Easter is a Christian holiday that marks the day in which Jesus rose from the dead. The celebration of his resurrection occurs three days after Good Friday, the day in which he was crucified.
Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring, and as such, usually comes in late March or early April. http://www.assa.org.au/edm.html#Method It is usually considered one of the most important holidays in the Christian faith, along with Christmas, Pentecost, and Epiphany.http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-the-major-christian-holidays.htm
Easter brings to an end the period known as Lent, which is a period of mild fasting for Christians, beginning with Ash Wednesday. As such, Easter is usually celebrated with a big meal. As with Christmas, Easter has a significant secular value, although it doesn't usually imply the rampant gift-giving one sees every December.
Date Controversy
In the church, Easter is celebrated as more than one day. In fact, it is a whole religious season like Lent, which precedes it. Eastertide lasts 50 days after Easter Sunday.http://news.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474978150593
Western and eastern Christian traditions celebrate Easter on different dates. The western date is based on the Gregorian calendar, which was established by Pope Gregory in 1582. The Eastern Orthodox churches don't recognize the Gregorian calendar, and continue to celebrate Easter in accordance with the rules established by Constantine in 325, using the Julian calendar.http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/easter.php The Date of Easter]
When is Easter?
Easter Traditions
Here are a few popular traditions on Easter:
- Easter Bunny: the big rabbit is a symbol of Easter and also a symbol of fertility.http://www.holidays.net/easter/story.htm
- Easter egg hunts: Every Easter morning, the kids of a household wake up and scour the house for eggs, ostensibly deposited their overnight by the Easter bunny. The eggs are usually hard-boiled, so as to minimize mess in case of a broken eggs. After the hunt is complete, the family often turns the newly discovered treasure into egg salad. Easter egg hunts are also popular in public spaces, such as the White House garden.http://www.whitehouse.gov/easterEggRoll
- Easter Baskets: After the hunting is done, kids are often handed a big basket of candies and little trinkets, also ostensibly delivered by the Easter bunny in all his generosity.
- Easter meals: Since Lent implies fasting, Easter (which marks its conclusion) means chowing down. Typically, the main course is a big ham. http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Easter-Ham/Detail.aspx
Easter Crafts
Here's a suggestion for a crafts activity for kids on Easter morning from a Parents Magazine editor. As with many Easter crafts, this one has to do with eggs, but also includes decorating with socks, which is a more original wrinkle.
Easter Mass
Here's a traditional Catholic mass, in Latin, on Easter Sunday. You can't find them like this anymore, as priests no longer performs mass in Latin. But it does offer you a taste of what the service was like several decades ago.
References
Fast Facts
-
Also called
"Pascha," from Pesach, or Passover
-
Fact:
Marks the end of Lent
-
Fact:
The date Easter falls on varies annually
-
Fact:
-
Easter 2010
April 4
-
Orthodox Easter 2009
-
Easter egg
Symbol of fertility and new life
