Easter is one of the most important holidays in Christianity and one of the oldest. Easter is the celebration of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection. Good Friday was the day Jesus was crucified and Easter Sunday was the day he was resurrected.
According to britannica.com, “The earliest recorded observance of an Easter celebration comes from the 2nd century, though the commemoration of Jesus’ Resurrection probably occurred earlier.”
The English word for Easter is parallel with the German word Ostern, both of which do not have a clear origin. In the 8th century, Venerable Bede explained that the word derived from Eostre or Eostrae, an Anglo-Saxon goddess, that was believed to be associated with spring and fertility.
According to britannica.com, “There is now widespread consensus that the word derives from the Christian designation of Easter week as in albis, a Latin phrase that was understood as the plural of alba (“dawn”) and became eostarum in Old High German, the precursor of the modern German and English term.”
Easter takes place on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox, between March 22 through April 25. The date of Easter was provided by the First Council of Nicaea, because along with Easter the Jewish holiday, Passover, falls within the same time frame.
According to shrineofstjude.org, “Jesus and His Apostles were devout Jews and celebrated Passover. In fact, the Last Supper — where Jesus created the sacrament of the Eucharist before His arrest and crucifixion — was a traditional meal for the first day of Passover. Christians don’t celebrate Passover, but because of these connections, early Christians aligned the celebration of Easter to fall after Passover. Passover moves based on a lunar calendar, so Easter inherited that tradition. When the First Council of Nicaea standardized the date for Easter, they separated the Easter cycle from Passover entirely.”
Many symbols that associate with Easter represent spring, rebirth, resurrection and purity. Eggs were given as gifts during spring festivals. Rabbits are symbols of spring and fertility, while chickens and chicks symbolize rebirth.
According to christmascentral.com, “Lilies are associated with purity and resurrection. One legend says lilies grew in the Garden of Gethsemane, where Christ prayed the night before his death.”