The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1877-03-31
EASTER SUNDAY.
How the Day Will Be Kept in This City
The Peculiar Customs Observed i'm
Other Countries.

Tomorrow Is Easter Sunday. AS will be
seen by the announcements below, Cincinnati
Will observe the day in the usual impressive
manner by holding religious services In many
Of the leading churches. The day is not
only one OF the oldest but also one of the most
important in the year, commemorating by its
observance the anniversary Of the rising of our
Savior from the tomb.
1t Is a day, too, hailed with delight by the
juvenile fraternity, who, with their parti i-col-
ored eggs, pass the day In merriment and feast
ing. The demand for eggs for a few days pre-
vIous to the anniversary is immense, and of
course the dealer, taking advantage of the
activity In the market, advances
his prices. For instance, eggs are selling TO-
day at Is cents, and nave been for u few days
past, but on Tuesday or wednesday the same
grade Will bring hut II cents
In view OF the Importance OF Caster Sunday,
observed as 1t is in all cVlliz ID countries. 1t
may not be Inappropriate to tell the STAR
readers OF its
Easter-the Christian passover and festival
of the resurrection OF Christ. The English pane
IS probably derived from that OF the Teutonic
goddess OF spring, 0stera or Eostre, whose
festival occurred about the same time of the
year as the celebration of Easter The French
call Easter "Paques," the Scotch "Pasch," the
Dutch "Paschen," the Danes "Paaske," and
the Swedes "Pask." st. Paul calls Christ ''our
Pasch," and both tn Eastern and Western
churches from the beginning distinguished a
Lwo-fold event in the Easter conlmemoration,
the staying OF ''the Lamb of G0d" ana his res
urrection hence, the terms in their llturgies,
"Pascha cruclfxionis" and "passa rosurrec-
tionis"
The distinction between 1.-THE day on which
Christ died and that ON which he rose aga n
had not little to do with the Easter contro-
versy in the early Church, originating in O
difference OF custom with regard to the day OF
tue week and the day Of the month on which
Easter should be celebrated; as the Christians
held that Christ the true pa;chal lamb, had
been slain on the very day when the Jews in
the celebration oil their passover inundated
the 1guratve lamb; so, both in the West
and IN the East, those who believed the
Christian passover to be a commemoration
Of Christs death, aGher,d to the custom OF
h ldIng the Easter festiviLy on the day pre-
scribed for tho Jewish pasch. Now, as the
Jews celebrated their passover on the Ith day
Of the first month, that is, the lunar month OF
which the 14th day either falls on or next fol-
lows the day Of the vernal equinox, all Christ
lans who persisted in following this custom In
the celebration Of Easter came to be called
"auarto decimans," or "fourteenth day men, u
or o ill more opproDriously, ''Judaizlng Christ
iaus"
The great majority of Christian Churches,
attaching most importance to the sday OF
ChrisPs resurrection, which was the FIRST day
Of the week (heno called the Lords Day, oul
sunday, HID to EasSers being celebrated on
that day, and on the Sunday which followed the
l4th day of the moon OF March, the day OIL
which Christ suffered. This question, one o
| local discipline in the beginning, had given Sc
| much trouble that about l5S, Polycarp, disci
| pie of st. John the Evangelist, and Bishop o1
SMYRNA, went 20 Rome to consult with Pope
Ancetus, on the means Of healing the differ
In hp htAl n Rome n 10
casion, the Western. or present manner of cci.
ebratlng Easter was affirmed. But PolycarI
departed with the fun friendship OF the Pope,
and in the communion with the Church Of
Rome. Gradually, however, the question OF
| the Easter celebration, from one OF discipline
became one Of dogma. In 1S!, a priest called
| Blastus made himself very obnox,SSUs il
Rome by endeavorine 10 have .....e Jewish rule
Of celebrating Easter on the 1ith day OF the
L..yun OF Ma ch, adopted as a rule Of faith
had become so angry, that Polycrates, Bishop
of Ephesus, appealed to Victor, Bishop o.
Rome, asking to have the matter decided once
| and for all.
Councils were at once assembled in Gaul
Pontus, OsIoene. Achaia, and OTHER Countries
| as we'll as iu Rome, The result was decision
| fixing the feast OF Easter, or the resurrection
on the Sunday Immediately following the l4tt
day Of the March moon. Polycrates refused t
| acduiesce in this decision, because it involved
4
| The decree OF accommodation pronounced
| against the quartodecimans by the Council o
| Rome was held in abeyance, at the prayer o
Irenaus, OF Lyons and Sohism was thu
ayerted. After this the contenGing partie
| agreed TO maintain their respective customs
and practices in this respect without censurins
one another. Constantine had the subj &c
brought before the Council of Nice, i'll 33S. Ih
question was fully discussed, aud finally set
tleI for the whole church by adopting ne rule
l has ha doxy tsNh hn lun we tba
! Sunday after the full moon which happens
upon or next after March u: and If toe full
moon happen on Sunday, Easter day Is tht
sunday alter. By this arrangement Easter
| may come as early as March u or as late al
| April %. In France the year began with Easter
from the twelfth century till 1854, for which
year Charles TX fixed January l as the frs
day.
This sacred festival has been termed tn,
"Oueen of Fest.v wasp it has been observed
| f om the very beginning, anu is celebrated il
every part OF the Christian world with grea
solemnity and devotion. Formerly tn,
Churches were ornamenteu with large wa,
candles, and the Christians saluted each oehe
with Kiss and the words "Christ is risep," t.
which the response was made "He is risen in
ieedp This custom is still retained in tn
Greek Church, especially in Russia
HOLY SATURDAY.
To-day is Holy Saturday, and has Away
been set apart as day for specially solem
nizing baptism. In olden times Courts of jus
tlce were closed, slaves were freed, and IN,
people gave themselves up to feasting and en-
joyment. q
EASTER SPORTS
i In nearly all Christian countries, the recur
renee Of Easter has been celebrated with vari
ous ceremonies ami popular sports and observ
ances. Among the best known is the custom
VI making presents of colored eggs. calle,
pasch or pace eggs, which are elaboTately or
namented. In royal roll In the time of Ed
ward |, preserved In the Tower, appears ar
.ntry OF 1Sd. for four hundred eggs, to be useC
Tor this purpose. Coiored eggs were used By
children in sort OF game which consists il
esting the strength Of the eSg- g-%hel,s. This
pi piactIce is quite general IN tins country.
in some parts of ireland the leg nd IS cur.
rent that the sun dances in the SKY on Easter
sunday morning. In England, also, this was
once prevailing superstition, which Sli
homas Brown, in his "Inauiry into Vulgar
errors" thought it not supertiuous to declare
unfounded. The game OF ball was q favorite
Easter sport, In which municipal corporations
formerly engaged with due parade and dig
atty; ana at Bury.S Elmund's within few
years the game was kept up with great spirit
by twelve old women. In the Northern coun l.
lies of England the men parade the streets on
caster Sunday and claim the privilege Of lift
ing every woman they meet three times from
The ground, receiving in payment kiss OIL a
silver sixpence The same is done by cue Wo-
men to the men on the day following
Ii Russia Easter is looked forward to by the