Are You Having a Mari-Time? Part 2 – Dateline

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Crossing the Line

We covered the relationship between the Current Day Line Crossing Ceremonies and the Ancient Rituals in the first part of this series.  In order to establish that this has been ongoing, we are going to cover just a little of the history of the ritual in our society.  Also presented in this article is the information on the different crossing certificates and their significance.   Most important is the video at the very bottom, please do not let the religious aspect of the video cause you to miss the important information in the message. Pay close attention to the specifics on the International Dateline and how it all ties in to Maritime/Rome/the US.  

Behind the Strange and Controversial Ritual When You Cross the Equator At Sea

A sailor’s hazing-filled transition from a slimy pollywog to a trusty shellback during an equator line-crossing is a naval tradition unlike any other.

Ritualistic pain, immensely questionable sanitation and excessive humiliation have seemingly forever been a requirement of entering King Neptune’s royal court and becoming a son or daughter of the god of the sea.

The hazing festival, intended to be inescapable, traditionally allows no one the chance to be spared the prerequisite misery prior to joining the ancient order of the deep.

Line-crossing ceremony aboard Méduse on the first of July 1816.

Captain Robert FitzRoy of HMS Beagle suggested the practice had developed from earlier ceremonies in Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian vessels passing notable headlands. He thought it was beneficial to morale. FitzRoy quoted Otto von Kotzebue‘s 1830 description in his 1839 Narrative of the surveying voyages of His Majesty’s Ships Adventure and Beagle between the years 1826 and 1836.[2][8]

There is a detailed account of the ceremony on board HMS Blossom in 1825 by Petty Officer John Bechervaise in his private publication Thirty-Six Years of a Sea Faring Life (1839), available from Kessinger in facsimile. Blossom was just starting a three-year voyage of exploration around the Horn to the Arctic.[9]

A similar ceremony took place during the second survey voyage of HMS Beagle. As they approached the equator on the evening of 16 February 1832, a pseudo-Neptune hailed the ship. Those credulous enough to run forward to see Neptune “were received with the watery honors which it is customary to bestow”.[2] The officer on watch reported a boat ahead, and Captain FitzRoy ordered: “hands up, shorten sail”. Using a speaking trumpet he questioned Neptune, who would visit them the next morning. About 9 am the next day, the novices or “griffins” were assembled in the darkness and heat of the lower deck, then one at a time were blindfolded and led up on deck by “four of Neptune’s constables”, as “buckets of water were thundered all around”. The first “Griffin” was Charles Darwin, who noted in his diary how he “was then placed on a plank, which could be easily tilted up into a large bath of water. — They then lathered my face & mouth with pitch and paint, & scraped some of it off with a piece of roughened iron hoop. —a signal being given I was tilted head over heels into the water, where two men received me & dunked me. —at last, glad enough, I escaped. — most of the others were treated much worse, dirty mixtures being put in their mouths & rubbed on their faces. — The whole ship was a shower bath: & water was flying about in every direction: of course not one person, even the Captain, got clear of being wet through.” The ship’s artist, Augustus Earle, made a sketch of the scene.[3]  Said Drawing is shown below. 

Charles Darwin, the Lewis Carroll Forum

On the open sea, even the leader of a great nation must answer to King Neptune.  Even President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was aboard the USS Indianapolis when it crossed the equator in 1936, was not exempt from at least some form of embarrassment.

In 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, too, received a summons to appear before the sea god and pay his respects. The charges brought against him:

  1. Disregard of the traditions of the sea.
  2. Taking liberties with the piscatorial subjects of His Majesty Neptunus Rex.

“You will accept most heartily and with good grace the pains and penalties of the awful torture that will be inflicted upon you to determine your fitness to be one of our Trusty Shellbacks,” the president’s summons read.

Less than a decade after Roosevelt became a shellback, the U.S. Navy was sailing for the Pacific and war with Japan, but despite the gravity of the time, salty sailors made sure their green shipmates adhered to the time-tested tradition of the line-crossing.

U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt described his crossing-the-line ceremony aboard the “Happy Ship” USS Indianapolis with his “Jolly Companions” in a letter to his wife Eleanor Roosevelt on 26 November 1936.[10] Later, during World War II, the frequency of the ceremony increased dramatically, especially in the United States Navy in the Pacific, where the service’s fleet operations grew enormously to counter widely dispersed Japanese forces.[11]

California Maritime Academy observed the line-crossing ceremony until 1989, after which the ceremony was deemed to be hazing and was forbidden. The 1989 crossing was fairly typical, as it was not realized to be the last one. Pollywogs participated voluntarily, though women midshipmen observed that they were under social pressure to do the ceremony but were targets of harder abuse.[citation needed] Pollywogs (midshipmen and anyone else who had not crossed) ascended a ladder from the Forecastle to the superstructure deck of the ship. There, they crawled down a gauntlet of shellbacks on both sides of a long, heavy canvas runner, about 10–12 meters. The shellbacks had prepared 3-foot, or 1-meter, lengths of canvas/rubber firehose, which they swung hard at the posterior of each wog. The wogs then ascended a ladder to the boat deck to slide down a makeshift chute into the baptism of messdeck leavings in seawater in an inflated liferaft back on the superstructure deck. Wogs then returned to the forecastle, where they were hosed off by firehose and then allowed to kiss, in turn, the belly of the sea-baby, the foot of the sea-hag, and the ring of King Neptune, each personified by shellbacks.[citation needed]

In 1995, a notorious line-crossing ceremony took place on a Royal Australian Navy submarine, HMAS Onslow. Sailors undergoing the ceremony were physically and verbally abused before being subjected to an act called “sump on the rump”, where a dark liquid was daubed over each sailor’s anus and genitalia. One sailor was then sexually assaulted with a long stick before all sailors undergoing the ceremony were forced to jump overboard until permitted to climb back aboard the submarine. A videotape of the ceremony was obtained by the Nine Network and aired on Australian television. The television coverage provoked widespread criticism, especially when the videotape showed some of the submarine’s officers watching the entire proceedings from the conning tower.[12][13]

Most navies have since then instituted regulations that prohibit physical attacks on sailors undergoing the line-crossing ceremony. In modern times, rather than a rite of initiation, the line-crossing ceremony has become a popular tradition in the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard. In the PBS documentary Carrier filmed in 2005 (Episode 7, “Rites of Passage”), a crossing-the-line ceremony on the USS Nimitz was extensively documented. The ceremony is carefully orchestrated by the ship’s officers, with some sailors reporting the events to be lackluster due to the removal of the rites of initiation.

