Why the date of Easter changes?

[Batman.]

As far as I'm concerned, Easter falls 2 days after the day Jesus Christ was crucified. But why isn't the date solid?

I tried to Google a bit, and I found out that Easter also follows the Paschal Full Moon date of the year. But then why does Good Friday change as well. Why does the day that Jesus dies change too?

Excuse my ignorance :lol:

[spf1971]

Because it's Good Friday and Easter Sunday. If it was a fixed date then you would have years where it could be Good Tuesday and Easter Thursday.

[quarterlifecrisis]

Why is Good Friday all of a sudden 'good', everyday is a good day. Why do we need someone to tell us that today is a good day.

[jcoltage]

its just a way to mess with the Irish.

[spf1971]

Why is Good Friday all of a sudden 'good', everyday is a good day. Why do we need someone to tell us that today is a good day.

Don't you have glasses to pick up?

[Alvito]

Don't you have glasses to pick up?

ur not funny. its been over done now.

[Batman.]

I was just wondering. If the birth of Christ is a fixed day, then why isn't his death.

So why is it Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

Why cant it be just Easter, or The Day of Good. *shrugs*

[Tijuana]

Do any of you really care? What difference does it make to you, sepecially if your not christian

[board123]

Do any of you really care? What difference does it make to you, sepecially if your not christian
There's nothing wrong with curiosity, so don't discourage it.

This is a perfectly valid question. The answer? I don't know. Maybe there is no logical reason for this.

[kleptodathief]

who cares...as long as we get a day off work!:idea:

[jcoltage]

who cares next year it will be back to April 12

[Hubster]

"To Summarise ...


*Easter Sunday date is the Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon (PFM) date
*The PFM is the first Ecclesiastical Full Moon (EFM) date after March 20
*PFMs are pre-defined (see above)
*EFMs are approximated astronomical full moon dates, not actual astronomical full moon dates"



A vaild question with a somewhat complex answer!



Easter Dating (http://christianity.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=christianity&cdn=religion&tm=102&gps=73_1161_1276_689&f=00&tt=13&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http%3A//users.chariot.net.au/%7Egmarts/easter.htm)

[Batman.]

but why does good friday, the day of Christ's death ALSO change. that's what bugs me


but yes.... the extra long weekend = AWESOME

[h2o-]

I remembered when we were kids, Easter Holiday always fallen on to the first weekend of April....... and we had Monday off as well in H.K.

[Carnage]

but why does good friday, the day of Christ's death ALSO change. that's what bugs me


but yes.... the extra long weekend = AWESOME

Easter is about Christ's death and resurrection.

He died, and rose again after three days. That's why it's always Friday/Sunday.

[Psubs]

I was just wondering. If the birth of Christ is a fixed day, then why isn't his death.

So why is it Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

Why cant it be just Easter, or The Day of Good. *shrugs*

They don't have records of the exact date. Just that it happened on a Friday and he rose 3 days later.

[Batman.]

Easter is about Christ's death and resurrection.

He died, and rose again after three days. That's why it's always Friday/Sunday.

Yes, I know, I never asked why it was on a Friday or Sunday, I simply asked why the date changes

[Batman.]

They don't have records of the exact date. Just that it happened on a Friday and he rose 3 days later.

Bleh, cant believe nobody took notes when he got crucified lol.

[chrza]

As far as I'm concerned, Easter falls 2 days after the day Jesus Christ was crucified. But why isn't the date solid?

I tried to Google a bit, and I found out that Easter also follows the Paschal Full Moon date of the year. But then why does Good Friday change as well. Why does the day that Jesus dies change too?

Excuse my ignorance :lol:

Don't worry about it.

[spf1971]

ur not funny. its been over done now.

But making smart ass comments and insulting a religion are funny? Go back to your ticket blog.

[mart242]

but why does good friday, the day of Christ's death ALSO change. that's what bugs me


:lol: It's confusing indeed and reminds me of this:

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g70/Ntycrst/Jesus.jpg

[thelefteyeguy]

i blame it on the olympics


btw...in before the lock...this thread will get really ugly soon (religious threads always do ;))

[board123]

i blame it on the olympics


btw...in before the lock...this thread will get really ugly soon (religious threads always do ;))
Be more optimistic. It will only go sour if you wish it so.

