Cultic Calendars in the Old Testament -- By: Kandy Queen-Sutherland

Journal: Faith and Mission
Volume: FM 08:2 (Spring 1991)
Article: Cultic Calendars in the Old Testament
Author: Kandy Queen-Sutherland


Cultic Calendars in the Old Testament

Kandy Queen-Sutherland

Associate Professor of Old Testament
Baptist Theological Seminary, Rüschlikon, Switzerland

Among the writings of the Old Testament various references are found to the cultic observances of ancient Israel, providing clues for reconstructing religious practices. The present discussion will limit itself to an exegetical summary of the festal calendars of the Pentateuch: Exod 23:10–19 [E], Exod 34:18–26 [J], Deut 16:1–17 [D], Lev 23:4–44 [H], Num 28 and 29 [P].1 Such a study should serve as background material for more detailed exegetical work on specific texts as well as provide a base for further research on the worship of ancient Israel.

Showing signs of differing traditions and influence, the five cultic calendars in the Pentateuch are nevertheless reported within the wilderness reflections found in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. An examination of the calendars sheds light on the fluid nature of the cult that gave expression to the religious understandings of a people in transition. Historically speaking, Israel faced constant change. Whether responding to outside forces or influenced by internal developments, no century was the same as the one before or the one to follow. In such a changing context, ritual performance served to bind the worshiping community to the past while at the same time addressing the particularities of a given generation or era. This is readily seen in the descriptions and stipulations for the three major annual festivals included in each calendar: the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of the First Fruits or Weeks, and the Feast of Ingathering or Booths. The festivals are by nature agricultural in origin. The feasts of Unleavened Bread and First Fruits are spring observances marking the barley and grain harvests respectively. The Festival of Ingathering or Booths is associated with the grape and olive season culminating in the fall. Thanksgiving lies at the heart of each as the produce of the soil is brought before Yahweh in worship. Dependent upon the various harvests, fixed dates for each would seem out of the question in their earliest form. Yet, in the context of a later ritualized cult each became connected in some way to a past event of historical significance: the Feast of Unleavened Bread tied to Passover and the commemoration of the exodus from Egypt, the Feast of First Fruits/ Weeks to the giving of th...

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