Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Easter and Passover

I'm used to the concept that Easter happens on a different day each year (unlike Christmas which is reliably on the 25th). But aren't Easter and Passover supposed to happen the same week? I mean, Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Passover, right (the Last Supper)?

So how is it that Easter was last month and Passover is this month? Did someone important miss an ecumenical council meeting?

2 comments:

-C said...

hmmm... I've never even thought about it. I guess it's one of those things between the Jewish Community and the Gentile Community to argue over one day.

Another war?

Anonymous said...

Easter and Passover are determined slightly differently.. Easter is the first sunday after the first full moon after the vernal (spring) equinox. It wont be this early for another 200 or so years. Passover is a bit more complicated... The first day of Passover is the 14th day of the month of Nisan which starts at the first new moon after the vernal equinox. If you really want to have fun.. try and figure out when Orthodox Easter is...they use the julian calendar to decide.. and they determine it based on the first sunday AFTER passover. 2004 was the last time Orthodox/Western Easter coincided. There continues to be an ecumenical move to fix the date of Easter between Orthodox and Western Christians and not rely on the moon. - BV