[jcoltage]

Who cares

This is the greatest week ever ... I get today off `cough` and I get Friday off.


heres to the good times to come in a few hours....



http://www.newsarama.com/general/Flogging/Spidey_Drunk_1.jpg

[Carnage]

Yes, I know, I never asked why it was on a Friday or Sunday, I simply asked why the date changes

Then the answer is because it's a Friday and Sunday.

Same reason why the date for Victoria Day changes. If it's always on a monday, then the date is always going to be different.

As year by year the dates of each weekday will change.

[ullyeus]

but why does good friday, the day of Christ's death ALSO change. that's what bugs me



He is a fictional character, they can do whatever they want his his death, he can even die multiple times or something.

[DaVibe]

My girlfriend was mentioning this to me ... something to do with the leap year / moon and this and that and that this type of Easter (so early) will not happen for another 200 years.

In 2008, Easter Sunday will be celebrated on March 23, the earliest it's been since 1913. It will not be this early again for another 220 years. The exception to this is the Orthodox Church, which follows the Julian calendar, and for it, Easter will fall on April 27 this year. (http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/holidays/easter.html)

[Tijuana]

He is a fictional character, they can do whatever they want his his death, he can even die multiple times or something.

He is actually a proven historical figure, so he is real, his stories may or may not be something else

[dark169]

but why does good friday, the day of Christ's death ALSO change. that's what bugs me


but yes.... the extra long weekend = AWESOME

Of course Christ was born on December 25th, which is why his parents couldn't get a room at the INN, to many holiday travelers. :lol:

Believe it or not our current calender hasn't been the world standard for ever, and believe it or not people used to use the seasons and the moon's phases to keep track of the year. Ever wonder if there is a correlation between Christmas and the start of winter?

The date of easter is based the spring full moon, the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring. Spring starts on the 20th, the full moon is on the 21st. Easter is always the same day, the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring. Problem is the first day of spring is the 20th on leap years and 21st other years, and the bloody moon doesn't listen and goes around every 28 days no matter how many days we put in the month.

[ullyeus]

He is actually a proven historical figure, so he is real, his stories may or may not be something else

The bulk of "proof" actually comes from religous documents created hundreds of years after his supposed life. For a figure of such important you think that more would have been written about him during his life.

*shrug*

I always used to assume that he was a genuine historical figure as well but once you start doing your own research it's kind of surprising.

[RenegadeX]

I blame Pancake Day.

Pancake Day is Shrove Tuesday, aka Mardi Gras.
So it's gotta be a Tuesday, and can't be a set date like "Feb 14th".
Pancake Day is the day before the first day of Lent (which is 40-days in length). Easter Sunday is the first Sunday following Lent. So because Pancake Day floats, Easter must too.

By the way, I decided to celebrate Pancake Day twice this year.
I like chocolate so I think I'll do Easter x 2, too! :D

[feelthedeal]

The bulk of "proof" actually comes from religous documents created hundreds of years after his supposed life.

You could say that about quite a few people from history (though perhaps not from 'religious texts')

And what materials did you utilize in your research?
The zombie poster from above?
Curious to know what in your research was so surprising...

[ullyeus]

You could say that about quite a few people from history (though perhaps not from 'religious texts')

And what materials did you utilize in your research?
The zombie poster from above?
Curious to know what in your research was so surprising...

I'd say most historical figures had many people recording them during their life and immediately afterwards, I can't think of many with such huge gaps and where the earliest documents about them were created in a different language hundreds of years later by authors largely unknown.


I assure you I read numerous books on it and spent quite a bit of time looking online and even attending some theology courses (meetup groups, nothing university level).

