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The Easter Season
Resurrection of the Lord
Easter or Resurrection Sunday is the day Christians celebrate the
resurrection of Jesus the Christ from the dead. Even before theologians
explained the death of Jesus in terms of various atonement theories, the early
church saw his resurrection as the central witness to a new act of God in
history and the
victory of God in vindicating Jesus as the Messiah. This event marks the central
faith confession of the early church and was the focal point for Christian
worship, observed on the first day of each week since the first century (Acts
20:7; Sunday was officially proclaimed the day of Christian worship in AD 321).
Easter as an annual celebration of the Resurrection that lies at the center of a
liturgical year has been observed at least since the fourth century. Even in
churches that traditionally do not observe the other historic seasons of the
church year, Easter has occupied a central place as the high point of Christian
worship.
Prior to the fourth century, Christians observed Pascha, Christian
Passover, in the Spring of the year. Adapted from Jewish Passover, Pascha was a
festival of redemption and commemorated both the crucifixion and resurrection of
Jesus as the vehicle for God’s grace. While historical records are not clear, it
is likely that early Jewish Christians observed both Passover (Pesach) and
Pascha. However, many Gentile converts were hesitant to adopt the Jewish
festival, especially since the Jerusalem Council had decided that Gentile
converts to Christianity did not have to observe Jewish religious practices
(Acts 15). Gradually by the fourth century, with an increasing emphasis on Holy
Week and Good Friday, Easter moved into a distinctively Christian celebration of
the Resurrection, with Good Friday commemorating Jesus’ crucifixion and death.
Easter, like Passover, is a movable feast. That is, the date of Easter
(and Passover) is not fixed but is determined by a system based on a lunar
calendar adapted from a formula decided by the Council of Nicaea in AD 325. In
this system, Easter is celebrated on the first Sunday following the first full
moon after the Spring equinox (the day when the sun’s ecliptic or apparent path
in the sky crosses the equator, thus making days and nights of equal length).
This usually occurs on March 21, which means the date of Easter can range
between March 22 and April 25 depending on the lunar cycle. Since Jewish
Passover is calculated differently, the dates for Passover and Easter do not
correspond, although often the first Day of Passover falls during Holy Week.
Much of the calendar of the Church year is determined by the date of Easter.
In the Christian church year, the two major cycles of
seasons, Christmas and Easter, are far more than a single day of observance.
Like Christmas, Easter itself is a period of time rather than just a day. It is
actually a seven-week season of the church year called Eastertide, the
Great Fifty Days that begins at sundown the evening before Easter Sunday
(the Easter Vigil) and lasts for six more Sundays until Pentecost Sunday. These
seven Sundays are called the Sundays of Easter, climaxing on the seventh
Sunday, the Sunday before Pentecost Sunday. This is often celebrated as
Ascension Day (actually the 40th day after Easter Sunday, which always falls
on Thursday, but in churches that do not have daily services it is usually
observed the following Sunday). Ascension Day marks not only the resurrection of
Jesus from the dead, but his exaltation from servanthood to Ruler and Lord as
the fitting climax of Resurrection Day (Eph 1:20-22).
Color used in worship is especially important during the season of Easter.
The changing colors of the sanctuary from the purple of Lent to the black of
Good Friday provide graphic visual symbols for the Lenten journey. The change
of colors for Easter and the following Sundays helps communicate the movement of
sacred time as well as personal faith journeys. The Sanctuary colors for Easter
Sunday and Ascension Day are white and gold, the colors of sacred days
throughout the church year. For the Easter season, white symbolizes the hope of
the resurrection, as well as the purity and newness that comes from victory over
sin and death. The gold (or yellow) symbolizes the light of the world brought
by the risen Christ that enlightens the world, as well as the exaltation of
Jesus as Lord and King. The sanctuary color for the other five Sundays of
Easter is usually also white and gold, although some churches use Red, the color
of the Church, for these Sundays as well as for
Pentecost Sunday. During this time
worshippers are called to celebrate God's ongoing work in the world through his
people, and to acknowledge and reflect upon the their purpose, mission, and
calling as God’s people, which makes Red an appropriate color for this season.
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