Controversy

USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19)“Whipping Time”. Steaming to Rio de Janeiro on 26 February 1971.

USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) “Snacktime.” Steaming from Singapore on 29 August 1973.

In the 19th century and earlier, the line-crossing ceremony was quite a brutal event, often involving beating pollywogs with boards and wet ropes and sometimes throwing the victims over the side of the ship, dragging the pollywog in the surf from the stern. In more than one instance, sailors were reported to have been killed while participating in a line-crossing ceremony.

As late as World War II, the line-crossing ceremony was still rather rough and involved activities such as the “Devil’s Tongue”, which was an electrified piece of metal poked into the sides of those deemed pollywogs. Beatings were often still common, usually with wet firehoses, and several World War II Navy deck logs speak of sailors visiting sick bay after crossing the line.

Efforts to curtail the line-crossing ceremony did not begin until the 1980s, when several reports of blatant hazing began to circulate regarding the line-crossing ceremony, and at least one death was attributed to abuse while crossing the line.[citation needed]

In 2010, a Line Crossing Ceremony was an international affair. Sailors and Marines from the United States, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Columbia, Peru, and Uruguay crossed the equator together aboard the USS New Orleans.

“We have the same sort of ceremony in my country,” said Lt. j.g. Juan Pablo Rosato of the Argentine navy. “It is interesting to see how similar our maritime cultures are to one another. I think that being able to participate in the rite of passage with another friendly navy is always an honor and it allows us to know each other better.”

Equatorial baptism

Baptism on the line, also called equatorial baptism, is an initiation ritual sometimes performed as a ship crosses the Equator, involving water baptism of passengers or crew who have never crossed the Equator before.[14] The ceremony is sometimes explained as being an initiation into the court of King Neptune.

The ritual is the subject of a painting by Matthew Benedict named The Mariner’s Baptism and of a 1961 book by Henning Henningsen named Crossing the Equator: Sailor’s Baptism and Other Initiation Rites.[15]

Honors for line crossings and other navigational events[edit]

Shellback certificate awarded to Charles Cameron, aboard USS Utah (BB-31), commemorating his first crossing of the Equator, December 1, 1928. This is typical of certificates awarded in the pre-WWII period.

As Shellback initiation is conducted by each individual ship as a morale exercise and not officially recognized by the Navy with inclusion on discharge papers, DD Form 214, or through a formally organized institution, variations of the names as well as the protocol involved in induction vary from ship to ship and service to service.[16]

Unique Shellback designations have been given to special circumstances such as the Star Spangled Shellbacks being given to the crew of the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CVA-42) crossing the equator on July 4, 1966. It is not known if this designation has ever been used before or again as no other mention of such honor has to date been located.

Variations to the Shellback designation include:

  • The Order of the Ebony Shellback for maritime personnel who have crossed the Equator on Lake Victoria.
  • The Emerald Shellback or Royal Diamond Shellback for maritime personnel who cross the Equator at the prime meridian.
  • The Golden Shellback for maritime personnel who have crossed the point where the Equator crosses the International Date Line. 
  • Diamond Shellback (Admiral Shellback) for crossing the Prime Meridian

International Date Line  From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“Date line” redirects here. For other uses, see Dateline (disambiguation).
The simplified illustration (on the left) of the relation between date line, date and time of day. Each color represents a different date.

The International Date Line around the antimeridian (180° longitude)

The International Date Line (IDL) is an imaginary line of demarcation on the surface of Earth that runs from the North Pole to the South Pole and demarcates the change of one calendar day to the next. It passes through the middle of the Pacific Ocean, roughly following the 180° line of longitude but deviating to pass around some territories and island groups.

  • The Top Secret Shellback are for submariners who have crossed the equator at a classified degree of longitude.
Imperial Domain of Golden Dragon” card given to Graham S. Fulghum

“Imperial Domain of Golden Dragon” card given to Graham S. Fulghum aboard the USS Manatee(AO-58), marking his first crossing of the International Date Line, 11 June 1944.

180th meridianFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“Anti-Meridian” redirects here. For the Brave Saint Saturn album, see Anti-Meridian (album).
Not to be confused with ante meridiem (AM), the time before midday, for which see 12-hour clock.

A map of the Earth with the Pacific Ocean in the centre, with a vertical red line running the full height just west of the Bering Strait and east of New Zealand.

180th meridian on a map of Earth. The International Date Line zigzags around the 180th Meridian.

The 180th meridian or antimeridian[1] is the meridian 180° both east and west of the Prime Meridian, with which it forms a great circle dividing the earth into the Western and Eastern Hemispheres. It is common to both east longitude and west longitude. It mostly passes through the open waters of the Pacific Ocean, but passes across land in Russia, Fiji, and Antarctica. This meridian is used as the basis for the International Date Line, but the latter deviates from it to maintain date consistency within the territories of Russia, USA, Kiribati, Fiji, and New Zealand.   

Drawn up in 1884 – The 180° meridian was selected as the International Date Line because it mostly runs through the sparsely populated Central Pacific Ocean. It was decided at the International Meridian Conference in 1884 in Washington, D.C. where 26 countries attended.

