Why is the Greek Orthodox Easter on a different date than the Catholic Easter?
406180
Catholics and most Protestants use the new Gregorian calendar decreed by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582.\n\nThe Greek Orthodox Church uses the old Julian calendar introduced in 46 BC by Julius Caesar.
424244
"The English and German names, "Easter" and "Ostern", ... are instead related to ancient names for the month of April, Eostremonat and Ostaramanoth respectively. According to the 8th century Christian monk and historian Bede, this month was dedicated to the pagan fertility goddess Eostre. The Easter Bunny is often identified as a remnant of this fertility festival, although there is no evidence of any link."\n\nIn other languages the name for "Easter" is derived from the hebrew "Pesach" for the Passover holiday (ex french: Pâques, spanish: Pascua).  Only in the Germanic languages is it based on the older holiday.
1001502
All I know is that the Greeks started their dates from the first Olympic Games which was around 770 BC.  So using that calendar the year 1 (as we know it) would've been 770, and we are currently in 2776 (or somewhere thereabouts).  Of course there were many different calendars at use at the time from various parts of the world, and I think a few years have either been added or taken away from our calendar over the centuries.\n\nI'm sure that if you did some research into Roman, Greek and Egyptian ( I mean, they were around for at least two thousand years before Jesus) history you could find out more.
211622
because they do - directly and indirectly.\nEaster Eggs:\nAccording to the ancient tradition of the Eastern Orthodox Church , Mary Magdalene was a wealthy woman from whom Christ expelled seven "demons." On Easter morning she was the first to bear witness to his resurrection. She is called "Equal to the Apostles." The Eastern tradition tells us that after the Ascension she journeyed to Rome where she was admitted to the court of Tiberius Caesar because of her high social standing. After describing how poorly Pilate had administered justice at Jesus' trial, she told Caesar that Jesus had risen from the dead. To help explain his resurrection she picked up an egg from the dinner table. Caesar responded that a human being could no more rise from the dead than the egg in her hand turn red. The egg turned red immediately, which is why red eggs have been exchanged at Easter for centuries in the Byzantine East. \nEaster Bunny:\nThe day we celebrate as Easter was formerly a pagan holiday. The church decided to set the date for the resurrection of Jesus at the spring solstice, and then named it for a Celtic pagan feast day they wished to eradicate. It was named for Eostre, the goddess of the spring, and fertility. She was depicted with a white rabbit (the Easter Bunny).
853152
We celebrate it because it is the birth of Jesus Christ. We (Christians) also celebrate Easter because it was then that Jesus awoke from the dead, three days after He was crucified.
431346
A lot of people get overwrought about this..  unnecessarily, I think.\n\nThe NAME "Easter" was indeed the name of the pagan spring festival of the Germanic tribes.\n\nBut the Jewish Passover (Hebrew 'Pesach', Greek translation 'Pascha') was held at the same time of year, and since Jesus was crucified at the feast of Passover and raised just after it, the celebration of his resurrection naturally ended up being held at about the same time.  \n\nActually, the early church had different customs for when and how to celebrate this season. In AD 325 a council of the church agreed to a formula for determining the date, and for always observing the Day of Resurrection on a SUNDAY, since it was on that day, the first day of the week, that Jesus rose from the dead.\n\nNow in the Mediterranean cultures they simply took the word English renders as "Passover" and used that name for the feast.  But when the church spread among the Germanic tribes it might sometimes be called "Easter" instead, from the name of the Germanic feast.  (We do, however, sometimes use the word "paschal" to refer to things related to the death of Christ and Easter.)   \n\nBUT under EITHER name the Christian celebration of the resurrection was not substantially different.  It was hardly "paganized", anymore than someone just 'decided' to celebrate the resurrection at the time of a pagan festival.  \n\n(The fact that there ARE spring festivals in varous religions is not all that surprising.  And if people want to make something of it, their criticsim ought to be of the original Hebrew Passover, which was in part a spring/seasonal feast --closely connected to the 'Firstfruits'-- just as the two other major Jewish festivals were harvest festivals!   But it is silly to conclude this somehow makes all these things pagan.  I would argue, instead that God called his people to see in the 'new life' of spring a sign in his creation of his SPIRITUAL work for his people, as he redeemed them from Egypt and gave them a new life.)
785500
Never, of course. They are two completely separate dates and thus they can not by definition ever fall on the same day of the year, silly. (When was the last time Christmas and Easter fell on the same day of the year? Did you wake up and hunt Easter eggs while at the same time you were opening your presents from Santa?)
310666
easter is the day that jesus ressurected and people celebrate it to honor that.  its the day that lint is over and most (religious) people go to church.  the whole easter egg thing probably began because eggs symbolize life and whatnot and somewhere in the past it turned into a hunt for children to do.  and easter is always celebrated on the 3rd sunday of april.  the wednesday before is passover and the friday before is good friday.
