Easter is a time of springtime festivals. In Christian
countries Easter is celebrated as the religious holiday
commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the son of
God. But the celebrations of Easter have many customs and
legends that are pagan in origin and have nothing to do with
Christianity
 Scholars,
accepting the derivation proposed by the 8th-century English
scholar St. Bede, believe the name Easter is thought to come
from the Scandinavian "Ostra" and the Teutonic "Ostern"
or "Eastre," both Goddesses of mythology signifying
spring and fertility whose festival was celebrated on the day
of the vernal equinox.
Traditions
associated with the festival survive in the Easter rabbit, a
symbol of fertility, and in colored Easter eggs, originally
painted with bright colors to represent the sunlight of
spring, and used in Easter-egg rolling contests or given as
gifts.
The
Christian celebration of Easter embodies a number of
converging traditions with emphasis on the relation of Easter
to the Jewish festival of Passover, or Pesach, from which is
derived Pasch, another name used by Europeans for Easter.
Passover is an important feast in the Jewish calendar which is
celebrated for 8 days and commemorates the flight and freedom
of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.
The
early Christians, many of whom were of Jewish origin, were
brought up in the Hebrew tradition and regarded Easter as a
new feature of the Passover festival, a commemoration of the
advent of the Messiah as foretold by the prophets.
Easter
is observed by the churches of the West on the first Sunday
following the full moon that occurs on or following the spring
equinox (March 2I). So Easter became a "movable" feast which
can occur as early as March 22 or as late as April 25.
Christian
churches in the East which were closer to the birthplace of
the new religion and in which old traditions were strong,
observe Easter according to the date of the Passover festival.
Easter
is at the end of the Lenten season, which covers a
forty-six-day period that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends
with Easter. The Lenten season itself comprises forty days, as
the six Sundays in Lent are not actually a part of Lent.
Sundays are considered a commemoration of Easter Sunday and
have always been excluded from the Lenten fast. The Lenten
season is a period of penitence in preparation for the highest
festival of the church year, Easter.
Holy
Week, the last week of Lent, begins its with the observance of
Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday takes its name from Jesus' triumphal
entry into Jerusalem where the crowds laid palms at his feet.
Holy Thursday commemorates the Last Supper, which was held the
evening before the Crucifixion. Friday in Holy Week is the
anniversary of the Crucifixion, the day that Christ was
crucified and died on the cross.
Holy
week and the Lenten season end with Easter Sunday, the day of
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Now, you know a little more about
Easter! |
