I am often asked a lot of questions about Easter – meaning? why rabbits? why date changes? and more. I thought I’d share some Easter questions and answers here. I hope you enjoy!
Bernadette asked how many times Easter has fallen on 4th April. Her mother-in-law was born 4/4/1920, an Easter Sunday and is turning 90 this coming 4th April, another Easter Sunday. But she has told us in all those 90 years she has never had another birthday on an Easter Sunday. Would that be correct?
Easter Sunday has actually fallen on 4th April 3 times in your Mother-in-law’s life time. It will occur for the 4th time this year. The previous 3 years are – 1920, 1926 and 1999. The next occurrence after this year is 2021. If you are interested in knowing the dates of Easters from 1901 to 2078 click here>>
This would be a good time now to answer a very common question – Why does Easter always fall on different dates, when Christmas is always the same date?
There was early controversy as to when to hold the Passover Feast until the Council of Nicea in 325 decided it must fall on a Sunday. Eventually the date was formulated roughly to be the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after the vernal equinox (an equinox is that moment in time when the centre of the sun can be observed to be directly above the equator and vernal is when the sun is going from south to north). This can range between March 22 and April 25.
Why is it called Easter?
According to the eighth-century theologian the Venerable Bede (who came up with the dating system of AD and BC), Easter is named for Eostre, an Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring. In the Northern Hemisphere Easter is during the time of Spring. Here in Australia Easter is in our Autumn.
Why are rabbits (bunnies) and eggs used to symbolise Easter?
The goddess, Eostre, was worshipped through her earthly symbol, the rabbit. As a symbol of new life, egg decorating dates back to primitive times in many cultures and civilizations. Even though the egg is not an exclusive Christian artform for Spring, its significance relates to a rebirth in Springtime. Easter eggs and Easter bunnies both symbolize fertility and new life which relates to springtime and resurrection. The first chocolate Easter egg was produced in 1873 by Fry’s (now owned by Cadbury).
If you have any questions relating to Easter or any other holiday or celebration please feel free to ask.
