7 - Did Jesus use the solar calendar of Qumran for his last supper Passover?

Summary

He [Jesus] celebrated Passover with his disciples probably according to the calendar of Qumran, that is to say, at least one day earlier [than Passover in the official Jewish calendar].

(Pope Benedict XVI's Holy Thursday Homily, Vatican City, April 6, 2007)

On Easter Thursday, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI made the controversial statement quoted above. I write ‘controversial’ because, as we have seen in Chapter 3, only a small minority of biblical scholars support a different calendar solution of the synoptics/John last supper controversy. However, now that Pope Benedict, who is a fine scholar, has come out in favour of a different calendar, the Qumran solar calendar, I will give this calendar particular attention. By the end of this chapter we will know, I believe beyond reasonable doubt, whether Jesus used the Qumran solar calendar for his last Passover.

The significance of the Pope's statement should not be underestimated. It was highlighted in many newspapers around the world. For example, the UK national daily paper the Daily Telegraph stated on April 7, 2007: ‘The Pope has sought to resolve a 2000-year-old dispute about the Last Supper. Theologians have long argued over whether the meal that Jesus had with his disciples was the traditional Passover menu of roast lamb. The gospel of St John states that Jesus was crucified on the day of preparation for the Passover, the day before. St Mark says that Jesus requested a room to “eat the Passover with my disciples”.