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of Babylonia themselves cited, in retrospect, the return of one of their own, Rav (Abba),
to Babylonia in 219 C.E., as the BEGINNING OF A NEW ERA in the relative status of
the two great Jewish communities: "We have made ourselves [or, consider ourselves] in
Babylonia like Eretz Israel -- from when Rav went down to Babylonia." While this may
seem to telescope a long drawn out process into one identifiable event, the fact is that the
date designated in that statement indeed POINTS ACCURATELY TO THE EARLY
THIRD CENTURY, when Babylonia's star began to rise (ibid., p. 262).

While the control of the calendar remained in the hands of the Palestinian Jews it was in-
violate; but when control passed to the Babylonian Jews events transpired that affected the calen-
dar and the keeping of God's true Sabbath day. The environment that brought this about is
discussed by Herschal Shanks in the following pages of his book --

As we enter the third century, we find that the Jews of Babylonia have at their head an
EXILARCH (resh galuta, "HEAD OF THE DIASPORA") with [false] claims to Davidic
lineage...But the exilarchate did not rule the Babylonian Jewish communities single-
handedly. Alongside the exilarch a new framework of leadership -- THE RABBIS OF
BABYLON -- emerged.

Continues Shanks:

If the rabbis of Babylonia were PRUDENT in their relationship with the exilarch, they
were EVEN MORE CAUTIOUS in defining and publicly stating their attitude toward the
GOVERNMENT. As we have already noted, it is in Babylonia [not Palestine] that we en-
counter the well-formulated principle that "THE LAW OF THE GOVERNMENT IS
LAW" (ibid., pp. 263-264).

Shanks brings out the fact that there were very marked differences in the ATTITUDE TO-
WARD GOVERNMENT and the preservation of Jewish religion and life between the Palestinian
and Babylonian Jews. The Palestinian Jews jealously guarded their religion and way of life while
the Babylonian Jews were clearly willing to accommodate the government of their area and COM-
PROMISE certain principles they held. This included the Sabbath day.

During this time a major revival of the Zoroastrian religion took place (226 A.D.) when the
first Sassanian King, Ardeshir, came to the Persian throne. He made reforms to the old lunar-based
calendar that had a far-reaching effect on his people (especially the Jews) who initially rejected
his new calendar since it affected their religious observances. This resulted, for a while, in TWO
CALENDARS, one decreed by the king and the other, older one, followed by the majority of the
people in the Kingdom. Eventually, however, the new calendar won out and the Persians, as well
as the Jews of Babylonia, began to organize their sabbaths according to the new solar
calendar.

Hutton Webster makes mention of this fact, stating that

There is extant a Pehlevi tract, said to have been composed in Persia during the FOURTH
CENTURY A.D., which mentions among other matters FIVE DAYS IN EVERY

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