|
Easter
In the early Church, Christians observed Pascha, or the Christian Passover, along with their Jewish neighbors. It was a festival
of redemption and observed both the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. By the time the fourth century arrived, the
celebrations of Christians became distinguished from the Jewish Passover because most Christians observed the entire Holy Week
beginning with Palm Sunday through Resurrection Sunday. In 325 A.D., Constantine pronounced the feast of Easter official during
the Council of Nicaea. The date of Easter is determined as the Sunday following the full moon on or after the vernal equinox, so
Easter is not on the same day each year.
To Christians, Easter is probably the most important Christian holiday because it celebrates man's reconciliation with a Holy
God through the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. The Easter holiday includes a time of preparation and will include the Pentecost
when the Holy Spirit empowered the apostles to spread the Word of redemption. It celebrates the empty Tomb. Pilgrims from all over
the world will go to Jerusalem to observe the holiday.
The Church of the Holy Sepulcher inside the walls of the Old City
is traditionally where the Roman Catholics, Orthodox, Anglicans, and Lutherans will visit.
The Holy Sepulcher
Photo from Google Images
The fundamentalist Christians prefer to visit the
Garden Tomb with is just north of the Old City near the hill with the skull.
The Garden Tomb (empty)
Photo from Google Images
The Sanctuary colors for Easter Sunday and Ascension Day are gold and white.
Gold stands for the light Jesus brought into the world:
|
I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
John 12:46 |
White stands for the hope of the resurrection and the purity that comes from
victory over sin and death:
|
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though
they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
Isaiah 1:18 |
Easter gives us hope of the resurrection and we "Can Only
Imagine" what heaven will be like.
|
|