Consequently, similar “fraternities” commemorating other significant milestones in one’s career include[17]:

  • The Order of the Blue Nose (Domain of the Polar Bear) for maritime personnel who have crossed the Arctic Circle.
  • The Caterpillar Club for aviators who had made an unscheduled parachute jump from a disabled plane.
  • The Century Club for aviators who have completed their 100th carrier landing.
  • The Realm of the Czars for maritime personnel who crossed into the Black Sea.
  • The Order of the Ditch for maritime personnel who have passed through the Panama Canal.
  • The Domain of the Golden Dragon for maritime personnel who have crossed the International Date Line.
  • The Order of the Lakes for maritime personnel who have sailed on all five Great Lakes.
  • The Order of Magellan for maritime personnel who circumnavigated the Earth.

Image result for Shellback certificate for Bob Fay aboard USS Diphda (AKA-59) for crossing the Equator in the Pacific at the end of World War II, August 1945.

Shellback certificate for Bob Fay aboard USS Diphda (AKA-59) for crossing the Equator in the Pacific at the end of World War II, August 1945.

  • The Magellan’s Strait Jacket Club for all maritime personnel who transited the Straits of Magellan.
  • The Moss Back are personnel who have sailed around the tip of South America.
  • The Order of the Golden Oscar for maritime personnel who have served with the Entertainment Liaison Office.
  • Persian Excursion – The Society of the Arabian Nights for maritime personnel who have served in the Persian Gulf.
  • Plank owner for personnel stationed to a ship or shore command when that ship or unit was created, placed in commission, or in some cases removed from commission.
  • The Order of Purple Porpoises for maritime personnel who crossed the junction of the Equator and the International Date Line at the Sacred Hour of the Vernal Equinox.[18]
  • The Order of the Red Nose (Domain of the Penguin) for maritime personnel who have crossed the Antarctic Circle.
  • The Order of the Rock for maritime personnel who have transited the Strait of Gibraltar.
  • The Safari to Suez for maritime personnel who have passed through the Suez Canal.
  • The Order of the Sand Squid (or Sand Sailor) for maritime personnel who have been attached to land-based Army or Marine units stationed in the Middle East.
  • The Order of the Spanish Main for maritime personnel who have sailed in the Caribbean.
  • The Order of the Sparrow for maritime personnel who sailed on all 7 seas.
  • The Order of the Square Rigger for maritime personnel who have served aboard the USCGC Eagle or USS 

THE UNITED STATES/INTERNATIONAL DATELINE
ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

The Roman Catholic Church already responsible for changing the Sabbath.  Rome also being responsible for the development of the Julian Calendar.  Now responsible for establishing the International Dateline changing time for ALL nations.

  The Image of the Beast is already here!

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Industrialization was a major tool for the work of the enemy.  It pulled mankind out of the plan of God and into the Devil’s clutches.  Now, instead of trusting God and living under his protection humans have become slaves to the mechanical clock and the almighty dollar.

The International Dateline and the Weekly Sabbath

By Carl D. Franklin

November 26, 2004

Some have expressed the opinion that the International Dateline has led to observance of the weekly Sabbath on the wrong day in part of the world.  They believe that Sabbath keepers in the nations east of Jerusalem, between Jerusalem (longitude 35 degrees) and the International Dateline (longitude 180 degrees), are observing the weekly Sabbath one day too early. Their belief is based on the assumption that those living eastward from Jerusalem should not begin observing the weekly Sabbath before Jerusalem does. They maintain that only those living westward from Jerusalem to the International Dateline are observing the Sabbath at the proper time.  In their view, people in these countries should continue to observe the weekly Sabbath on Saturday, but those living eastward from Jerusalem should keep the weekly Sabbath on Sunday.

Let’s consider how Sabbath observance in Australia would be affected by this proposed change. At the present, Australians begin to observe the weekly Sabbath 9 hours before it arrives in Jerusalem, allowing an overlap of 15 hours of shared Sabbath observance between Sydney and Jerusalem. Let us assume that Australians decide to postpone their observance of the weekly Sabbath one day and keep it from sunset Saturday evening to sunset Sunday evening.  Doing so would theoretically correct the day “lost” due to the present placement of the International Dateline and would resolve the supposed problem of Sabbath observance beginning in Sydney before it begins at Jerusalem.

If such a change were instituted at the beginning of 2005, here is what would take effect:  The sun at Sydney would set at 8:10 PM Saturday evening, January 1, beginning the first day of the week. When “Sabbath” observance began in Sydney it would be 11:10 AM Saturday morning in Jerusalem—the Sabbath day having begun there at sunset, 4:46 PM Friday evening.  The Sabbath day in Jerusalem would end at 4:46 PM Saturday evening, corresponding to Sunday, 1:45 AM Sydney time.   The new Sunday “Sabbath” of Sydney would overlap the Sabbath of Jerusalem from 11:10 AM to 4:46 PM Jerusalem time, a period of 5 hours and 36 minutes. Thus the present overlap of 15 hours of shared Sabbath observance would be reduced by nearly two thirds.  Moreover, Sabbath keepers would be observing the first day of the week—not the seventh day.

Would moving the International Dateline to the vicinity of Jerusalem correct this problem, as has been proposed?  Some would have the dateline run through the middle of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.  Others say that it should run along the eastern border of the State of Israel.  Another view is that the dateline should run through modern Iraq, the proclaimed site of the ancient Garden of Eden.  Supporters of these views claim that moving the International Dateline would enable those living at the longitude of Jerusalem to be the first in the world to begin Sabbath observance, and the rest of the world would observe the Sabbath as it came to them.

