When Is Easter/Pentecost?

[Peter]

When I was young I never gave much thought to why Easter changed dates every year. As I got older however, I began to wonder why this was. As a younger man I was told that there was some connection to Passover.
However, as I've read, I find that the dates for Easter(West)/Pascha(East) are actualy linked to a very complex system that is in no way tied to the Jewish feast of Passover.

I discovered that there was an ecumenical council that set these dates and that these dates, due to being decided in council, could not be altered but by another council.

Well, that was fine until I found out that Western Christians and Eastern Christians quite often celebrate the Resurrection at different dates. When I dug deeper, I found out why.

In short, the Western system is based on an actual lunar cycle. In the East, a slightly different system is used that is not tied tightly to the monthly (sic) lunar patterns or the equanox. This is the sytem that was agreed upon in the ecumenical council and is bound by that councils rules.

For those who have ever wondered why Easter moves, there you go.

There are several good web sites that explain all this in greater detail. While I have no links, it's worth your time to look into this part of Church history. At the very least, you will have educated yourself a tad.

Peace.

Peter

P.S. Eastern Orthodox Pascha (Easter) will be on May 1 in 2005.

 

[Crazy Liz]

However, as I've read, I find that the dates for Easter(West)/Pascha(East) are actualy linked to a very complex system that is in no way tied to the Jewish feast of Passover.

I thought one of the requirements of the Eastern calendar was that Pascha always had to come after Pesach.

I've actually wondered about the reason for this. As I understand it, the Council that standardized the date for Pascha also forbade Christians to celebrate Pesach with the Jews. Now I've always wondered whether they added the requirement that Pascha come after Pesach so that Christians would still be fasting during Pesach, further discouraging Christians from attending Jewish Seders. Do you have any idea whether this might be the case?

In short, the Western system is based on an actual lunar cycle. In the East, a slightly different system is used that is not tied tightly to the monthly (sic) lunar patterns or the equanox. This is the sytem that was agreed upon in the ecumenical council and is bound by that councils rules.

As I understood it, both follow the same rules for determining the date (except for the requirement that it be after Pesach). However, in the East the rules are still applied to the Julian calendar, but in the West they are applied to the Gregorian calendar. There is also an issue, I believe, about the exact point on the earth from which the astronomical observations should be made - something not specified by the Council, but which occasionally could affect the date.

These are just my understandings. I would appreciate pointing to resources that would clarify. Thanks!

 

[Islander]

I wanted to add that Christians and Jews celebrate Pentecost on a different day. In the past I assumed Christians were the one celebrating on a different day than said in the Bible but I'm into Messianic Judaism and learned about Pentecost. Christians celebrate Pentecost on the correct day but Jews moved the ceremony one day so they wouldn't share a holiday with Christians.

 

[Crazy Liz]

Actually, Christians count the days to Pentecost from Easter, and Jews count the days to Shavuot from Pesach, so they can be more than a day apart. Easter and Passover do not have to be at the same time.

 

[Polycarp1]

In the West (and the Orthodox I believe have a different rule), the formula for finding Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox. What the moon has to do with it is based on the Jewish formula for Pesach, which is founded on lunar months. Pentecost, of course, is on the 50th day of the Easter season, i.e., the Sunday seven weeks after Easter Day.

The Episcopalian Book of Common Prayer has reference tables for finding Easter that are not exclusively Episcopalian but shared by all the churches that keep the Western calendar for Easter, Lent, and Pentecost:

Explanation of the Tables

The Tables (in MS Word format; mouse down to the end of the document)

 

[herev]

the difference for the orthodox relates to what date the full moon actually occurs. I am not sure, but I believe they use another time zone, so by the time it is full, a day can actually pass, while for us, it falls on the day--this leads to them sometimes celebrating a week later.

 

[mister_p]

I think you should go and ask the Orthodox guys, and maybe the Catholics as well and see what perspective you get. There are different calendars, and apparently can be up to 5 weeks different in the Eastern church compared with the rest.

There have been a lot of "disagreements."