While I got a good feeling I am contributing to this thread being locked there are a few easy points

-no non-religous sources
-authors unknown, not created until hundreds of years later
-Conflicting evidence, Mathew and Luke both contain a genaology of sorts with different generational counts (41 vs 56)
-Mathew and Luke disagree about his birthday by a decade
-huge portions of his life missing
-Jesus of "Nazareth" was born in Bethlehem
-No historical evident that Nazareth even existed...

There are tonnes of other points, miracles don't exist, nor do virgin births, etc. While there may have been a man named Jesus (a common name) who walked around doing good stuff with a couple of followers....the common concept of "Jesus Christ" is fictional.

[Tijuana]

I'd say most historical figures had many people recording them during their life and immediately afterwards, I can't think of many with such huge gaps and where the earliest documents about them were created in a different language hundreds of years later by authors largely unknown.


I assure you I read numerous books on it and spent quite a bit of time looking online and even attending some theology courses (meetup groups, nothing university level).

While I got a good feeling I am contributing to this thread being locked there are a few easy points

-no non-religous sources
-authors unknown, not created until hundreds of years later
-Conflicting evidence, Mathew and Luke both contain a genaology of sorts with different generational counts (41 vs 56)
-Mathew and Luke disagree about his birthday by a decade
-huge portions of his life missing
-Jesus of "Nazareth" was born in Bethlehem
-No historical evident that Nazareth even existed...

There are tonnes of other points, miracles don't exist, nor do virgin births, etc. While there may have been a man named Jesus (a common name) who walked around doing good stuff with a couple of followers....the common concept of "Jesus Christ" is fictional.

Only to those who aren't Christian

[ullyeus]

Only to those who are rational and logical

<

[Tijuana]

<

lol nice, but like I tell everyone else, if God DOES exist, then he disproves everything that disproved his existence. Noone can say God exists 100% and no1 can say he doesnt exist 100%, your statement is irrational and illogical ;)

[Batman.]

lol nice, but like I tell everyone else, if God DOES exist, then he disproves everything that disproved his existence. Noone can say God exists 100% and no1 can say he doesnt exist 100%, your statement is irrational and illogical ;)



elaborate on this. I am by no means trying to argue the existance of God, however, I don't quite understand what you mean.


btw. Buddhism is a really depressing religion, or philosophy to follow. lol

[Tijuana]

elaborate on this. I am by no means trying to argue the existance of God, however, I don't quite understand what you mean.


btw. Buddhism is a really depressing religion, or philosophy to follow. lol

Gladly and its simple. Ill use the basic example of Christianity, although it can be applied to any religion.

I believe in God.
You Do Not believe in God

I say proof = bible
You say proof = science

Therefore proof of God = Bible
Therefore proof of God = Science

If God DOES exist, then your proof isnt valid, because your science said God CANT exist, but he does

If God DOESNT exist, then your proof is valid, because science disproved God

And really the only time you find out is when you die, so theres really not much more to it

[ullyeus]

Gladly and its simple. Ill use the basic example of Christianity, although it can be applied to any religion.

I believe in God.
You Do Not believe in God

I say proof = bible
You say proof = science

Therefore proof of God = Bible
Therefore proof of God = Science

If God DOES exist, then your proof isnt valid, because your science said God CANT exist, but he does

If God DOESyNT exist, then your proof is valid, because science disproved God

And really the only time you find out is when you die, so theres really not much more to it

what?

[ullyeus]

lol nice, but like I tell everyone else, if God DOES exist, then he disproves everything that disproved his existence. Noone can say God exists 100% and no1 can say he doesnt exist 100%, your statement is irrational and illogical ;)

No it's not.

Whats does the fact about 100% have to do with anything? I can be quite sure that Unicorns don't exist somewhere on the moon to a great degree ....the fact that nothing is 100% means nothing.

[Tijuana]

what?

sigh :razz:

Science says God doesnt exist, because no one can create matter, no one can live in clouds, no one can live in space etc. But if God does exist in the form we know, some sort of better life and assuming its not in this world(earth) then by us getting there wherever it is, it disproves the theory that God doesnt exist because of science

[Tijuana]

No it's not.