Would instituting this change in the International Dateline make the Sabbath arrive in Jerusalem before it arrives in Australia?  Suppose the IDL were moved westward from the 180th meridian to the 35th meridian, which runs through the State of Israel.  The Sabbath would still begin at sunset, Friday evening, January 1, at 4:46 PM in Israel.  What time and day would it be in Sydney?  Well, it would still be 1:45 AM, Saturday morning, which means that the Sabbath day would still begin in Sydney before arriving in Jerusalem.  Why is this so?  Because the world revolves counterclockwise on its axis once every 24 hours, and the weekly cycle of seven 24-hour days cannot be changed.

The only way for an Australian to begin observing the seventh day of the week after it arrives in Jerusalem is to travel to a point west of Jerusalem and remain there until the sun sets on Friday.  The Australian could then begin observing the Sabbath after those living in Jerusalem.  He cannot do so as long as he is in Australia.  It is impossible to do so in Australia because Friday sunset reaches the Sabbath keeper in Australia before it does the Sabbath keeper in Jerusalem.  The only way to make the Sabbath arrive in Jerusalem before it arrives in Australia would be to reverse the rotation of the earth.

Moving the International Dateline to Jerusalem cannot change the sequence of the days in the weekly cycle.  Doing so would, however, throw Jerusalem into incredible turmoil!  Imagine the hustle and bustle at sunset in Jerusalem.  On the west side of the IDL it would begin the Sabbath, while on the east side of the line it would begin Friday.  The west side of Jerusalem could travel to the east side and conduct business as usual.  Likewise, 24 hours later, Saturday evening would arrive for the west side of Jerusalem while the Sabbath was just beginning on the east side.  Jews could travel to the west side and business could go on as usual.

This scenario could occur anywhere on the earth if the International Dateline were located across a continent or large land mass rather than across an expanse of water, as it is now.  Jewish authorities are well aware of this fact.  They have already considered the issues involved in Sabbath observance in various parts of the world, especially for Jewish businessmen who must cross the International Dateline on a regular basis.  The following article shows the problems that would result if the IDL were relocated, as some rabbis feel it should be.

© Carl D. Franklin

A Traveler’s Guide To The International Dateline

Rabbi Dovid Heber, Star-K Kashrus Administrator

Refer to attached map – PDF Download

Halacha addresses two aspects of the Dateline: The location and halachic implications of crossing the Dateline.

I. Location: Various Rishonim, early commentators, and many Acharonim, later commentators, have written extensively on this topic. The three major opinions are as follows:

A. The Chazon Ish bases his opinion on the Baal Hamoer‘s (and other Rishonim) explanation of a complicated gemara in Rosh Hashana (20b, which discusses the appearance of the new moon in different regions of the world). The Dateline “technically” runs 90 degrees east of Yerushalayim, where the time is six hours later. This line is at 125.2°E (line B) and runs through Australia, China, and Russia.

However, if the Dateline in reality ran through the Chinese and Australian continents, the line could run through Main Street of Changchun, China, and Rawlinna, Australia. Families on one side of Main Street would recite kiddush while families on the other side recite havdala. It may be possible for those who want two days of Shabbos to cross from west to east after shalosh seudas and start Shabbos again. Those who want to skip almost all of Shabbos could cross Main Street from east to west and go from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday. However, halacha does not allow for such a situation. Instead, we consider the eastern land masses of the Asian and Australian continents tafel, secondary, to the western land masses of these same continents. Therefore, eastern sections of Australia, China, and Russia observe the same day for Shabbos as the western sections (based on Yesod Olam – a student of the Rosh).

Therefore, the halachic Dateline of the Chazon Ish avoids going through land by gerrymandering along the Russian and Korean coasts, then along the 125.2°E longitude line, through the East China Sea, Philippine Sea, and Indonesia. Finally, the line cuts eastward, around most of the Australian coast, and south towards Antarctica. According to the Chazon Ish, Japan, New Zealand, and Fiji are on the same side of the Dateline as the United States. When the Japanese and New Zealand residents say it is Saturday, halacha says it is Friday. When they say it is Sunday, it is halachically Shabbos.

B. Rav Yechiel Michel Tucazinsky, the author of the Gesher Hachaim, in Sefer Hayoman B’Kadur Ha’aretz, bases his ruling onChazal‘s Judaic principle that Yerushalayim is “the center of the world.” If so, the Earth “starts and ends” (i.e. the dateline) on the exact opposite side of the Earth, halfway around the globe at 144.8°W (line E). This line runs from the Gulf of Alaska through the Pacific Ocean east of Hawaii, placing Hawaii on the “other side of the Dateline” from the United States. Hawaii would then be nineteen hours ahead of Baltimore, rather than five hours behind, as it is on the same side of the Dateline as Asia. The day Hawaiians call Friday is halachically Shabbos, and the day they call Saturday is halachically Sunday.

C. “Mid-Pacific Poskim“ – Several Poskim, including the Bnai Tzion (Rav Dovid Shapiro z”tl), are of the opinion that the halachic Dateline runs through the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and closely resembles the Civil Dateline. According to these opinions, Japan and New Zealand are on the western side of the Dateline (similar to Asia), and residents of these locations observe Shabbos on the local Saturday. Hawaii is on the eastern side of the Dateline (similar to America), and residents observe Shabbos on their local Saturday.

The exact location varies among the Mid-Pacific Poskim. The Bnai Tzion‘s Dateline slants westward through the Bering Straits (between Alaska and Siberia), touching the Siberian coast, through the Pacific Ocean at approximately 177°E (west of Fiji), then turns east of New Zealand. Due to the slanting, the line intersects the Civil Dateline at three points. Other Mid Pacific Poskim, including the Atzei Sodeh (Rabbi Shmuel Dovid Siegel) and Rabbi B. Rabinowitz Thumim (in Hapardes Iyar 5714), are of the opinion that the line is at 169.7°W (Line D) – from the eastern tip of Siberia, directly southward through the Pacific Ocean, 10° east of the Civil Dateline.

