Mar 23 2008
Why is Easter so Early This Year?
Why is Easter so Early This Year?
Christians of all faiths are wondering this question this year and it is especially true in tree town where we got 8.5″ of snow on Friday night and we are expecting more today!
Well folks it is a very interesting story and some of which has much to do with Mathematics! Yes, I said math.
Before we get to the scientific part of Easter, let me start with the faith answer to this question: It is explained best by Gibaut from Ottowa, “It’s not about being convenient, it’s about being faithful to a tradition and to history. Jesus didn’t die on the second Friday of April, he died on the Friday after the first full moon after the spring equinox, when that date was also the date of Passover.”
The Church has established that Easter will fall and correlate to the Jewish faith as well.
“This is the earliest Easter in nearly a century – the last time Easter fell this early was in 1913. And no one alive today will see another Easter this early in the year. The holiday (or holy day) won’t fall again on March 23 – which is the second-earliest day possible – until 2160.”
Interestingly the latest it will be in our lifetimes is in 2038. That year, Easter is on the latest day possible: April 25.
Wow hang onto your hats for snow today and enjoy the holy day for what it is, “the celebration of the Christ Rising From the Dead.”
Have a wonderful Easter with your family whether you enjoy ham, turkey or lasagna. Happy Easter to all…and if in Ann Arbor…keep warm, too.
If you want more of the math facts about the old church and developing the calendar please go to this great website to read the facts.
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Thanks for sharing this Karen. I probably won’t be around in 2038, LOL
Karen,
Happy Easter. I know I have looked this up before but I can never remember the how and why. We were talking about it on the way home from church last night. We went to the Easter vigil service which is about 3 hours long and starts outside the church at a bonfire. I was thinking that similar services in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota would be with snow on the ground. Lots of snow on the ground. We had snow showers yesterday but they did not stick. Maybe churches don’t do the part outside if the weather is too bad. It was cold and windy last night.
I will share your explanation with the people I was with last night and maybe the readers on my blogs… I saw your Twitter about this.
.
[...] Why is Easter so early this year? Karen Moorhead a real estate blogger in Michigan wrote about how the date for Easter is set. Karen wrote of Ann Arbor: [...]
This is very interesting - funny, I was reading Maureen’s original post pointing to this blog, and also got an email from a friend with this info in it too. Thanks for sharing - my kids and I were just talking about this this morning!
Thanks for stopping by Karen!
[...] write about. But I was reading Maureen McCabe’s blog today and she mentioned a blog by Ann Arbor real estate agent Karen Moorhead that explains why Easter was so early this [...]