It’s not just about the Bunny
Brad Everett
Times Contributor
Mention the word “Easter” and the first things that spring to many minds are bunnies, chocolate, eggs, lilies and thoughts of new beginnings. But in fact Easter (also known as Pascha by Eastern Orthodox Christians) is the central celebration of the Christian year, which commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
The church believes it was in this event that Jesus was revealed finally and fully as the Son of God and that because Jesus rose from the dead this promise of eternal life offered to all.
Unlike Christmas, which has a fixed date of December 25, the feast of Easter is moveable. The formula for calculating the date was established by the Church at Council of Nicea council in the 4 C AD—the Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal (spring) equinox.
A feast as important as Easter requires a time of preparation. In the Church this 40-plus day season of prayer and fasting is known as Lent. The last week before Easter Sunday is known as Holy Week and remembers Jesus’ last days. The high point of the week is the last three days with the services of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Vigil. “Maundy” is a corruption of the Latin word mandatum which means commandment and refers to Jesus’ commandment to his disciples at their last supper to love one another as he has loved them. Good Friday is a somber day that recalls Jesus’ death on the cross and his burial in the tomb. Easter Vigil is festival’s equivalent of Christmas Eve – a service of expectation looking forward to the celebration of the resurrection.
While many think of Easter as just one day, it in fact is an entire season within the Church that begins on Easter Sunday and continues for 50 days. It concludes with the feast of Pentecost, which celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit and establishment of the followers of Jesus as the Church.
The tradition of Easter eggs is a product of the Lenten fast (eggs were one of the restricted foods).
By the time Easter came there were more than 40 days of eggs sitting around, and so they were decorated and eaten. The egg also is an image of the tomb. It looks like a stone, but inside there is the golden yolk resembling the sun.