What is the Halacha?One should consult with his Rav prior to crossing the Pacific Ocean, especially if he must stay over Shabbos in Japan, New Zealand, or Hawaii. The halachic ruling of Rav Moshe Heinemann, shlit”a, Rabbinic Administrator of the Star-K, is as follows: One should follow the majority of opinions in determining which day is observed as Shabbos, and also observe dinei d’oraisa shel Shabbos, Shabbos prohibitions of the Torah, on the day of the minority opinion. However, Rabbinic prohibitions, such as shopping and the handling of muktzah, are permissible on the day which the minority opinion considers Shabbos. In addition, performing even a biblically prescribed violation of Shabbos through a shinui, unusual manner, or through the action of a Gentile, would be permitted on the day which the minority opinion considers Shabbos.

The halachic ramifications of this psak (ruling) are as follows: In New Zealand and Japan, “Saturday” is Shabbos according to the Gesher Hachaim and the Mid Pacific Poskim. Therefore, the local Saturday should be fully observed as Shabbos, with Shabbos Prayers and kiddush, etc. (Incidentally, this is the day the Orthodox Jewish community in New Zealand observes as Shabbos.) However, according to the Chazon Ish, Shabbos is on the local Sunday. Therefore, one should not perform any melacha d’oraisa on Sunday. Nevertheless, on Sunday, one should daven regular weekday tefillos, donning tefillin during Shacharis.

In Hawaii, “Saturday” is Shabbos according to the Chazon Ish and the Mid Pacific Poskim. Therefore, the local Saturday is fully observed as Shabbos. (This is the day the small Orthodox Jewish community in Hawaii observes as Shabbos.) The day known locally as “Friday” is Shabbos according to the Gesher Hachaim, and one should not perform melacha d’oraisa on that day. Cooking for Shabbos should be done on Thursday.

Determining the majority opinion on the Aleutian Islands or South Pacific Islands, including Fiji and American Samoa, is complicated and beyond the scope of this article. However, in the following locations, Shabbos is observed on the local Saturday, and a “second day” is not necessary: Australia, China, Mainland Russia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Mainland Alaska (below the Arctic Circle; there are halachic concerns above the Arctic Circle – for a full discussion, see “When Does One Pray When There Is No Day“), and Manila, and other areas of the Philippines west of 125.2°E.

II. Crossing the Dateline:Repeating or skipping a day by crossing the Dateline poses various concerns in many aspects of halacha, including davening, sefira, Holidays, and laws of family purity. The guidelines are as follows: Halachos relating specifically to the time of day are not affected by crossing the Dateline. For example, if one davens Shacharis on Monday morning on a plane flying westbound, and crosses the Dateline “into” Tuesday morning, one does not daven Shacharis again. The person has already fulfilled his obligation and is not required to perform these mitzvos until the sun sets and rises again. However, mitzvos that are dependent on the day of the week or month are affected by crossing the Dateline. For example, if one crosses the line westbound from 1:00 p.m. Thursday to 1:00 p.m. Friday, one must begin preparing for Shabbos as it is Erev Shabbos and Shabbos will begin in several hours. If one flies westbound from 1:00 p.m. on Monday, the 16th of Tammuz, and crosses the halachic Dateline to 1:00 p.m. Tuesday on the 17th of Tammuz, one fasts until nightfall.

The author wishes to thank Rabbi S.D. Siegel, author of Atzei Sadeh, Rabbi Yisroel Taplin, and Mr. Chaim Brumer for their invaluable assistance: http://www.star-k.org/articles/articles/travel/515/when-does-one-pray-when-there-is-no-day/.

As this article shows, differing opinions are held by the followers of Judaism as to proper observance of the Sabbath in a number of countries in the world.  In some countries Jews are required to extend some of their Sabbath practices beyond the Sabbath day, either beginning with Friday or continuing through Sunday, the first day of the week.

Should Sabbath-keeping Christians also be observing the Sabbath on the first day of the week in some parts of the world?  Is the present placement of the International Dateline causing them to violate the Scriptural commands for Sabbath observance?  Should the International Dateline be moved, as a number of leading rabbis have argued?

As Christians, we do not need to resort to the opinions of rabbinical authorities.  We should look to the records of Scripture to guide us in resolving the question of Sabbath observance in those areas that are in doubt.  What is the example of Sabbath observance that we find recorded in Scripture?  The Sabbath command clearly requires observance of the seventh day of the week from sunset to sunset.  Do the Scriptures require that Sabbath observance begin in Jerusalem before it begins in any other part of the world?

To find the answer, we must examine the records of Sabbath observance in the nations outside of Jerusalem in Old Testament times.  When we look into the Scriptures, we find evidence in the book of Daniel that the weekly Sabbath was observed in Babylon before it was observed in Jerusalem.  Notice the record in Daniel 10 as presented on pages 15-17 in the paper entitled The Feast of Trumpets 2000:

Daniel 10 and the Calendar Calculations of 536 BC

The book of Daniel offers more Scriptural evidence to support the calculations of the Hebrew Calendar. Let us examine the account in Daniel 10, which records that a prophetic revelation was given to Daniel in the “third year of Cyrus king of Persia” (Dan. 10:1).  This verse refers to the third year of Cyrus’ reign over Babylon, which was 536 BC.  The following verse records that Daniel was fasting at the time the prophecy was given:  “In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks” (verse 2).

Daniel also describes this period as “whole weeks” (verse 3).  A more literal translation of the Hebrew text would read “weeks of days.”  This Hebrew expression refers to whole or complete weeks, which run from the beginning of the first day at sunset to the end of the seventh day at sunset.  Thus Scripture reveals that the three weeks of Daniel’s fast were indeed whole weeks, counted from the first day of the week through the seventh day.

