NoScream~SPARTA~ Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 When is Easter? According to the English book of Common Prayer, "Easter Day is the first Sunday after the full moon which happens upon, or next after the 21st day of March; and if the full moon happens upon a Sunday, Easter Day is the Sunday after." Why such an odd definition? March 21 is the vernal equinox -- the day on which the length of daylight equals the length of darkness as the days are lengthening in the spring. The traditional Jewish calendar is based on moon phases, which is how the phase of the moon enters into the definition -- when they were determining what day Easter would fall on, they deferred to the Jewish practice of using moon phases to decide the timing of holidays. Using this method, Easter can only occur between March 22 and April 25. 23rd March 2008 (Sunday) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elvis~SPARTA~ Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 I wish they would move it to a Monday so we can get the day off from work. You know I'm kidding about this, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
custard~SPARTA~ Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 My daughter still believes in the easter bunny the pure joy my wife gets from getting up b4 6am to put chocolate in the garden for her to find is fab. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zathrus~SPARTA~ Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 Well... I remember reading an article on this subject a few years ago. The author said it is based on a pagan holiday as it was easier to change the reason for the celebration than to change the day of one already celebrated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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