Whats does the fact about 100% have to do with anything? I can be quite sure that Unicorns don't exist somewhere on the moon to a great degree ....the fact that nothing is 100% means nothing.

Show me proof that people believe unicorns are real and that more than half the world believes in some sort of unicorn

[ullyeus]

sigh :razz:

Science says God doesnt exist, because no one can create matter, no one can live in clouds, no one can live in space etc. But if God does exist in the form we know, some sort of better life and assuming its not in this world(earth) then by us getting there wherever it is, it disproves the theory that God doesnt exist because of science

Kay...I understand the English but am losing what your point is here.

a) Who says Science and God are exclusive?

b) You think God exists in the clouds?

c) What form do we know God exists in?

Explain your point.

[ullyeus]

Show me proof that people believe unicorns are real and that more than half the world believes in some sort of unicorn

Unicorns are not real, nor is God. (I'm 99% sure, can't be 100% though as mentioned)

Just because lots of people believe in God (or Unicorns) wouldn't make it true...

gebus...totally ot

[Tijuana]

Unicorns are not real, nor is God. (I'm 99% sure, can't be 100% though as mentioned)

Just because lots of people believe in God (or Unicorns) wouldn't make it true...

gebus...totally ot

lol and and just because lots of people don't believe in God doesnt make it true

[ullyeus]

lol and and just because lots of people don't believe in God doesnt make it true

Right...logic and rational which I originally mentioned is what doesn't make him real.

The same logic that tells me its unlikely unicorns exist on the other side of the moon.

[Billa-786]

Only to those who aren't Christian

Muslims believe in most Christian aspects of Jesus.

IBTL:cheesygri

[the_fm]

the dating is quite complex but you can go with this basis:

Easter always falls on the first Sunday following the full moon on or after the Spring Equinox (March 20th or 21st). If the full moon falls on a Sunday, then Easter Sunday is the following Sunday.
This year the full moon is on March 21st (Good Friday), with Easter Sunday being March 23rd

it makes thing easier :cheesygri

[feelthedeal]

-no non-religous sources --> Josephus?
-authors unknown, not created until hundreds of years later --> some of the authentic letters of Paul can be dated to 2-5 years after the life of Christ by some criteria
-Conflicting evidence, Mathew and Luke both contain a genaology of sorts with different generational counts (41 vs 56) --> misunderstanding of the intentions of the authors, as Matthew and Luke had different intentions in their writing of the genealogies...as they weren't recording "history" as we understand it today
-Mathew and Luke disagree about his birthday by a decade --> evidence? as i haven't actually looked into this, but would be interested
-huge portions of his life missing -->there are non-canonical gospels that do tell of his early life, but for the canonical ones, it was again goes back to the intentions of the original authors
-Jesus of "Nazareth" was born in Bethlehem -->I will have to reference the information for you, but this discrepancy I believe was somewhat reconciled through a closer study of the geography and the etymology of the names
-No historical evident that Nazareth even existed...--> see above post


I would love to get a coffee sometime and just talk through these types of issues and see where we end up in the end since I'm interested in this stuff as well. Some of your points seem valid, some seem erroneous, and some seem to based on misunderstandings of say the text, the original intentions of the authors, dating, etc..

Not that I'm the final or any authority on the matter.....just something that interests me as well

[Batman.]

All I wanted to know was why the date of Easter changes :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :(

[feelthedeal]

All I wanted to know was why the date of Easter changes

LOL :cheesygri

Welcome to the wonderful world of Off-Topic...

[Batman.]

So I guess my question was all wrong. I REALLY just want to know why the date of Jesus' death changes and I used Easter as a reference-ish.

I dont see how NOBODY KNOWS when he died exactly. You cant say they used a different calendar because... then why does the date of his birth remain fixed.

Help!

[gordholio]

I was just wondering. If the birth of Christ is a fixed day, then why isn't his death.