Continuing in Daniel 10, we find that the fulfillment of the three weeks was “the four and twentieth day of the first month…”(verse 4).  Because the twenty-fourth day of the first month, or Nisan, ended the three full weeks, we know that this day was a weekly Sabbath. Counting backward from Nisan 24, we can determine that Daniel began his fast on Sunday, Nisan 4.  Thus Daniel 10 establishes the weekly cycle of days for the month of Nisan in 536 BC. By checking the calculated calendar data for 536 BC, we can determine whether the weekly cycle of days matches the account in Daniel 10.

Hebrew Calendar calculations for 536 BC place Passover, Nisan 14, on Wednesday, April 11. Counting backward ten days, we find that the calendar places Nisan 4, the first day of Daniel’s fast, on a Sunday.  Counting forward from Passover, we find that the calendar places Nisan 24 on a weekly Sabbath, April 21.  Here is clear and undeniable evidence that the weekly cycle of the calculated Hebrew Calendar matches the weekly cycle of the Old Testament.

The account in Daniel 10 clearly contradicts the claim that the Hebrew Calendar is invalid because the weekly cycle has been broken.  The words that Daniel was inspired to write in 536 BC testify today that the calculated Hebrew Calendar is in perfect accord with the weekly cycle of Scripture.

This account is significant because Daniel was dwelling in Babylon, which was more than 500 miles east of Jerusalem.  Consequently, at the beginning of each weekly Sabbath, the sun would set at Babylon before it set at Jerusalem.   Yet Daniel was reckoning the days of the week by the cycle of the Hebrew Calendar.  He did not alter the weekly cycle in order to begin observing the Sabbath after it had arrived in Jerusalem.  Rather, he observed the Sabbath on the seventh day of the week exactly as he had done in Jerusalem before being taken to Babylon.

Here then, is Scriptural evidence that the prophet Daniel observed the Sabbath in Babylon before it was observed in Jerusalem!  The prophet Ezekiel, a contemporary of Daniel, wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that Daniel was a righteous man (Ezek. 14:14).  The Scriptures do not condemn Daniel because he observed the Sabbath in Babylon before it had begun in Jerusalem.

Each week, sunset Friday night came to Babylon before it came to Jerusalem.  The weekly cycle has not changed since that time.  The earth still revolves on its axis in a counterclockwise motion, as it did at the time of Daniel.

Just as Daniel observed the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath day when he was living east of Jerusalem, so Sabbath keepers today in Australia and New Zealand are correctly observing the seventh day as the Sabbath.  The records of Scripture show that the seventh day is the Sabbath day in countries that lie east of Jerusalem, as well as in lands that lie west of Jerusalem.  The Sabbath in Australia and New Zealand is the same Sabbath day that is kept in Jerusalem, the United States of America and the rest of the world.

A person who dwells in any part of the world, whether east or west of Jerusalem, should have no problem determining which day is the Sabbath.  However, a traveler who crosses the International Dateline may encounter a problem.  Travel eastward across the IDL results in loss of a day, and travel westward results in gaining a day.  This difference in time is the result of traveling on a planet that is perpetually rotating in an easterly direction.  It is this physical reality which led to the establishment of an imaginary line at the 180th meridian called the International Dateline.

Why the International Dateline was Established

The International Dateline is not an arbitrary device, as some have been led to believe.  It is an acknowledgement of an undeniable fact of astrophysics involving the movement of the earth in relation to the sun.  Due to the rotation of the earth in a counterclockwise direction, one who travels in an easterly direction will gain time, and one who travels in a westerly direction will lose time.  This fact became self-evident in the days of the early mariners who discovered that when they circled the world, they either gained or lost a day.

What appears to be the earliest reference to the circumnavigator’s paradox is found in the works of the Syrian prince and geographer-historian Isma‘il ibn ‘Ali ibn Mahmud ibn Muhammad ibn Taqi ad-Din ‘Umar ibn Shahanshah ibn Ayyub al Malik al Mu’ayyad ‘Imad ad-Din Abu ’l-Fida (1273 – 1331). In his Taqwin al-Buldan (‘The ??? of the Lands’), Abu ’l-Fida described how a traveller, depending on his direction of travel, would either lose or gain a day at the completion of his circumnavigation [Rudolf Wolf, Handbuch der Astronomie, Ihrer Geschichte und Literatur (Zurich, 1890), vol 1, pp. 465-466; I still have to check the original source].

It was Antonio Pigafetta (c. 1490 – c. 1535), the Italian chronicler of the first circumnavigation of the world by the Portuguese explorer and navigator Ferdinand Magellan (c. 1480 – 1521), who first mentioned a peculiar incident that had occurred during the voyage: somewhere a whole day had apparently been ‘lost’. When Pigafetta, one of the eighteen survivors of the original 270-odd crew members who had set out from the Spanish port of San Lúcar de Barrameda in September 1519, nearly three years later sighted the Cape Verde Islands, he noted:

“On Wednesday, the ninth of July [1522], we arrived at one these islands named Santiago, where we immediately sent the boat ashore to obtain provisions. […] And we charged our men in the boat that, when they were ashore, they should ask what day it was. They were answered that to the Portuguese it was Thursday, at which they were much amazed, for to us it was Wednesday, and we knew not how we had fallen into error. For every day I, being always in health, had written down each day without any intermission. But, as we were told since, there had been no mistake, for we had always made our voyage westward and had returned to the same place of departure as the sun, wherefore the long voyage had brought the gain of twenty-four hours, as is clearly seen.”

