Easter Festival 2023: The festival is held on the Sunday after the first full moon, the full moon day of Passover, after the spring equinox. The Easter festival is celebrated by most Christians because they believe in the resurrection of Jesus. According to the Bible, the event is said to have occurred three days after Jesus was crucified by the Romans and died around 30-33 AD. And this year it falls on April 9.
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What is the meaning of Easter?
It is said that the meaning of Easter is the victory of Jesus Christ over death. The festival celebrates the resurrection of Jesus and is considered the rebirth of Christianity. It is believed that Jesus, the son of God, died because of people’s mistakes and rose again three days later to defeat death and evil.
The word Easter comes from the Anglo-Saxon month ‘Eostremonath’, meaning the time of year we now call April when the Christian festival is celebrated. Did you know the month is named after the German goddess ‘Eostre’ or ‘Ostara’? It is said that the only reference to the name is from the early historian Bede in 725 AD.
Let us tell you that the week leading up to Easter is called Holy Week or Passion Week and includes Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.
Note: Palm Sunday is the day Jesus entered Jerusalem and was celebrated. Maundy Thursday is the “Last Supper” where Jesus met with his disciples to celebrate Passover and Good Friday when Jesus was crucified on the cross.
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Easter follows a period of fasting known as Lent, during which many churches set aside time for repentance and remembrance. Fasting begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Good Friday, the day Jesus was crucified. Pope Gregory 1 established the 40-day period using the 40-day pattern of the times of Israel, Moses, Elijah, and Jesus in the wilderness.
There is no doubt that Easter is a very important day in Christianity and is considered the foundation of the Christian faith.
The Son of God, Jesus fulfilled prophecy and through His death, gave the gift of eternal life in heaven to those who believe in His death and resurrection.
When does Easter start?
The first Christians celebrated the resurrection on Nisan 14 (March-April), the Jewish Passover. The Jewish day is counted from afternoon to evening. Therefore, Jesus celebrated His Last Supper on the evening of Passover and on the day of his crucifixion on Passover.
Some Christians began celebrating Easter on the Sunday closest to Passover because Jesus was actually resurrected on Sunday. It basically became a tradition in the Roman Empire. So, in Rome, Easter is celebrated on different days.
According to some Christians, the Pope’s date should continue to be based on the timing of Easter during Passover. After determining the date of Passover, Jewish leaders set the date of Easter by calculating the three days after Passover. Therefore, the date of Easter is different every year.
Others believe that God was resurrected on Sunday and so this day is set aside as the Lord’s Day. This is the only possible day to commemorate his resurrection.
Symbol of Easter
The Easter Egg and the Easter Bunny are both fertility symbols, remnants of the feast of Eostara. Other Symbols include pagan joy in the rising sun of spring, which coincides with Christian joy in the resurrected Son of God, and candles in churches lighting corresponds to the pagan campfire. Even on this day, the symbol of the cross and the image of Jesus Christ, through paintings or statues, are remembered.
Constantine wanted that Christianity should be celebrated away from Judaism and did not want Easter to be celebrated on the Jewish Passover. Therefore, the Council of Nicea required that Easter be celebrated on Sunday and never on the Jewish Passover. Easter is the Sunday immediately following the full moon following the spring equinox.
A religious service called the Easter Vigil holds the celebration late on Saturday. People exchange Easter eggs, symbolizing fertility and birth, as well as candy and chocolates with friends and family on this day.
Important dates in April 2023
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Source: pagasa.edu.vn