Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1907-03-29

lHouSn SOluelllneS SyHCnTOnOuS WIN
March. The Western churches thought
that it should be identified with Sun.
day, and observed 1t on the Sunday
following the 14th day of Nissan. At
the beginning of the fourth century,
| the Emperor Constantine succeeded in
having canon passed by the ecumen-
ical council Of Nice, fixing and max.
ing uniform the date of it's observance,
though as the rules laid down by this
council for the date of it's observance
made 1t necessary to reconcile three
periods, with no common measure,
namely, the week, the lunar month
and the solar year, the determination
of Easter was for long time mat
ter requiring great nicely of calcula-
ton, and so, as the Egyptians were
skilled in astronomical matters, this
was left for long time to the Alex
andrian see to decide.
The rules decreed that the 21st Of
March should be regarded as the YER
nal equinox.
The full moon happening upon or
next after the 21st of March should
be regarded as the full moon of the
month of Nisan.
The first Lords day after that full
| moon should be observed as Easter
| day.
If the full moon chanced to fall on
Sunday, the next Sunday should be
Easter day.
AS all the movable feasts and fasts
depend on Easter, uniformity of time
in its observance was an important
matter. The rules adopted by the
| Nicene council makes it possible for
it to fall upon any Sunday of five
weeks, commencing with March % and
ending with April 25.
The name Easter is derived from
the name of the Saxon goddess of
spring, Eostre, Eastre, or Ostera, and
may be traced back to the Phoenician
moon goddess, Astarte, so often asso.
ciated with the hare in Eastern myths.
Hence, perhaps, the use of the hare
in connection with the Easter eggs,
which it is said to lay.
Some think the name comes from
the word oster, which means rising,
and to Christians it, of course, is
commemorative of the rising of Christ
from the dead.
The month dedicated to the spring
goddess of the Saxons was the fourth
month, which answers to our April,
and her festival was held in honor of
the opening of the natural year, to
commemorate the setting free of the
/ natural forces of termination and
growth which the winter had chilled
and crucife2.
| Each nation has had its own Easter
customs, but many of them can be
traced back to the ancient spring fes-
tivals welcoming the return of the
sun. In the church it is one of the
three great Christian feasts. and has
been known as the Queen of Festivals
and the Lord of Days. 1t is ushered
in by vigil and fasting, but is. itself,
a time OF rejoicing. In the olden days
a relic of the fire worshiping time
could be found in the kindling of
new and pure fires, after the old ones
had been extinguished, from the Pas
chal candle, the great and sacred can
die which often weighed hundreds of
pounds. The washing of the feet of
others by high dignitaries of church
and state was, of course, done in
memory of Christ's washing the feet
of the apostles.
Music, candles, bonfires, flowers.
miracle plays, the pealing of bells,
the exchange of gifts, the liberation
of prisoners, the Setting free of slaves.
the giving of aims or maunds. the
playing of games, some of them rude
and rough enough indeed, during East.
er week these set apart the season
from others.
Certain articles of food, such as tan.
sy cake, typifying the bitter herbs, -
and hot cross buns and custards were
eaten In England. In Ireland the
peasants rose early to see the sun
dance, which we may do by looking
in stream of Water, as they did.
Most of the ruder sports have died
out, but the note of gladness in its OBJ
servance still dominates, though
sounded in gentler fashion.
And the solemn obsery ance of the
church, made beautiful, by an impress
sive ritual invested with all that light
and color and sound can add to cere
mony, inspire the faithful with the
thought that once again light and life
have trlumphed over death and dark
/. M