(for the complete Italian text of Pigafetta’s journal, click here)

The story of the ‘lost day’ experienced by Magellan’s crew was also transmitted in a different version by Pietro Martire d’Anghiera (1457 – 1526) in the 5th decade of his De Orbe Novo (1530). This passage was translated by Richard Eden in The Decades of the Newe Worlde or West India (1555) as:

“And amonge other notable thynges by hym [Peter Martyr] wrytten as touchynge that vyage, this is one, that the Spaniards hauynge sayled abowt three yeares and one moneth, and the most of them noytynge the dayes, day by day (as is the manner of all them that sayles by the Ocean), they found when they were returned to Spayne, that they had lost one day. So that at theyr arryuall at the porte of Siuile beinge the seventh day of September, was by theyr accompt but the sixth day. And where as Don Peter Martyr declared the strange effects of this thynge to a certeyne excellente man [Gaspari Contarini of Venice (1483 – 1542)] who for his singular lernynge was greatly aduanced to honoure in his common welthe and made Themperours ambassadore, this woorthy gentelman who was also a greate Philosopher and Astronomer, answered that it coulde not otherwyse chaunce unto them hauynge sayled three years continually, euer folowynge the soonne towards the West. And sayde furthermore that they of owlde tyme obserued that all suche as sayled behind the soonne towards the West, dyd greatly lenghten the day.”

Peter Martyr’s lengthy discussions with Gaspari Contarini on this topic were summed up as:

“Being much disquieted and touched with that case, I conferred with Gaspari Contarini (a man not meanly instructed in all kinds of literature), who was then ambassador with the Emperor for his famous commonwealth of Venice. Whereby we know (discussing the matter with divers arguments) that this strange report, never heard before, might very well be after this manner: This Castilian ship set sail from the Islands of Gorgades [Cape Verde Islands] towards the west, which way also the sun goeth. Thence it came to pass that having followed the sun, they had every day longer according to the quantity of the way they made, wherefore having perfited [encompassed] the circle, which the sun performeth in twenty-four hours towards the west, it consumed and spent one whole day, therefore it had fewer days by one than they who have that space of time kept one certain place of abode. But if the Portugal fleet, which saileth toward the east, should return again unto the Gorgades, continuing their course unto the east by this way and navigation, now first found and discovered to mortal men, no man would doubt, seeing they should have shorter days, having perfited the circle, but that twenty-four whole hours should remain unto them over and above, and so one whole day, wherefore they should reckon more by one. And so if either fleet, to wit, the Castilian and the Portugal, had set sail the same day from the Gorgades, and the Castilian had sailed toward the west and the Portugal had toward the east, turning stern to stern, and had returned to the Gorgades by these divers ways in the same space of time and at the same moment, if that day had been Thursday to the Gorgades, it had been Wednesday to the Castilian, to whom a whole day was consumed into longer days. But to the Portugal, to whom by shortening of the days one day remained over and above, the same day would be Friday. Let philosophers more deeply discuss this matter, we yield these reasons for the present.”

Nearly sixty years later, the same phenomenon was observed by the crew members of the fleet of the English explorer Francis Drake (c. 1545 – 1596), when in September 1580 they arrived back again in Plymouth after a long westward voyage around the world that had started in late 1577.

“The 22 day [of September] we were in the height of the Canaries. And the 26 of Sept. (which was Monday in the iust and ordinary reckoning of those that had stayed at home in one place or countrie, but in our computation was the Lords day or Sonday) we safely with ioyfull minds and thankfull hearts to God, arrived at Plimoth, the place of our first setting forth, after we had spent 2 yeares 10 moneths and some few odde daies beside, in seeing the wonders of the Lord in the deep, in discouering so many admirable things, in going through with so many strange aduentures, in escaping out of so many dangers, and ouercomming so many difficulties in this our encompassing of this neather globe, and passing round about the world, which we haue related.”

In 1594 the Venetian trader Francesco Carletti (1574 – 1636) set out on a remarkable circumnavigation of the world in westward direction that lasted until the year 1606 and which he described in his Ragionamenti del mio viaggio intorno al mondo. Travelling without great haste via the Spanish dominions, crossing the isthmus of Panama and stopping over at Manila, he booked a passage for the Japanese port of Nagasaki in 1597. Upon his arrival there he observed:

“And we found a difference in reckoning the days between us, who had come from the city of Manila, and the Portuguese who had come from that of Macao, an island of China. These Portuguese, having left Lisbon and navigated constantly eastward, had reached Japan as the furthest point of their journeying. During their voyage, the sun having risen for them constantly earlier, they had gained twelve hours of a natural day. We, on the contrary, having left the port of Sanlucar de Barrameda in Spain and navigated steadily westward and having lost daylight constantly because the sun kept rising later, had lost twelve hours. So when we discussed it with them, we found that we had reached a difference of one day. And when they said it was Sunday, we counted up to Saturday. Had I pursued my voyage around the entire world without having met those Portuguese, by the time of my arrival in Europe, whence I first had departed, I should have lost exactly a whole day of twenty-four hours.

For I, having moved constantly from the east toward the west, changing meridians and therefore making the day later for myself, would have encountered this difference of one day as caused, as I have said, by the later or earlier rising and setting of the sun in the diverse meridians, which continue changing daily for those who navigate toward the east and toward the west. And it is true that in the Philippine Islands on that same day when the Spaniards and their Church are celebrating Holy Saturday, those who are in Japan – that is, the Portuguese and their Church – are eating meat, because for them it is the day of the Resurrection. So that if they were moving swiftly enough to reach Manila the next day, as is said to have happened to some navigators, they would celebrate the same Easter or other solemnity twice. And if they were to arrive on the day when those people celebrate the feast, it would befall them to return on Holy Saturday. On the other hand, if those from Manila should set out on the day when they solemnize Christmas and reach the island of Macao, where the Portuguese are, they would find those others at the second feast of Saint Stephen, and would thus celebrate one and another solemnity on the same day. And if they were able to arrive on the day before Christmas by their count, they would be able to eat meat without having fasted on the preceding day.

