Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1914-04-09
Celebration
of Easter
in History



the morning of this day by exclaim-
ing: Christ is risen," to which the
saluted person replied: He Is risen,
indeed" or And hath appeared unto
Simon"-a custom retained In the
Greek church
The common name OF this festival
In the East was the paschal feast, be-
cause kept at the same time as the
Jewish passover, and In some meas.
ure succeeding to it. In the sixth OF
the Ancyran canons 1t Is called the
Great day"
The term Easter" is derived from
"Eastre," a Saxon diety, whose feast
was celebrated every year in the
spring, the name being retained when
the character of the feast was changed
Easter Is in name, as well as In real
ity, the feast Of the resurrection.
Although there has never been any
difference Of opinion in the Chris
tian church as to why Easter is kept.
there has been a good deal as to when
1t ought to be kept. 1t Is one Of the
movable feasts-that is, 1t is not fixed
to one particular day, like Christmas
day. Easter moves backward and for
ward, according as the full moon next
after the vernal equinox falls nearer
or farther from the equinox. The &C
cepted rule for ascertaining the day
upon which Easter falls is as follows:
Easter day Is always the first Sunday
after the full moon which happens
upon or next after the 21st day OF
March, and II the full moon happens
upon Sunday, Easter day Ia the Sun.
day after.
The paschal controversy, which for
= time divided Christendom, grew out
Of diversity of custom. The churches
OF Asia Minor, including many Juda-
lied Christians, kept their paschal feast
on the same day that the Jews kept
their Passover, the 14th Of Nissan, the
Jewish month corresponding to our
March or April But the churches Of
the West. remembering that the Lords
resurrection took place on Sunday,
kept their festival on the Sunday fol.
they hoped not only to commemorate
the resurrection on the day Of the
week on which 1t actually occurred.
but also distinguish themselves more
effectually from the Jews.
For time this difference was borne
with mutual forbearance and charity.
And when disputes began to arise.
Polycarp, bishop Of Smyrna, went on
. visit to Rome. and conferred with
Anicetas. bishop of that city, upon the
question. Polycarp pleaded while An
icetas adduced the practice Of ST. Pc
ter and st. Paul Concessions were
made by neither side. and 30 the mat
ter was dropped, or rather held In
allegiance, but the two bishops con-
tinued in Christian friendship and con-
cord. This was in A. d. 15S.
Toward the end of the century. how.
ever, Victor, bishop Of Rome resolved
to compel the eastern churches to
conform to the western practice, and
wrote an imperious letter to the pref
ates of Asia, commanding them to
keep the festival of l0aster at the time
observed by the western churches.
They naturally resented this, and de-
clared that they would keep the day
at the time they hao been accustomed
to observe It, From this point the dis
pute gathered strength, and became
the source of much bitterness.
At the commencement Of the fourth
century matters had gone to such q
length that the Emperor Constantine
thought it his duty to take steps to
stop the controversy, and to insure
uniformity Of practice. For this pur-
pose he had q canon passed In the
great ecumenical council at Nice, A. d.
325. That everywhere the crest feast
OF Easter should be observed upon one
and the same day, and that not the
day OF the Jewish Passover, but. az
had been generally observed, upon the
Sunday following"
And. to prevent all further disputes
a to time. the following rules were