The Feast Days
of YaHoWaH

YaHoWaH did not build His appointed times around the Roman solar calendar that the Western world uses today. He built them around the moon. The Hebrew calendar is lunar, meaning it follows the cycles of the moon, with months beginning at the new moon and full moons marking the middle of each month.

Rosh Chodesh is itself an appointed time in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). It was marked with special offerings, trumpet blasts, and rest from labor. The prophet Yesha'yahu (Isaiah) lists it alongside the Shabbat as one of YaHoWaH's appointed gatherings.

Notice what YaHoWaH says will happen in the restored future: all flesh will come to worship before Him from new moon to new moon and from Shabbat to Shabbat. Both are still operating in YaHoWaH's future vision. Neither has been cancelled or replaced.

The Full Moon is also significant. Several of the major feasts fall on the full moon, the middle of the Hebrew month, when the moon is at its brightest and most visible. Pesach (Passover) begins on the 14th of Nisan, a full moon. Sukkot (Tabernacles) begins on the 15th of Tishrei, a full moon. YaHoWaH arranged His greatest gatherings to happen when the night sky is at its most illuminated, so that even those traveling after sunset could find their way.

The Hebrew word translated seasons here is again Moedim, the same word used in Leviticus 23 for the appointed times. YaHoWaH appointed the moon as a primary marker for the Moedim. The moon is not just a light in the sky. It is a divine calendar, built into creation to mark the appointed times of YaHoWaH. But the moon is not the only sign. The barley harvest, called Aviv in Hebrew, marks the beginning of YaHoWaH's year. When the barley in the land of Israel reaches the Aviv stage, the new year begins, and the spring feasts of Pesach, Chag HaMatzot, and Firstfruits follow. YaHoWaH wove His appointed times into both the heavens and the earth.

When the Western church moved from the Hebrew lunar calendar to the Roman solar calendar, the connection between YaHoWaH's appointed times and the heavenly signs He placed in the sky was broken. Easter was set on the Roman calendar to replace Passover. Christmas has no connection to any Hebrew appointed time whatsoever. The calendar itself was changed to sever the link between creation and covenant.

This is not a section about judgment. It is a section about truth. Millions of sincere people observe Christmas, Good Friday, and Easter with genuine love for YaHoWaH. We are not questioning their hearts. We are questioning the origins of these days, because origins matter.

YaHoWaH said plainly in His Torah:

He said: do not learn the ways the nations worshipped their gods and then use those ways to worship Me. This is the standard. Not intention. Origin.

YaHoWaH said Passover is to be kept forever, as an ordinance for all generations. He did not say it would be replaced by a spring festival named after a Germanic goddess. He said forever. That word has not expired.

If you have read this far, something has stirred in you. That stirring is not an accident. YaHoWaH said His word does not return to Him void. What you have just read is His word. And it is doing what it was sent to do.

We want to say something clearly before we tell you how to begin: you do not need to have everything figured out before you take your first step. YaHoWaH does not require perfection before He receives you. He requires willingness. A sincere heart that says: I want to walk in the ancient paths. I want to return to what You commanded. That is enough to begin.

Start with Shabbat. It is the most frequent of all the appointed times, coming every seven days. You do not need a community, a synagogue, or special knowledge to begin. You need only to set apart the seventh day, from Friday at sundown to Saturday at sundown.

Exodus 35:3 instructs that no fire is to be kindled on the Sabbath day. This is a Torah command. Because of this, many families developed the tradition of lighting candles before sunset on Friday as a way of welcoming Shabbat with light before the rest begins. The candle lighting itself is not commanded, but the reason it happens before sundown is. Once Shabbat starts at sundown, many who observe this tradition do not light candles or kindle any new fire for the duration of the rest.

Some begin Shabbat by reciting the Shema, Deuteronomy 6:4: "Hear, O Israel: YaHoWaH our God, YaHoWaH is one." The word Shema (שְׁמַע) means hear, or more fully, hear and obey. This declaration has been on the lips of the Hebrew people for thousands of years. It is recited morning and evening, at the opening of Shabbat, and in many households it is among the first words spoken over a new day and the last words spoken before sleep. It is not merely a recitation. It is a declaration of allegiance, a statement that there is one God, His name is YaHoWaH, and He alone holds authority over our lives.

