The herald., 1897-04-18
OBSERVANCE

percentage of those who fill the churches
and join in the street parade upon this
Sunday Of Sundays stop to think of the
marvellous changes that have taken place
since that er-to-be-forgotten day In
the garden of Gethsemane.
Looking back along the centuries, the
history of Easter is one in which pleas
ure, turmoil and religious devotion are
intermingIed. How many persons know,
too that Easter was not always cele-
brated on Sunday? Strictly speaking,
Easter occurs on the full moon which
happens upon or next after the 21st of
March. If this day be Sunday, well and
good. II otherwise, the Sunday follow
ing is Easter day. To thoroughly under
stand the strife that the difference of
opinion regarding Easter has caused
it would be necessary to rake the ashes
of historical fires that blazed centuries
ago.
In the first place, the Jewish calendar
was filled with imperfections. The or
dinary Jewish year consisted of twelve
lunar months. In each of these months
there were twenty-nine and one-half
Ldays, or twenty-nine and thirty days al
ternately. On this basis the year would
consist of 354 days instead of 365. There
fore, in order to supply the necessary
eleven days, a month was added to ev-
cry third year. This action, however,
made the calendar In advance of the true
time, without other intercalations. For
this reason the Jews kept their Passover
oftentimes before the vernal equinox.
This confusion of dates and days cre-
ated division among the Christian peo-
pies of the earth regarding the proper
date on which to celebrate Easter. The
Jewish custom was to observe the day
the fourteenth of the first lunar month
of the year, and this was also done by
some of the churches of Asia Minor. The
churches of the west, however-those Of
Palestine and Egypt-observed the day
90 e1fo .-~esrea~
nearest to the vernal equinox. This was
done for the express purpose OF differing
| from the Jews, and the general council
of Nice Incorporated this custom into
law of the church.
All this naturally contributed toward
schisms, which led to not infrequent
open warfare. Such persons as persisted
in celebrating the fourteenth day were
termed heretics and schismatics and all
classed under the awe-inspiring name
of Quartodecimans. In $40 the chiefs of
the ftOHldn SdtHOllC ClcISy dQQtCSSc0 d
"bull' during the vacancy of the Holy
See, to the bishops and abbots Of North
Ireland, charging them with being in
completely with the Quartodecimans. AS
matter of fact, the only error which
these clericals had made was that of neg
lecting to keep themselves informed of
the difficulties which arose as to the
manner of determining the commence
oe h. avct 1rxva Anf xryt1f faV
ought to be the Paschal month.
AS the war of dates proceeded even the
erudite St. Augustine became involved
in the controversy. The Britons of Cam
bria remained faithful to the custom
which prevailed in Rome when Patrick
and the other missionaries to the Brit
ish isles took thence the light of the gos-
pei. At that period in Rome and in all
the west the ancient Jewish cycle of
eighty-four years was universally fol-
lowed to fix the date. The Christians
Of Alexandria, better astronomers than
those Of Rome, and especially charged
by the. Council Of Nice to inform the
discovered in this ancient cycle several
errors of calculation. After two centu-
ries of dispute they succeeded in MAX
|
Paschal style, which Is now universally
tion of Easter to the interval between
March % and April "a.
The Celtic churches had no knowledge
of this change, which dated from the
year 525, that is to say, from a time
when the invasion of the Saxons prob
ably intercepted their communications
with Rome. They retained their old
Jewish cycle of eighty-four years, obsti-
nately adhering thereto. Easter was cell
ebrated by them on Sunday always. but
this was not necessarily the Sunday ap-
pointed by the Roman church after the
new calculation. This is why King
Oswy observed the festival eight days
in advance Of the day observed by his
wife. He complained bitterly Of having
to rejoice alone. On this diversity, al
though trifiing in appearance. turned the
great dispute between the Celtic and Ro-
man monks; between those who had
first begun the conversion Of the Anglo
Saxons and those who so happily COM
pleted It.
Writing on the subject, Socrates says
that neither Christ nor his apostles en-
join the keeping Of this or any other
festival. He declares the apostles had no
thought of appointing festival days, but
rather of promoting life of blameless-
ness and piety. He attributes the intro
duction Of the festival of Easter into the
church to the perpetuation. Of an old
usage, Just as many other customs have
been established" This Is doubtless the
true statement Of the case. The first
Christians being derived from or inti-
mately connected with the Jewish
church. naturally continued to observe
the Jewish festivals. as comme memoration
of events of which these had been the
shadows.
On Easter day depends all the movea-
bic feasts throughout the year. as the
eight Sundays before and the eight fol-
lowing after are All dependent upon 1t.
and form, as II were. bodyguard to
|thia queen ef ftstivalA The eight bre-