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Posted on March 14, 2008 ...

     Perhaps you have noted how early Easter comes this year. The dating of Easter Sunday is a bit of a mystery to the average person. Most other significant dates on our calendars fall either on fixed dates (Christmas is always on December 25) or relative dates (Labor Day is always the first Monday of September). Easter, however, moves around from year to year. Why is this?

     From its earliest days, the church annually has celebrated the anniversary of Jesus' resurrection. Many early Christians were baptized on the morning of Resurrection Sunday. However, the actual date for the celebration has varied. Most early churches held the observance on the Sunday closest to the Jewish Passover. But sometimes there was confusion as to which Sunday fell closest to Passover. And the churches in Asia Minor frequently celebrated the resurrection on the actual day of the Jewish Passover, even when it was not on a Sunday.
When Constantine became the Roman Emperor and legalized Christianity, he did not want Jesus' resurrection celebrated on the same day as the Jewish Passover. Thus, part of the work of the Council of Nicea (325 AD) was to set a date that would always fall on a Sunday but never on the day of Passover. This Council concluded that the resurrection celebration would take place on the Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring equinox (March 21).
      Therefore, the earliest date on which Easter can fall is March 22. But none of us have or will experience Easter that early because it last occurred in 1818 and will not happen again on that date until the year 2285! And Easter will not occur as early as March 23 again until the year 2160! So unless you were around in 1913 (the last time Easter fell on March 23) this year is the earliest date for celebrating the Resurrection that will occur in your lifetime. (However, the odds are better for our witnessing the latest day Easter can fall, April 25. This will happen in 2038.)
      Whether early or late, the recognition of our Lord's defeat of death is central to our lives:
If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. -1 Corinthians 15:13-14 NIV)
       I look forward to celebrating Passion Week with You. Jay