Researchers at Tel Aviv University propose that the Qumran sect initially used its distinctive 364-day calendar, but later abandoned it due to astronomical issues and political factors.
A study led by Prof. Eshbal Ratzon of the Department of Jewish Philosophy and the Cohn Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Ideas at the Entin Faculty of Humanities suggests a nuanced understanding of the 364-day calendar used by the Qumran sect, the creators of the Dead Sea Scrolls. For decades, scholars have debated whether the sect genuinely adhered to this calendar or if it was merely a religious concept. The Tel Aviv University research indicates both may be true.
The Qumran calendar, with its 364 days divided into 52 complete weeks, ensured that religious festivals consistently fell on the same day of the week. This orderly structure wasn’t just mathematical; the sect viewed it as a reflection of a perfect divine system. They rejected the Temple authorities in Jerusalem’s control over religious dates, believing God had already established them at Creation.
However, the calendar’s precision came with a practical problem. A 364-day year is approximately one day and a quarter shorter than the actual solar year. Over time, this discrepancy would cause religious festivals to drift out of sync with the seasons. After twenty years, festivals would shift by almost four weeks, and after decades, a spring festival could fall in winter or autumn. Prof. Ratzon’s research suggests the sect likely used the calendar early in its history, when disagreements over dates contributed to its separation from the Jerusalem establishment, but later abandoned it due to this astronomical issue and changing political relations with the Hasmonean leadership under Alexander Jannaeus. The findings were published in the Tarbiz Quarterly for Jewish Studies.
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