And this suffices for knowledge of that occurrence, perhaps not better understood earlier because the world had not been circumnavigated in olden times as it now is travelled around by value and virtue of the two crowns of Castile and Portugal, who have showed the way, the former navigating toward the east and reaching China and Japan, the other toward the west and reaching these Philippine Islands, about one thousand mikes from the island of Macao in China, the residence of the Portuguese. Together, those two crowns have come to make a circle around the whole world …”

Dutch circumnavigators of the world also had similar experiences. When Isaac le Maire (?? – 1624), after an arduous voyage around the southern tip of South America (named Cape Horn after the port of departure Hoorn), finally reached the port of Batavia on Java in November 1616, he noted in his journal:

“This [the confiscation of his ship and cargo by the authorities of the Dutch East India Company] was done on Munday the first day of November, after our reckoning, but upon a Tuesday the second of November by our Countrimens reckoning there. The reason of the difference of time fell out thus – as we sayled westward from our own Countrey, and had with the Sun compassed the Globe of the World, we had one night, or Sun-setting less then they. […] That weeke we lost the Tuesday, leaping from Munday to Wednesday, and so had one weeke of six dayes.”

As the records of ancient mariners show, the rotation of the earth makes the existence of an International Dateline an absolute necessity.  Since the one that has been established stretches across a vast expanse of ocean with relatively little land involved, it has served its purpose well.  There is no reason to move it.  In fact, the rabbis of Judaism have pointed out the potential dangers in placing the IDL in populated regions of the world, as some have proposed.

There is no Scriptural basis for moving the International Dateline to Jerusalem or changing the observance of the Sabbath day in countries that lie east of Jerusalem.  Records in the Old Testament show that faithful Sabbath keepers in Babylon were following the same weekly cycle they had used in Jerusalem, although Babylon was located east of Jerusalem.  Sabbath keepers living today in Australia and other such regions should follow the Scriptural example and continue to observe the seventh day of the week.

Bibliography

A History of the International Date Line:

Faculteit Natuur—en Sterrenkunde—Universiteit Utrecht: http://www.phys.uu.nl/~vgent/idl/idl.htm

Church of God Material:

CHCP’s Position on the International Date Line Issue

Bruce Armstrong and Bruce Harris

The International Dateline 1884, John Vennik.

Drake’s Voyage

General Information on the IDL: Article in the Wikipedia

Map Sites:

Latitude and Longitude Sites:

Magellan’s 1522 Globe

Magellan’s Voyage:

Ferdinand Magellan – History.com

Rabbinic Material: A Traveler’s Guide To The International Dateline Rabbi Dovid Heber, Star-K Kashrus Administrator

Scientific Sites:

The International Date Line

U.S. Naval Observatory

Astronomical Applications Department: https://www.usno.navy.mil/USNO/astronomical-applications/astronomical-information-center

The International Date Line, Explained

Time and Date Sites:


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The International
Meridian Conference One of the most unusual meetings in the history of time.

One of the most unusual meetings in the history of time was a conference held in Washington, D.C., beginning on October 1st, 1884. Invited by U.S. President Chester A. Arthur, 41 delegates from 25 nations met in the Diplomatic Hall at the Department of State, to attend what was being dubbed the International Meridian Conference.

The reason for the conference was to establish the Prime Meridian.

(The Prime Meridian, the straight line in the center of the map, is the line of longitude passing through the Royal Greenwich Observatory, in Greenwich, England; it is the meridian at which longitude is zero degrees (0o) and is often called the Greenwich Meridian.)

Prime Meridian/International Date Line Map

The need for such a meridian was simple: international commerce had grown to the extent that it was imperative to have all clocks set to a world standard.  With a world standard time system a more efficient transfer of cargo at international ports could be developed and an equally efficient system for the transfer of funds to pay for trade products could be achieved by world banking interests.

The nations that participated were Austria-Hungary, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, France, Germany, Great Britain, Guatemala, Hawaii, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, San Domingo, Salvador, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United States and Venezuela.   Invited but not present were Chile and Denmark.  The delegation from the USA was led by Rear-Admiral C. R. P. Rodgers, U.S. Navy, who at the first general session was elected President of the conference.  Other US members were Mr. Lewis M. Rutherfurd; Mr. W. F. Allen, Secretary, Railway Time Conventions; Commander W. T. Sampson, U.S. Navy; and Professor Cleveland Abbe, U. S. Signal Office.

At the conference the following principles were established:

  • It was desirable to adopt a single world meridian to replace the numerous ones already in existence.
  • The meridian passing through the Observatory at Greenwich was to be the “initial meridian.”
  • That all longitudes would be calculated both east and west from this meridian up to 180°.
  • All countries would adopt a universal day.
  • The universal day would be a solar day, beginning at midnight in Greenwich and counted on a 24-hour clock.
  • That all nautical and astronomical days everywhere would begin at 12:00:01 a.m.
  • All technical studies to regulate and extend the application of the decimal system to the division of time would be supported.  (In the years since the conference, this has not been accomplished.)

The Resolution fixing the meridian at Greenwich was passed 22-1 (San Domingo, now Dominican Republic, voted against); France and Brazil abstained.  The French did not adopt the Greenwich meridian on their maps until 1911.

The International Date Line (the jagged red line down the right side of the map) is the 180° meridian, and is on the opposite side of the world from the Prime Meridian.  The date line bends around some national borders for convenience sake.

The meridian through Greenwich was selected as the Prime Meridian because over two-thirds of all ships already used it as zero longitude.  Other reference meridians used before 1884 included ones in the Canary Islands, Rome, Copenhagen, Jerusalem, Saint Petersburg, Pisa, Paris, Oslo, and Philadelphia.

The conference’s accomplishments are present in every day of our lives, and although I know of no postcard about the conference, there are map postcards of every variety and postcards that show time zones (like the one above), clocks, timepieces and watches – all of which would be useless without the Prime Meridian.

Please Click to Continue:  Part 3 of 6