THE MEANING OF EASTER - Pt. 2

For much of the western, as well as the eastern world, Easter is a very important religious holiday. As mentioned in my previous article, it is the commemoration and celebration of the resurrection of Jesus from the grave which happened on the third day after his crucifixion (27 – 33 AD). This event is of great significance because the very foundation of our faith rests upon it! The Apostle Paul tells us, “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14). If the resurrection did not really happen, then the apostles were liars and false witnesses, our faith is invalid, we are all still lost in our sins, the dead in Christ have perished, and there’s really no hope for any of us beyond the grave! Everything we as Christians hold dear and true is dependant upon the historical accuracy of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ!

Easter is also closely linked to the Jewish Passover celebration not only for much of its symbolism, but also for its position in the calendar. * Easter also refers to the season of the church year called "Eastertide" or the "Easter Season". Traditionally the Easter Season lasted for the forty days from Easter Day until Ascension Day, but now officially lasts for the fifty days until Pentecost. The first week of the Easter Season is known as Easter Week.

According to the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark & Luke), the crucifixion is to have been around the time of the Jewish Passover. The Last Supper shared by Jesus and his disciples just before his death is generally thought of as a Passover meal, based upon the chronology of these three Gospel accounts. The Gospel of John, however, speaks of the Jewish elders not wanting to enter the hall of Pilate in order "that they might eat the Passover", implying that the Passover meal had not yet occurred (John 18:28; John 19:14). So, John places Christ's death at the time of the slaughter of the Passover lamb, which would put the Last Supper slightly before Passover, on 14 of Nisan of the Bible's Hebrew calendar. The Jewish feast was carried over into the Christian Easter celebration as well.

* Easter is one of those holidays that are considered 'moveable' feasts because it is not a fixed date on the calendar. It falls at some point between late March and late April each year following the cycle of the moon. It is for this reason that the date of Easter has been a controversy for many centuries. Some have wanted it to be a fixed holiday based on the Jewish calendar, while others wanted it to be distinguished from the Jewish date. The 14 Nisan date (based on the Jewish calendar), was used in the early church and was strongest in the churches of Asia Minor until the issue was formally settled at the First Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. It was decided that all Christians would celebrate Easter on the same day, which would be Sunday. The council did not set a specific date, but rather gave the Bishop of Alexandria the privilege of announcing the annual date of the Christian Passover. Of course, it did take some time for the Alexandrian rules and methods to be applied and adopted throughout Europe. In the meantime, the Church of Rome continued to use an 84 year lunisolar calendar cycle from the late 3^rd century until about 457 AD. With the adoption of the Gregorian calendar by the Catholic Church in 1582 and the continuing use of the Julian calendar by Eastern Orthodox Churches, the date on which Easter is celebrated is again deviated, and continues to differ to this day.

* The rule, since the Middle Ages, has been for Easter to be observed on the Sunday after the first full moon on or after the day of the vernal equinox. Vernal equinox refers to the Sun positioned directly over the Earth’s equator, which happens around March 20^th and September 23^rd each year.

I believe that while it is a good idea to try and celebrate an important occasion as close to the true date as possible, it is more important to celebrate the event and not put too much emphasis on the date. In doing so, we can assure ourselves not to lose site of the real issue, in this case, the miracle of the resurrection of Christ!

3/17/2008

James

[* Information for this article provided by:
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia online]