19/04/2025
๐๐๐๐๐๐: ๐๐โ๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ฏ๐
Christians celebrate Easter as the resurrection of Christ, which occurred on the third day after His crucifixion- on the Good Friday. It is the oldest Christian holiday and the most important day of the church year because of the significance of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the events upon which Christianity is based (1 Corinthians 15:14, NIV). In some Christian traditions, Easter Sunday is preceded by the season of Lent, 40 days of fasting and repentance culminating in Holy Week, and followed by a 50-day Easter season that stretches from Easter to Pentecost.
Due to the commercialization and allegedly the potential pagan origins associated with Easter by others, many churches prefer to refer to it as โResurrection Sunday.โ The rationale is that the more we focus on Christ and His work on our behalf, the better. Paul says that without the resurrection of Christ, our faith is futile (1 Corinthians 15:17, NIV). What more wonderful reason could we have to celebrate? Whether we call it โEasterโ or โResurrection Sunday,โ what is important is the reason for our celebration: Christ is alive, making it possible for us to have eternal life (Romans 6:4, NIV)
The origin of Easter, according to early Christian sources, reveals two quite distinct modes of celebrating Easter. The one that ultimately became universal was to keep the feast on the Sunday after the Jewish Passover and to focus its celebration upon the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, which according to the testimony of the four canonical Gospels-had taken place on the first day of the week. The other ancient form of the celebration is attested chiefly in second-century sources emanating from Asia Minor. This tradition makes Easter a memorial of the death of Jesus, and situates the feast instead at the time of the Jewish Passover itself, during the night of Nisan.
While others have gone further still and argued that the celebration of Easter on a Sunday was a considerably later development than is often supposed- that it was not adopted in Rome.
One of the most interesting medieval developments in the celebration of Easter and Holy Week in the West is the complexity and diversity of the liturgical ceremonies, which expand in time, multiply in number, and yet, paradoxically, remain constant in meaning. With regards to the date for celebration, Easter is calculated based on both lunar and solar cycles, specifically the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox. While the spring equinox (the time when the sun crosses the celestial equator) can vary by a few days, the Church uses a fixed date of March 21 as the ecclesiastical equinox. This fixed date, combined with the lunar cycle, results in a range of dates for Easter, from March 22 to April 25. Though rich in symbolic texture, the early Easter celebration was relatively simple in structure.
Later evolution fragmented this original unity, spreading out the liturgical ceremonial in an attempt to commemorate specific historical moments in the paschal mystery of Christโs suffering, death, and resurrection. By the end of the fourth century, the Triduum Paschal [the expansion of Easter into three days- Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday]; in addition, the focus of the entire celebration was Easter Sunday- โResurrection Sunday.โ
๐ญ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ณ๐๐๐
, ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐, ๐ฐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐- ๐ท๐๐๐ ๐บ๐๐๐
๐๐, ๐ฏ๐๐๐ ๐ป๐๐๐๐๐
๐๐, ๐ฎ๐๐๐
๐ญ๐๐๐
๐๐, ๐๐๐
๐ฌ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐บ๐๐๐
๐๐.
๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐: Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week and celebrates Jesusโ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. As He rode on a donkey, people spread palm branches and shouted, โHosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!โ (John 12:13, NIV). This fulfilled the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9 (Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,
righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey,
on a c**t, the foal of a donkey, NIV), showing Jesus as the humble King.
๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง: Palm Sunday reminds Christians that Jesus came in peace to save, not to conquer. Itโs a time to reflect on His love and sacrifice. As believers, we are called to welcome Him into our hearts daily, just as the crowd welcomed Him into Jerusalem that day.
๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐: Holy Thursday, also known as Maundy Thursday, is the day Christians remember the Last Supper Jesus had with his disciples before His crucifixion. During this meal, Jesus broke bread and shared wine (which are the emblems of His body and blood), saying, โDo this in remembrance of meโ (Luke 22:19, NIV). This moment marks the beginning of the Holy Communion or the Eucharist. It was during this feast that He foretold who His traitor was going to be. He said, โAnd while they were eating, he said, โTruly I tell you, one of you will betray me- one who is eating with me.โ (Matt. 26:21, NIV). On this day, Jesus also washed His disciplesโ feet, teaching humility and service (John 13 4-15, NIV).
๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง: Holy Thursday reminds us of Godโs deep love, the power of selfless service, and the call to unity. Even though He knew that Judas Iscariot was going to betray Him, He expressed His love to him, not fighting him right away as another human person would have done. As Christians, we reflect on Jesusโ example and prepare our hearts for the cross.
๐๐๐๐ ๐
๐๐๐๐๐: Christians remember the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ on the cross. Though it was a day of great suffering: He was brutalized, pierced, ill-treated, scourged, naked, shamed, and nailed to the cross, yet, it is called โGoodโ because, throughout all these, His death - Jesus paid the price (atonement) for our sins and opened the way to salvation. The Bible says, โHe was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquitiesโ (Isaiah 53:5, NIV).
๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง: On this day, we reflect on Jesusโ love, sacrifice, and obedience to God. It reminds us that true love gives and forgives. As Christians, Good Friday is a time to be thankful, humble, and draw closer to God, irrespective of who we are.
๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐: Easter Sunday, the central of our faith, is the joyful celebration of Jesus Christโs resurrection from the dead, three days after his crucifixion. It is the most important day in the Christian faith because it proves that Jesus conquered death and gives us hope of eternal life. The angel told the women at the tomb, โHe is not here; He has risen, just as He saidโ (Matthew 28:6, NIV).
๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง: Easter reminds us that no situation is too hopeless for God. As Christians, we celebrate new life, victory, and the power of Godโs love. It is a time to rejoice and share the good news: Jesus is alive!
This is my calling: these Holy Days remind Christians about Jesusโ love, sacrifice, humility, and victory. They call us to faith, repentance, service, and joyful hope in the promise of eternal life through Christ.
[ELD. COURAGE MENSAH]