Following the Shema, many sit down to a meal that has been prepared ahead of time. The preparation of food before Shabbat is itself an act of intention, a way of honoring the rest by not making the day about labor. The meal is already ready. The work is already done. Shabbat has begun.

On Friday evening or Shabbat morning, many read and study the weekly Torah Portion, the designated section of the Torah assigned to that week in the annual cycle of reading. This is a time of learning, reflection, and sitting with the Word of YaHoWaH.

None of these practices have a required order. The candle lighting, the Shema, the meal, the Torah Portion, all are expressions of how people have chosen to honor the day. The only command is the one YaHoWaH gave at creation: Rest. The Hebrew word is Shabbat (שַׁבָּת), meaning to cease, to stop, to rest from labor. It is not a suggestion. It is not a Jewish custom. It is the seventh day that YaHoWaH Himself rested, blessed, and set apart from the beginning.

The table below is a simple reference to help you understand what YaHoWaH commands and what is a tradition or custom. Both have value. But knowing the difference matters.

Observing the Passover. It falls on the 14th of Nisan each year. This is not a suggestion. YaHoWaH said to keep it forever.

Exodus 12 gives the instructions clearly. A lamb roasted over fire, not boiled and not raw. Bitter herbs. Unleavened bread. The bitter herbs, such as parsley or horseradish, represent the bitterness of bondage. The unleavened bread, called Matzah, was baked in haste because there was no time to let it rise. These three elements together form the memorial meal YaHoWaH commanded.

But the instructions do not stop at the food. Exodus 12:11 says to eat it with your waist girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. You eat it in haste. You are a people on the move, ready to follow wherever YaHoWaH leads.

Some families, including our own, recreate this first Passover meal as closely as the text describes. We cook lamb on an open fire before sunset. We serve it with bitter herbs and Matzah. We eat it quickly, with our shoes on. Yahel holds his walking stick. After the memorial meal, we sit down together for a full meal to celebrate what YaHoWaH has done.

Read Exodus 12. Then do it. Not as a performance. Not as a religious ritual. As a remembrance of what YaHoWaH did for Israel in Egypt and what He is doing for you right now.

Unleavened Bread (approximately March or April) begins on the 15th of Nisan, the day after Passover, and continues for seven days. Leviticus 23:6-8 commands that no leavened bread be eaten during this time, and that the first and seventh days are holy convocations, meaning rest from regular work. Exodus 12:15 instructs that leaven be removed from your home entirely.

This means going through your kitchen and removing anything made with yeast, including breads, many crackers, cereals, and other leavened products. Some families give food away to neighbors or family before the feast begins. Some bag everything up and take it to another location. If neither is possible, putting it in the car to remove it from the home works as well. The goal is that leaven is neither in your house nor on your table for seven days. For seven days you eat Matzah, unleavened bread, in place of regular bread. Read Exodus 12:14-20 and Leviticus 23:6-8. This is not a burdensome fast but a practical, physical reminder of what Israel walked out of Egypt carrying and what leaven represents.

First Fruits (approximately March or April, during Unleavened Bread) falls on the day after the Sabbath that occurs within that week. Leviticus 23:10-14 commands that the first of the harvest be brought as a wave offering before YaHoWaH. It is also the day the counting of the Omer begins, the fifty-day count toward Shavuot. Since the Temple no longer stands and the sacrificial system cannot be fulfilled as written, many Torah observant families observe this day through dedicated Torah study and prayer, acknowledging YaHoWaH as the provider of everything they have. Begin counting on this day and count each day until you reach fifty.

Shavuot (approximately May or June) comes fifty days after First Fruits, on the 6th of Sivan. Leviticus 23:15-21 commands a holy convocation, rest from regular work, and an offering of firstfruits before YaHoWaH. This is a feast of the completed harvest and of bringing the first and best before Him. Many Torah observant families observe this day through dedicated Torah study and prayer. Many also read the account of YaHoWaH speaking from the mountain in Exodus 19 and 20. The timeline of the exodus places Israel at Sinai approximately fifty days after leaving Egypt, which has led many to associate Shavuot with the giving of the Torah. This connection is a tradition rooted in the calendar, not a direct statement from YaHoWaH in the text, but it is a meaningful one that many families observe. What the text commands is clear: rest from regular work, gather as a holy assembly, and bring your first and best before YaHoWaH.

