Easter
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Journal Articles
Below you will find journal articles on the subject of Easter.
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Why is Easter a "Floating" Holiday?
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History
Easter is a time of springtime festivals. In Christian countries Easter is celebrated as the religious holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the son of God. But the celebrations of Easter have many customs and legends that are pagan in origin.
Traditions associated with the festival survive in the Easter rabbit, a symbol of fertility, and in colored easter eggs, originally painted with bright colors to represent the sunlight of spring, and used in Easter-egg rolling contests or given as gifts.
The Christian celebration of Easter embodies a number of converging traditions with emphasis on the relation of Easter to the Jewish festival of Passover, or Pesach, from which is derived Pasch, another name used by Europeans for Easter. The early Christians, many of whom were of Jewish origin, were brought up in the Hebrew tradition and regarded Easter as a new feature of the Passover festival, a commemoration of the advent of the Messiah as foretold by prophets.
Easter is at the end of the Lenten season, which comprises forty days, and is a period of penitence in preparation for the highest festival of the church year, Easter Holy Week. The last week of Lent, begins with the observance of Palm Sunday and ends with Easter Sunday, the day of resurrection of Jesus.
More Easter history.
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Updated: March 17, 2010