So why is it Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

Why cant it be just Easter, or The Day of Good. *shrugs*

All I can say is do a bit of research into the history of Easter, Good Friday, Christmas etc. You will be surprised (maybe shocked) at how much came from paganism and not from the Bible. Christmas is not the actual birth day of Christ, it was taken from pagan religions and applied to "Christianity".
Easter actually pre-dates Christianity as well and was incorporated into the mainstream church in the 4th century or so. The original apostles and believers did not keep Easter, they kept the Passover.


http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_is_the_date_for_Easter_calculated_each_year

"Easter Sunday typically falls on a different date each year. Easter is always the first Sunday after or on the first full moon, after the spring (vernal) Equinox.

The first Ecumenical Council was held at Nicea in present-day Turkey in the year 325. It decreed that Easter would be celebrated on the Sunday [the first day of the week] following the first full moon that occurred after the spring equinox. This retained a lunar connection as a sort of 'memory' of the Jewish calendar system, and ensured that the feast would be on a Sunday. Because lunar phases occur independently of the solar year, this means that there is a 'window' of several weeks during which Easter may be celebrated. By this reckoning, in our calendar, Easter must occur between March 22 and April 25.

So go to your calendar, and find the first day of spring--then find the first full moon immediately following that---Easter will be the first Sunday after or on that first full moon."

The reason the commemoration of Christ's death changes is because some men just decided it would, just based on some arbitrary decision. Nothing to do with the Bible.

[Canada_7]

I'm just gonna bump this thread with a quick question...can I break my lent yet today, or do I have to wait until Sunday? There's a service tonight that if I remember correctly was suppose to be mass and also break lent together, but I'm not sure. Anyone know?

[ullyeus]

I'm just gonna bump this thread with a quick question...can I break my lent yet today, or do I have to wait until Thursday? There's a service tonight that if I remember correctly was suppose to be mass and also break lent together, but I'm not sure. Anyone know?

totally you can break it, I just had chicken wings.

[Canada_7]

EDIT: So yeah, anyone have the answer to the question.

(original post was something else nevermind it)

[stevethewheel]

As far as I'm concerned, Easter falls 2 days after the day Jesus Christ was crucified. But why isn't the date solid?

I tried to Google a bit, and I found out that Easter also follows the Paschal Full Moon date of the year. But then why does Good Friday change as well. Why does the day that Jesus dies change too?

Excuse my ignorance :lol:

Spending too much time on this is missing the point of celebrating Christ's death and resurrection.

It's like listening to my Grandparents argue about whether that old car was a '49 or a '50. when the story they are telling is about rushing to the hospital with a dying infant. I really want to hear about the kid who almost died, I don't care what year the car was made.

[ullyeus]

Spending too much time on this is missing the point of celebrating Christ's death and resurrection.

It's like listening to my Grandparents argue about whether that old car was a '49 or a '50. when the story they are telling is about rushing to the hospital with a dying infant. I really want to hear about the kid who almost died, I don't care what year the car was made.

I'd liken the Christ thing to what route they took...the real interesting part is how much chocolate you got! woot!

[Piccolo]

As far as I'm concerned, Easter falls 2 days after the day Jesus Christ was crucified. But why isn't the date solid?

I tried to Google a bit, and I found out that Easter also follows the Paschal Full Moon date of the year. But then why does Good Friday change as well. Why does the day that Jesus dies change too?

Excuse my ignorance :lol:

You didn't try very hard. The first site i googled explained everything.

[gman]

I was just wondering. If the birth of Christ is a fixed day, then why isn't his death.

So why is it Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

Why cant it be just Easter, or The Day of Good. *shrugs*

The calendar in the era of Jesus' life was not the same as today. Nobody knows the exact day Jesus was born. Jesus mostly was not born on December 25th.

All I wanted to know was why the date of Easter changes :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :(

The date of Easter does not change. It is based on a different calender.
Jesus died on a Friday after Passover which is 15th day of the month of Nisan which is the first month of Hebrew calender. First month of Hebrew calender is the beginning of spring. Hebrew calender is a lunar calender. 15th day is a full moon day like Chinese lunar calender.

In other words, people just picked a day for Jesus' birthday.
However, the day of the death of Jesus is more exact but it is based on a different calendar.