Yom Teruah (approximately September or October) falls on the 1st of Tishri. Leviticus 23:24 commands a day of rest, a holy convocation, and a memorial of blowing, a day of trumpet blasts. The shofar is the instrument of this feast. If you have access to a shofar, blow it. If not, listen to a shofar being sounded. The blast of the shofar is a call to attention, a summons to stand before YaHoWaH. This day is a time of praise and worship of YaHoWaH, of acknowledging His kingship, and of preparing your heart for the ten days that follow, leading into Yom Kippur. Rest from regular work. Gather with family or community. Let the sound of the shofar set the tone for the day.

It is important to note: Rosh HaShanah, meaning Head of the Year, is a rabbinic designation applied to this day. The Torah does not call this day the new year. The Torah does not designate the seventh month as the first month. YaHoWaH was clear: the calendar year begins in Aviv, the first month (Exodus 12:2). Calling the seventh month the beginning of the year is a traditional and civil calendar designation, not a Torah command. This is not a minor distinction. It changes how you understand the entire Hebrew calendar. Follow what YaHoWaH said, not what was added later.

Yom Kippur (approximately September or October, ten days after Yom Teruah) falls on the 10th of Tishri. Leviticus 23:27-32 commands a complete rest, a holy convocation, and afflicting your soul. Fasting is the primary way the affliction of the soul is observed. It is the most solemn of all the appointed times. No work. No food. No water for the duration of the day. Spend the day in prayer and in honest self-examination before YaHoWaH. Read Leviticus 16, which contains the full instructions for this day. Some families spend much of the day in individual prayer and come together periodically to pray as a household. The Siddur Tikkun HaPeretz, available on this site, includes a full prayer for Yom Kippur grounded in the plain text of the Torah, with all traditions clearly identified as traditions. Come before YaHoWaH with a sincere heart. Acknowledge where you have fallen short. Ask for His covering.

Sukkot (approximately September or October, five days after Yom Kippur) begins on the 15th of Tishri and lasts for seven days. Leviticus 23:42-43 commands that you dwell in booths for seven days so that your generations will know that YaHoWaH made Israel dwell in booths when He brought them out of Egypt. The first and eighth days are holy convocations with rest from regular work. This is one of the most joyful of all the feasts. The command is to actually dwell in a temporary structure, a sukkah, a booth or shelter open to the sky. Some families build a sukkah from wood, branches, and leaves. Some families, including our own, have used a tent set up in the backyard. The structure should be temporary and the covering should be open enough to see the sky. The idea is intentional dependence on YaHoWaH for covering rather than the security of permanent walls. Many families eat their meals in the sukkah throughout the seven days. Some sleep in it as well. Read Leviticus 23:33-43 and Nehemiah 8:13-17, where Israel rediscovered this feast and kept it with great joy.

Do not be overwhelmed by the whole picture. You do not have to understand all seven feasts perfectly before you begin. You do not have to get every detail right. YaHoWaH sees the direction you are walking. Walk toward Him. He will meet you on the path.

The ancient paths have not moved. They are exactly where YaHoWaH left them. The Shabbat is still the seventh day. Passover still falls on the 14th of Nisan. The feasts of YaHoWaH still stand on the Hebrew calendar, waiting for His people to return to them.

Now is the time to repair the breach.

For centuries the appointed times of YaHoWaH have been replaced, moved, renamed, and forgotten. Billions of people inherited a faith that had already been stripped of its Hebrew foundation before they were born. They did not choose this. But you can choose now.

YaHoWaH called His people to be a tikkun haperetz, a repairing of the breach, a restoration of what was broken. That restoration begins with each individual who says: I will return to what was written. I will keep what He commanded. I will walk the ancient paths.

That is what we are here for. That is why this ministry exists. And that is the invitation we extend to you today.

This is your calling. Welcome to the journey.