Time marches on, which was evident when we flipped the calendar page over to March. Although this year, that is hardly necessary, because until the 28th arrives, the days of the week are the same as February. That’s about all the two months have in common.
In March, there are people celebrating their birthdays that I want to send cards to. Oftentimes there are cooperative meetings and suppers that occur in March and ought not be missed, and perhaps an appointment or two that are needful.
And I am happy my calendar still has Sunday as the first day of the week, whereas my daily planner which details the work that needs doing each day and the meals I plan to cook does not. It lists Sunday as the last day of the week, which is sad to see the prophecy fulfilled by some wise sages who not so long ago (probably during my years of life) warned that when the word “weekend” became common in our vocabulary, people would soon forget that Sunday is the first of the week and give it the proper honor and respect it should have.
This subtle change got me wondering about the history of calendars, which I learned is far more complex than choosing which pretty calendar to purchase each December.
Calendars are based on the science of chronology. If your high school senior pursues a career as a chronologer, they will be well-versed in chronology, the science that treats of events and arranges their dates in proper sequence (National Dictionary definition, 1941).
The same dictionary describes a calendar not only as a register of the days, weeks, and months of the years, but expands the definition to include a register or list; a list of criminal causes arranged for trial. This probably refers to the original Latin word calendarium, meaning “interest register” or “account book.”
The next entry after calendar month is calendar reform. At one time there must have been a movement to change the calendar for greater regularity by establishing 13 months of 28 days each. That obviously got lost in space, much like my desire to get rid of daylight saving time.
We can thank Josephus Justus Scaliger for teaching us about chronology. He was born in France in 1540 to an Italian physician and philosopher. Scaliger was educated by his father until he was 10 years of age. He and his brothers were sent to a boarding school in Bordeaux for a few years. When a plague broke out in 1555, the boys returned home to be educated by their father.
This man had a different view of daily chores. I doubt that Scaliger ever milked cows or cleaned a chicken house, rather he had to meet his father’s demands of writing a per diem composition and declamation in Latin. This tenth child became proficient in the Greek, Persian, Arabic and Syrian languages, several of which he taught himself.
This knowledge came in handy for his reading of books that were ancient even for that era. Without internet and other modern communication, he had to depend on the archaic books that he had collected for his research of chronology.
He soon realized that astronomy played an important role in chronology. From his studies of recorded past eclipses, he could predict future ones. He included that knowledge in his most well-known book “Opus de emendation temporum” (“Amending Chronology,” 1583). This book and other writings earned him the title, “the founder of modern chronology.”
He spent his last fifteen years of life in Leiden (the Netherlands) as the first research professor. He didn’t have to do anything but research. I suppose he would have been as useful to the college in that day as prized athletes are today. Scaliger could be picked out at college functions as the professor in the purple robe.
After his death, his treatise on established numismatics, also known as the study of coins, was published. The book remains a reliable tool in historical research. It takes many coins to purchase an original copy of this book as some of his first edition books written in Latin cost over $16,000.
Since I have no intention of pursuing a career as a numismatic, it is just fine with me that my dad taught me to milk cows instead of teaching me Latin. Although it would have been nice if he had taught me to speak German, the language he learned from his dad.
Through the ages, there have been many different ways of keeping track of years by different civilizations — Babylonian, Egyptian, Chinese. Many have been based off the moon. It was Julius Caesar who gave us leap year, adding the extra day to February every four years. Pope Gregory XIII invented the Gregorian calendar in 1852, which replaced the Julian calendar, which had replaced the Roman calendar.
This Gregorian calendar is not used by everyone today. According to World Populations Review, there are also the Ethiopian, Bangla, Solar Hijri, Thai Lunar, Nepal Sambat, Jewish, and Chinese calendars to name a few….we all know that chronometry, or keeping track of time, is challenging.
For some of us, the first time we heard the word “chronicles” was when we looked into the Holy Bible. In the first half of the Old Testament, one will find the First and Second Book of Chronicles. Since the Hebrew phrase for chronicles is “word of days,” it is a proper name for these two books. They chronicle the lives of real people living real lives just as you and I do.
It wasn’t so many months ago, that my farmer and I read through these verses. There was so much to learn that we wished our minds were better at retraining the Word that was recorded for our benefit. There were times we were humbled by the thought of our own sins and how we fall short of the glory of God; we rejoiced to read of His forgiveness and mercies; were encouraged to pray often and to seek the Lord God and to walk in His commandments. Several verses reminded us to praise the NAME of the LORD.
Other sources used: EBESCO and Brittanica Online Encyclopedia
Renae B. Vander Schaaf is an independent writer. To contact her: email agripen@live.com or call/text 605-530-0017.