Easter 101
What Is Easter? 
   Easter is the day on which we celebrate the resurrection of Christ.  Jesus of Nazareth was crucified and died on the day we know as Good Friday.  On the third day, he was resurrected from the dead.  That third day, a Sunday, is what we celebrate as Easter today. 
How did Easter start?
   As with some other Christian holidays, it started by converting a pagan holiday into a Christian one.  The pagan festival celebrating the goddess of spring and fertility was held at about the same time as the remembrance of the Resurrection of Christ.   The name of this goddess was "Ostara" (Scandinavian) or "Eastre" (Teutonic).  The event was turned into a Christian holiday and became known as Easter.
Why does the date for Easter change from year to year? 
     The Jewish Christians in the early church linked Christ's resurrection with Passover and observed the 14th Day of Nisan.  The Gentile Christians celebrated Christ's resurrection on Sunday.  The method for calculating the date was set by the Council of Nicea in 325 AD.  Since Passover was held on the first full moon after the vernal equinox, they determined that Easter would be celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon following the vernal equinox.  This places Easter, depending on the year, sometime between March 22 and April 25.  There is a website (Easter Dating Method) that can explain it for you in case you are interested.  It is also calculated differently in different parts of the world.  For the United States, these are the dates for Easter for the next 5 years. 
2006 - April 16 
2007 - April 8
What are the rabbit and the eggs about?
     The symbol of the goddess Eastre was her earthly symbol fertility, the rabbit.  It was brought to the U.S. by the Germans, though most Christians didn't apply it to Easter till the latter 1800s. 
     Ancient Chinese, Greeks, and Persians would give gifts of eggs at their spring festivals.  The egg was a symbol of rebirth and fertility even before the formation of the Christian Easter holiday.  The resurrection of Christ made the rebirth symbol of eggs a natural fit for the holiday.
 
Easter Hymns 
 
 
Easter Scriptures 

Here is the Easter story as portrayed in the Gospels and by Paul. 

Easter According to Matthew [Matthew 28:1-15]

 
[1]After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. [2] And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. [3] His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. [4] For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. [5] But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. [6] He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. [7] Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you." [8] So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. [9] Suddenly Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. [10] Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me." [11] While they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests everything that had happened. [12] After the priests had assembled with the elders, they devised a plan to give a large sum of money to the soldiers, [13] telling them, "You must say, 'His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.' [14] If this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble." [15] So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story is still told among the Jews to this day. 

Easter According to Mark [Mark 16:1-11] 

[1] When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. [2] And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. [3] They had been saying to one another, "Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" [4] When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. [5] As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the 

right side; and they were alarmed. [6] But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. [7] But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you." [8] So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. [9] Now after he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. [10] She went out and told those who had been with him, while they were mourning and weeping. [11] But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.   

Easter According to Luke [Luke 24:1-12] 

[1] But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared. [2] They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, [3] but when they went in, they did not find the body. [4] While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. [5] The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. [6] Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 

  [7] that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again." [8] Then they remembered his words, [9] and returning from the tomb, they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest. [10] Now it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told this to the apostles. [11] But these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. [12] But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home, amazed at what had happened. 

Easter According to John [John 20:1-18] 

[1] Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. [2] So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." [3] Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. [4] The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. [5] He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. [6] Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, [7] and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. [8] Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; [9] for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. [10] Then the disciples returned to their homes. [11] But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; [12] and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. [13] They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." [14] When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. [15] Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." [16] Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (which means Teacher). [17] Jesus said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" [18] Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"; and she told them that he had said these things to her. 

Easter According to Paul [1 Corinthians 15:1-8] 

[1] Now I would remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand, [2] through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you--unless you have come to believe in vain. [3] For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, [4] and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, [5] and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. [6] Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. [7] Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. [8] Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.
 

LINKS:
Relevant Books for Further Study: 
An Inner Journey to Easter 
Celebrate Jesus! at Easter 
Biblical Meditations for the Easter Season
The Very First Easter
The Mystery of Easter
The Story of Easter
The Easter Story

Relevant Videos for Further Study:
Stories from the Bible: The Easter Story
The Beginner's Bible: The Story of Easter  
Discovering An Empty Tomb

Links to Explore:
Lent / Easter Links from GBOD
Lent 101 from MethodX
Lenten Devotionals  from The Upper Room
Easter Stories and Articles
Easter in CyberSpace: A Christian Perspective
Facts about the Crucifixion
Interactive Passion History
The Season of Lent
Holy Week Clip Art
Images of Easter
Send an Easter card today!

The 101 series pages are the opinions of the webservant and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Louisiana Conference.