Are you ready to celebrate Easter this Sunday?
Yes, this is a trick question.
If you’re Protestant or Roman Catholic the answer is no. Easter 2020 is already in the past. But…
For thousands of Christians in the Eastern Orthodox Church, Easter will be observed and honored this coming Sunday, April 19th.
I grew up in the (Syrian) Eastern Orthodox Church and every year my family celebrated Holy Week and Easter Sunday a week later than everyone else. There is a fascinating history worth researching on this, but let me quickly say, the difference is between those who use the traditional Julian calendar (as in Julius Caesar), and those who use the modern Gregorian calendar.
Whichever Sunday you celebrate Easter, it’s still identified as an official one-day holiday, but it is far more than a one-day celebration.
Easter deserves to be celebrated every day!
Without Easter there would be no Christmas.
Christmas day we celebrate the birth of a baby, but not just any baby, the birth of the baby Jesus…Emmanuel…God to earth come down. But if this baby had not lived a sinless life, if He had not died on the cross for our sins, freeing us from death by His resurrection, then Christmas would be a day just like any other and the birth of baby Jesus would not be an international holiday.
When you were growing up, which bible story was read to you year after year and celebrated the most in your home or church?
I would “bet the farm” that Christmas is the answer, and with good reason. The Christmas story is glorious and appealing to all. Even those who do not put their faith in Jesus Christ enjoy hearing about the birth of a baby surrounded by animals and angels, or the tale of a shining star that led humble shepherds and royal kings to a child born in a manger.
But what about the Easter Story? How truthfully do we celebrate it? How often do we tell it, especially to our children?
When told with sensitivity and joy, even children can embrace this meaningful story of love and sacrifice.
Easter is the ultimate love story where the “good guy” is victorious over evil. It’s the story of heroic sacrifice with a leading man named Angus Dei, meaning Lamb of God. It’s the story of a compassionate father who never gives up on his children, and of “God (who) so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life”. – John 3:16
The story of Christ has been identified as the greatest story ever told, and Easter is ultimately the happiest “ending” ever written.
So while it’s fun for all of us, especially our children, to look forward to celebrating Christmas Day each year, it’s the story of Easter that you and your family can celebrate today and every day, for eternity.