273685
Easter is an annual festival observed throughout the Christian world. The date for Easter shifts every year within the Gregorian Calendar. The Gregorian Calendar is the standard international calendar for civil use. In addition, it regulates the ceremonial cycle of the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches. The current Gregorian ecclesiastical rules that determine the date of Easter trace back to 325 CE at the First Council of Nicaea convened by the Roman Emperor Constantine. At that time the Roman world used the Julian Calendar (put in place by Julius Caesar). \n\nThe Council decided to keep Easter on a Sunday, the same Sunday throughout the world. To fix incontrovertibly the date for Easter, and to make it determinable indefinitely in advance, the Council constructed special tables to compute the date. These tables were revised in the following few centuries resulting eventually in the tables constructed by the 6th century Abbot of Scythia, Dionysis Exiguus. Nonetheless, different means of calculations continued in use throughout the Christian world. \n\nIn 1582 Gregory XIII (Pope of the Roman Catholic Church) completed a reconstruction of the Julian calendar and produced new Easter tables. One major difference between the Julian and Gregorian Calendar is the "leap year rule". See our FAQ on Calendars for a description of the difference. Universal adoption of this Gregorian calendar occurred slowly. By the 1700's, though, most of western Europe had adopted the Gregorian Calendar. The Eastern Christian churches still determine the Easter dates using the older Julian Calendar method. \n\nThe usual statement, that Easter Day is the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs next after the vernal equinox, is not a precise statement of the actual ecclesiastical rules. The full moon involved is not the astronomical Full Moon but an ecclesiastical moon (determined from tables) that keeps, more or less, in step with the astronomical Moon. \n\nThe ecclesiastical rules are: \n\nEaster falls on the first Sunday following the first ecclesiastical full moon that occurs on or after the day of the vernal equinox; \nthis particular ecclesiastical full moon is the 14th day of a tabular lunation (new moon); and \nthe vernal equinox is fixed as March 21. \nresulting in that Easter can never occur before March 22 or later than April 25. The Gregorian dates for the ecclesiastical full moon come from the Gregorian tables. Therefore, the civil date of Easter depends upon which tables - Gregorian or pre-Gregorian - are used. The western (Roman Catholic and Protestant) Christian churches use the Gregorian tables; many eastern (Orthodox) Christian churches use the older tables based on the Julian Calendar. \nIn a congress held in 1923, the eastern churches adopted a modified Gregorian Calendar and decided to set the date of Easter according to the astronomical Full Moon for the meridian of Jerusalem. However, a variety of practices remain among the eastern churches. \n\nThere are three major differences between the ecclesiastical system and the astronomical system. \n\nThe times of the ecclesiastical full moons are not necessarily identical to the times of astronomical Full Moons. The ecclesiastical tables did not account for the full complexity of the lunar motion. \nThe vernal equinox has a precise astronomical definition determined by the actual apparent motion of the Sun as seen from the Earth. It is the precise time at which the apparent ecliptic longitude of the Sun is zero. (Yes, the Sun's ecliptic longitude, not its declination, is used for the astronomical definition.) This precise time shifts within the civil calendar very slightly from year to year. In the ecclesiastical system the vernal equinox does not shift; it is fixed at March 21 regardless of the actual motion of the Sun. \nThe date of Easter is a specific calendar date. Easter starts when that date starts for your local time zone. The vernal equinox occurs at a
445068
It is, yes. At some point in time, a Roman emperor named Constantine decided to switch Rome's official religion from Paganism to Catholicism. To make the change easier, he added elements of Paganism to the religion (for instance, making Christmas on December 25th, to coincide with a Pagan holiday- I believe that according to the bible Jesus's birthday was sometime in April).
741246
Time to reread the chapters in your text that cover this item.  You may have to get in touch with the Greek community to get specifics but I guess from the question that you are in Canada and will recognize the differences once you know about Greece.\n\nI apologize if it's the other way around.
201807
It is 50. In Greek PENTECOST means the 50th day.
1074110
zaphira is WAY off base.  Constantine mixed a lot of pagan rituals into Christianity.  The day of worship became 'Sun'day.  There are some other changes but the main problem is that he allowed paganism to be mixed in.  This led to Easter (an ancient fertility celebration for the 'goddess' Isis) being celebrated as resurrection sunday.  Christmas was also supposed to be some other 'god's' birthday.  When persecution ended, Christians let their guard down to let pagan worship get mixed in.  It's not popular, but it's the truth.
379342
What do these all have to do with Christianity?  The answer is, NOTHING! People find it hard to believe that the traditions for their favorite holidays didn't originate with that holiday. Easter is the Christian celebration of the rebirth of Jesus. The holiday was set at this time of the year because it coencides with Passover, a Jewish tradition remembering the night when the angel of death came and killed the sons of Egypt.  It also conincided with the pagan celebration of the Spring Equidox, and the coming of Spring. \n\n The traditions of modern Easter, though, are very Pagan. The name of easter is linked to the goddess Ester, of firtility. Some of her symbols were: rabbits, young animals (such as chicks), eggs, and chocolate. (Do these seem familiar?) When christians would convert pagans, they would bring some of their traditions with them. There are many other influences in this holiday as well.\n\nDitto with the oriigns of Christmas.  If you study the Bible, and the climate of the Middle East, topography etc.  you will find that Jesus was most likely born in the Spring,and not December 25.  So what's with celerbrating Chirstmas 24 ~ the Winter Solstice ~ you've got it ~ another orginal Pagan holiday!
311967
Easter is always on a Sunday, just like Thanksgiving is always on a Thursday.  So the dates will always be different year to year.
70043
March approx 4 AD.  the Catholic Church misfigured when coming up with calender
235871
Easter Sunday in 2003 was April 20th.\n\nIf you need other holidays, try this website...\nhttp://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/custom.html?year=2003&country=1&hol=86073&moon=on