Hebrew Roots Help Desk

Prophetic Holy Feasts
Feast of Tabernacles | Sukkot

Prophetic Holy Feasts | Feast of Tabernacles The concluding Feast of the Hebrew Year and taking a look at the tw...

Dear Friends,

We hope you had a nice Yom Teruah and want to send you an update regarding the crescent moon observation on Saturday, 12 September 2026.

To remind you, on 12 September 2026 the percentage of the moon’s illumination was high, however the lag time was short, meaning that the crescent was very close to the bright horizon, making it a very difficult observation. That being said, we knew from past observations with similar stats, that the moon was far enough along in its cycle that it would be visible, if the horizon was relatively clear from atmospheric obstructions, the observer was looking in just the right place, and had very good vision.

Below is an updated list of positive observations from Israel on Saturday, 12 September 2026:
* Jerusalem (Gilo) at around 7:10pm by Yehosheva Rapuano and shortly thereafter by Tirzah Rapuano. Yehosheva stated “Wearing my glasses, I saw a line in the clouds. I removed my glasses and could still see it without visual aid. The cloud shifted and masked my view of it. A few minutes later the cloud dissipated and it appeared slightly below where I had seen it previously, but this time I could only see it with binoculars. Tirzah Rapuano stated “Looking with the naked eye, under the cloud I saw a slight sliver, a white very very dim line. When I looked away and looked back at it I could see it again. It looked like a crescent but very dim. A few minutes later I confirmed the sighting, seeing it clearly with binoculars I definitely saw the moon without any visual aid.” [A third person wasn’t unable to see the crescent (even with binoculars), despite looking where they were pointing.]
* Ma'ale Adumim by Roy Hoffman with binoculars at 6:48pm, with the naked eye at 6:54pm, he then followed the crescent until it started to set behind the mountains at 6:58pm. Roy stated “The Moon was very faint and difficult to see but I am sure that I saw it several times in the same position.”
* Two other people saw it with binoculars only.

In summation, it’s our understanding that the Biblical Month begins with the crescent moon, i.e. when the moon is far enough away from the sun that it can be visible to the naked eye from Israel, which it was on 12 September 2026 (the end of the 29th day), and therefore the beginning of the 7th month.

For those that asked about beginning the month the following evening (13 September 2026), the percentage of illumination that evening was 7.20%, which is extremely high, i.e. not the beginning of the lunar month.

There’s no photo of the crescent moon from Israel on 12 September 2026. However, at the top of this report is a photo taken by Yosheva Rapuano with a circle indicating approximately where he saw the crescent that evening.

On behalf of all of us who keep the Biblical Calendar, we want to thank everyone who looked for the crescent New Moon from Israel and sent us their observations.

2026 Holiday Dates (graphic in the middle):
https://mailchi.mp/devorahsdatetree/7th-biblical-month-2026-update-crescent-moon-report

Subscribe to our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/datetree) to receive our newsletters via email, and our social media platforms (linktr.ee/devorahsdatetree) to receive them in your feed.

Send us your questions on the Biblical Calendar, and we’ll do our best to try and answer them in a future newsletter. All of our answers are based on relevant Bible verses, what we’ve seen in the Land over the past few decades, and much study and prayer.

We could really use your prayers and support. Contributions (Ex 25:2) can be made easily and in any currency via Paypal https://bit.ly/3QSSXZ2 (no need for an account), Patreon https://www.patreon.com/datetree , or by sending a Wire Transfer (contact us for details in your currency).

Together we can restore the Biblical Calendar!

Devorah Gordon
Jerusalem, Israel

Copyright © 2017-2026 Devorah Gordon, All rights reserved.

Devorah's Date Tree (Judges 4:4-5) is committed to restoring the Biblical Calendar, by providing honest reporting and in-depth studies. This important effort is headed by Devorah Gordon, who has been living in Israel and working on restoring the Biblical Calendar, for over 30 years. We are honored that the information we share, is considered the most reliable source for keeping the Biblical Calendar, and a blessing to countless people around the world. Thank you for partnering with us to restore the Biblical Calendar.

Prophetic Holy Feasts
Blowing of Trumpets | Yom Teruah

Prophetic Holy Feasts | Blowing of Trumpets The blowing of the Shofar in the 7th Hebrew Month. The prophetic me...

7th Biblical Month
September / October 2026

http://aroodawakening.tv/biblical-hebrew-calendar

Dear Friends,

The crescent moon was reportedly observed this evening (12 September 2026), from Jerusalem (Gilo) at 7:15pm, by Tirzah and Josa Rapuano (whom I don’t know). They reportedly saw the crescent with the naked eye through a cloud, and then both subsequently confirmed the sighting with binoculars under the cloud (no photo available).

This evening was a very difficult observation, because while the moon’s illumination was high, the lag time was short. That being said, there have been previous positive observations under the same stats as this evening. And positive observations from Rabbinic observers, may come in after their holiday.

I think it’s also worth mentioning that while the Biblical Month begins with the crescent moon, i.e. when the moon is far enough away from the sun that it can be visible to the naked eye, there’s debate as to whether the crescent needs to actually be sighted, or whether the beginning of the month is intended to be determined solely on the lunar cycle (aka Potential Visibility).

The argument that the crescent doesn’t need to be sighted, is that the moon could be far enough along in its cycle, however not visible due to atmospheric obstruction (i.e. haze, clouds, or smoke), or due to the acuity of the observers’ vision (as the crescent can be extremely faint on a bright horizon some months). And there’s also the question of whether it’s reasonable to presume that the people didn’t know when Rosh Chodesh or Yom Teruah would be in advance (1 Samuel 20:5,18), only to find out much later whether there were reliable positive observations.

I am beginning the 7th Biblical Month this evening, 12 September 2026 (which is the end of the 29th day of the previous month), and plan on letting you know if we receive further positive observations.

On behalf of all of us who keep the Biblical Calendar, we want to thank everyone who looked for the crescent New Moon from Israel this evening.

2026 Holiday Dates (graphic in the middle):
https://mailchi.mp/devorahsdatetree/7th-biblical-month-2026-crescent-moon-report

Subscribe to our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/datetree) to receive our newsletters via email, and our social media platforms (linktr.ee/devorahsdatetree) to receive them in your feed.

Send us your questions on the Biblical Calendar, and we’ll do our best to try and answer them in a future newsletter. All of our answers are based on relevant Bible verses, what we’ve seen in the Land over the past few decades, and much study and prayer.

We could really use your prayers and support. Contributions (Ex 25:2) can be made easily and in any currency via Paypal https://bit.ly/3QSSXZ2 (no need for an account), Patreon https://www.patreon.com/datetree , or by sending a Wire Transfer (contact us for details in your currency).

Together we can restore the Biblical Calendar!

Devorah Gordon
Jerusalem, Israel

Copyright © 2017-2026 Devorah Gordon, All rights reserved.

Devorah's Date Tree (Judges 4:4-5) is committed to restoring the Biblical Calendar, by providing honest reporting and in-depth studies. This important effort is headed by Devorah Gordon, who has been living in Israel and working on restoring the Biblical Calendar, for over 30 years. We are honored that the information we share, is considered the most reliable source for keeping the Biblical Calendar, and a blessing to countless people around the world. Thank you for partnering with us to restore the Biblical Calendar.