The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1871-04-08
For the oJlachita Tcic-r%na,
Easter Sunday.

This festival in honor Of Our Lords
resurrection has been observed from the
very foundation of Christianity. \ diff
terence, however, earl arose a. 10 the
day on which the actua! event of the
resurrection should be comment grated
It was the custom Of the hSiativ Chris
tians TO celebrate "a Pascal Feast Oh the
day of the Jewish ps,iO yer, the l4tft of
the first month the Festival of the
Resurrection on the third day after
wards, on whatever day of the week
this fell. The Western Christians. on
the contrary, contcnGcd that the fast Of
the holy week ought not 10 he interrupt
c<s, and that the Feast of the Rcsurrcc-
ton ought always TO be observed on a
Sunday.
In 4. ID. l5s, ro!ycarp, a bishop Of
Asia Minor, visited Rome to confer
with Anicctus, bishop of Rome, on this
question. Each retained his opinion,
but Their" was no breach Of charity, and
Polycarp consecrated the Eucharist III
Anicctll:;' Church. IN 1876 Victor, bishop
of Rome, accommodated those who
would not conform to the Roman usage,
and for which he was sharply rcprovod
by the learned Ircn:iCus and others
The western custom grew i'll favor, but
the eastern churches continued! their
own pTicllto llIll11 ti1c Iol!!itll Oh ~ ace,
325, which established the usage OF keep
ing the Feast of the Resurrection on the
Lords Day alone. The duty of fixing
the proper Sunday was committed to
the care Of the Aicxn;ldrian bishops.
From this time forward the IiSsentcrs
were treated as SchiSnlaticS, and in 3.tl
they We're cNcOmmunicated by tho Pro-
vincial Council of Antioch. They were
named EuartodccimanS.
For nearly 300 years the carly Chris
tianS depended on the Jewish Cycle, of
81 years for the determination of their
own festival. subsequently various
Cycles were adopted, but there was much
uncertainty as to the day Of observation
of the feast until Dionysius f1xiguus,
abbot of Rome, 525, introduced the
AlcXandrian canon complete into the
Roman church. Tho churches of Great
Britain and Ireland did not uniformly
agree with the Roman church i'll the
actual Paschal Sunday until n. ID. 500.
when the WEIGH, the most persistent Of
the directors, gave way.
The term PaScha was uscC! to denote
the Pascal Feast, the Pascal Supper, the
whole Festival or the Day of Rcsurrec-
ton. The Festival lasted fifteen days,
during which law suits We're suspended,
lnGuigcncc5 were granted to criminals
and especial Hbcrality extended to the
poor. Ii was divided into the PaSch Of
the truciiiXion and the pfsscn Of the
Resurrection. Tho week succeeding
Easter Day was observed as one OF re
ligious solomnity, of sermons, asscmh-
lies and communions. The Sunday
closed the solcmnitics of the sacred
season.
There is some difference OF opinion
among philoiogists about the etymology
of ILOStro or Easter. Some think it j.
derived from Saxon term signifyiug
T'riSing;' Others maintain that the word!
EOst or East refers to tho tenippstuous
character of the weather at that season
OF the year, and finds its root in the
Anglo-SaXOn cyst Il storm. Bcde, the
English historian OF the eighth century,
! says f.stur month (Which IS now intcr-
pretcd pasci!al monthD had formerly its
name from Il goddess OF theirs who was
called EaStrc, whose festival they used
! to celebrate in it. From whose name
they now designate tho Paschal season;
giving to tho rciOicings Of the now SOL
ennity the accustomed name of the old
! observance.
! In old writers the term Dominica
! Gaudii is applied 70 Faster Day. IN the
! Greek Church It il customary to use Us
Il salutatiOn on Easter Day tho words
! "JCsuS Christ i risen from tho dead. -
The answer i, lie has risen indeed"