When is Easter Celebrated?
Every year Easter commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and is the main celebration feast of the Christian year. The New Testament tells us that Jesus was crucified on Passover Eve. Three days later, He rose from the dead.
Over time, the date of the Easter festival became an issue between the Christians and the Jews. The Jewish people celebrated the resurrection of Christ immediately after the Passover festival, which fell on the evening of the full moon. Therefore, Easter fell on different days of the week from year to year.
However, Christians chose to commemorate the resurrection on the first day of the week, which by their calendar was Sunday. That way, Easter always fell on the same day of the week, but was celebrated on different dates depending on the year.
The result of the conflict was that the Christian churches in the East celebrated Easter on a different day than the Christian churches in the West.
Although attempts to come to agreement have been made down through the centuries, in the western Christian world Easter is celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon following the vernal equinox; and if the full moon should occur on a Sunday and thereby coincide with the Passover festival, Easter should be commemorated on the Sunday following. By choosing this method, the feasts of Easter and Passover will remain on separate dates.
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII adopted the Gregorian calendar and thus eliminated much of the difficulty in fixing the date of Easter and arranging the ecclesiastical year.
Since 1752, the Gregorian calendar was also adopted in Great Britain and Ireland. Since that time, Easter has been celebrated on the same day in the Western part of the Christian world.
The Eastern churches, however, which did not adopt the Gregorian calendar, commemorate Easter on a Sunday either preceding or following the date observed in the West. Occasionally the dates coincide, most recently in 1865 and 1963.
When is Easter?
Easter 2009 will be Sunday, April 12
Easter 2010 will be Sunday, April 4
Easter 2011 will be Sunday, April 24
Easter 2012 will be Sunday, April 8
I love easter. It is a great time to bond with families. It reminds us of our salvation through Christ.
I agree totally – It is one of the best times to spread the Good News as well – along with Christmas, of course. Thanks for stoppy by and leaving a message!
Easter is probably the best time of the year for me. With Easter we can really take the time to talk with loved ones about who Jesus was and what he did for human kind. It’s THE time of the year for that when it is Easter.
Yes! It is a great time to share the good news of Jesus Christ.