Easter time is hear again, and with it the promise of spring, warmer temperatures and sunnier, brighter days.
It really can’t help but be a happy occasion, and of course, different people celebrate it in different ways. Of course there is the emphasis on candy – chocolate bunnies, carefully decorated Easter eggs, Easter egg hunts and so forth.
There is nothing wrong with any of this – it’s always fun to watch kids enjoy themselves not just with the treats but with all the fun activities that are planned during the Easter season. Egg rolling is also a traditional Easter egg game played with eggs at Easter, although not so much in Canada.
In the United Kingdom, Germany, and other countries children traditionally rolled eggs down hillsides at Easter.
This tradition was taken to the new world by European settlers and continues to this day each Easter on the White House lawn, for example. Different nations have different versions of the game.
Many families also gather to mark the occasion by having special meals together.
Some observe the religious aspects of Easter by attending Sunday Mass or services in the morning and then participating in a feast or party in the afternoon. Some families have a traditional Sunday roast, often of either roast lamb or ham.
Again, that’s always a good thing in a busy age when it’s tough for family members to seem to find the time to get together for any length of time. An occasion to enjoy the company of friends and loved ones is always a welcome break in an increasingly busy and disconnected society.
Ultimately, Easter is of course a Christian festival and holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day after his crucifixion as described in the New Testament. Easter is the culmination of the Passion of Christ.
Also, Easter is the oldest Christian holiday and the most important day of the church year. The last three days before Easter are Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday. All the Christian feasts and the entire liturgical year of worship are arranged around Easter.
Easter is preceded by the season of Lent, a 40-day period of fasting and repentance culminating in Holy Week, and followed by a 50-day Easter season that stretches from Easter to Pentecost. Easter is also described as a ‘moveable feast’, meaning it is not fixed in relation to the civil calendar.
The First Council of Nicaea established the date of Easter as the first Sunday after the full moon following the March equinox.
The date of Easter therefore varies from March 22nd to April 25th inclusive, according to Wikipedia. So this weekend, however you choose to celebrate Easter, we wish you a joyful time with family and friends.
