's waning crescent is no longer seen from anywhere on earth, is called the new moon; and when this occurs at that instant, the true conjunction or the beginning of the dark moon phase happens. There is zero illumination and the moon cannot be seen from anywhere on earth.
Standard Time:
"Which is based on solar time, was introduced in 1883 by international agreement to avoid the complications that followed in railroad time schedules when each community used it own local solar time. The earth was divided into 24 time zones. The base position is the zero meridian of longitude that passed through the Royal Greenwich Observatory, Greenwich, England. And time zones are described by their distance east or west of Greenwich. In navigation, clocks are often set to the local time at Greenwich, called Greenwich mean time [GMT]. Astronomers use this system but call it universal time [UT]" Microsoft Encarta 96 Encyclopedia [Funk & Wagnalls Corporation].
Moon phases.
"From any location on the Earth, the Moon appears to be a circular disk which, at any specific time is illuminated to some degree by direct sunlight. Like the Earth, the Moon is a sphere which is always half illuminated by the Sun, but as the Moon orbits the Earth we get to see more or less of the illuminated. During each lunar orbit [a lunar month] we see the Moon's appearance change from not visibly illuminated through partially illuminated to fully illuminated, then back through partially illuminated to not illuminated again. The phases designate both the degree to which the Moon is illuminated the geometric appearance of the illuminated part. These phases of the Moon, in the sequence of their occurrence starting from the New Moon are: New moon--the Moon's un-illuminate side is facing the Earth. The Moon is not visible [except during a solar eclipse]. Waxing crescent-- the Moon appears to be partly but less than on-half illuminated by direct sunlight. The fraction of the Moon's disk that is illuminated is increasing. Waning crescent--the Moon appears to be partly but less than one-half illuminated by direct sunlight. The fraction of the Moon's disk that is illuminated is decreasing. Following waning crescent is New Moon. Beginning a repetition of the complete phase cycle of 29.5 days average duration." [U.S. Naval Observatory--"Phases of the Moon and Percent of the Moon Illuminated].
The Royal Observatory, in Edinburgh, England said, "the dark moon happens before the astronomical new moon. The only reason they [the astronomers] use the astronomical new moon [mean or middle conjunction] is to keep time uniformly regulated around the world. The new moon is defined as the time at which the sun and moon have the same celestial longitude. The time of all lunar phases quoted by the astronomical community are therefore what an imaginary observer at the center of the earth would see." "O" illumination happens hours before the mean [middle] conjunction."
The Roper Mountain Science Center and Observatory, Greenville, South Carolina: "Most calendars list New Moon---seeing the middle of its "new" phase. Here you are interested in the very beginning of the "New" dark phase, so that pushed things back as much as nearly a full day."
The Church of God, In Truth, uses God's Word to set the precedent for the new moon. "He appointed the moon for seasons [appointed times]: the sun knoweth his going down" (Psa. 104:19).
Sunset, sets the precedent for the beginning of the dark moon phase to start a new month. When the last of the waning crescent illumination has gone out, a new month begins with a new dark moon phase, called a true conjunction!
The True and Mean Conjunction
The term true conjunction is used in the Encyclopedia Judaica, Vol. 5, pages 45 & 46 under the title "Calendar." "A month is the period of time between one conjunction of the moon with the sun and the next. The true and mean conjunction: From the true conjunction to the first sighting of the new crescent in the region of Jerusalem observation at which may well be presupposed in the calculation of the astronomical Jewish calendar...shortly before the autumnal equinox the minimum interval from the true conjunction to the phases is approximately 20 hours, while the maximum is close to 72 hours, with the minimum of approximately 18 shortly before the vernal equinox."
It is important that God's people should recognize that there is a difference between man's astronomical mean [or middle] conjunction and God's true conjunction. There is always a true conjunction before a mean [or middle] conjunction. God established the moon to show us when the month begins. This cycle of the moon determines the lunar month. It begins and ends with the true conjunction of the moon and sun!
James Russell
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