THE Easter it is a traditional commemoration held in Christian religions that remember the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ and celebrate his resurrection. Originally, the Easter it was started by the Jews and in Christianity it came to be celebrated with new meaning. This celebration is held annually in a datemobile and the criteria that determine the date of Easter were established by the Catholic Church in the fourth century d. Ç. The word "easter" is derived from the term peach, from the Hebrew and the terms pascha from latin and paskha from the Greek.
Also access:See what history knows about the wise men who visited Jesus
Christian Easter
Easter is a celebration that emerged in jewish tradition in memory of the deliverance of the Hebrew people from slavery in Egypt. In Hebrew tradition, the feast took place because Yahweh sent an order for Moses to pass it on to the Hebrews. The Jews remember the passing of the angel of death during the event of the tenth plague in Egypt. In reference to this, these people call their Passover “Passover”, which means “passage”.
In Christianity, in turn, Passover has a different meaning from Jewish belief, but despite this, the Christian feast has a direct connection with that of the Jews. For Christians, as mentioned, Easter is related to crucifixion, deathandresurrectioninJesusChrist. Within Christian tradition, Christ's resurrection took place on the third day after his crucifixion.
Within the Christian tradition, Easter is one of the most important celebrations (for many, the most important) because it highlights the importance of Christ's resurrection for Christians. The apostle Paul himself states in his letter recorded in 1 Corinthians 15:14 that "If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is in vain, and your faith is also in vain"|1|.
This short passage from the Bible gives a dimension of the importance of the resurrection for Christian belief. He makes us understand that without Easter, that is, without the resurrection of Christ, the faith of Christians would have no practical meaning. Christians understand that Christ's death was a voluntary sacrifice for the purpose of saving mankind from their sins. Through this sacrifice, humanity gained a new chance.
Holy Week
The celebration that takes place on Easter Sunday closes the WeekSanta, period in which all the events that led to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ are recalled. The beginning of Holy Week takes place in Palm Sunday, the day marked by the return of Jesus to the city of Jerusalem. During this week, some events are often highlighted, such as the Last Supper, that happened during the Holy Thursday.
Reproduction of the Last Supper performed by Jesus Christ with his disciples.*
At the Last Supper, Christ met with his disciples for the last time and celebrated with them. At that moment, Jesus narrated to his disciples everything that would happen to him: the betrayal (which would be committed by Judas Iscariot) and the denial of Christ (performed by Peter). On Maundy Thursday, the traditional foot washing rite, which takes place in memory of the act of Jesus washing the feet of his disciples.
On Maundy Thursday night, Jesus Christ was arrested and the next day condemned and flogged. On Good Friday, the crucifixion and death of Christ are still remembered. Using the biblical narrative as a basis, Christ's arrest took place while he was in Gethsemane and took place through the betrayal of Judas Iscariot and then he was tried and convicted. In the process of crucifixion, Christ was tortured and finally crucified on a hill called Golgotha.
The Sabbath after Christ's death and before his resurrection is known as Saturday of Hallelujah and Easter Sunday is exactly the day of Christ's resurrection. The great parallel between Jewish and Christian celebration lies in the fact that Christ's crucifixion and resurrection took place at the same time as the Jewish Passover.
Christian Easter Traditions
Easter is celebrated within Christianity in different ways and these variations happen because of the different Christian strands that exist. The differences can be punctually summarized between Christians catholics, orthodox and protestants (within Protestantism there is a range of strands). In our country, the most popular tradition is the Catholic tradition.
The City of Goiás, located in the interior of Goiás, holds the Procession of the Fogaréu during Holy Week.
Thus, taking into account the Catholic tradition, during Holy Week, various masses and various reenactments of the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ are held, known as Passion of christ. Another well-known tradition is also the Bonfire Procession which is held annually in the City of Goiás, located in the state of Goiás.
The Procession of the Fogaréu was introduced in the former capital of Goiás in the 18th century by the Spanish priest João Perestelo by Vasconcelos Espíndola. At the time, the priest was the parish priest. Since then, the tradition has been held in the city annually and, nowadays, it attracts thousands of faithful. In 2018, the party attracted around 50 thousand faithful to the inner city of Goiás|5|. The procession enacts the persecution and arrest of Jesus Christ.
Also access:Discover the origin of one of the most traditional religious festivals in Brazil
Easter date
People always have a big doubt about how the date on which Easter is celebrated is determined. The answer to this question is in the fourth century d. C., when the Council of Nicaea, in the year 325. During this council, the authorities of the Catholic Church established that Easter would be celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon that follows the equinox of spring (in the Northern Hemisphere). Therefore, the Christian Easter is celebrated during the period between March 22nd and April 25th.
Easter also closes the Lent, that forty-day period that begins with Ash Wednesday. In the Catholic Christian tradition, Lent is a period marked by a series of fasts, the red meat fast being the best known. It is also a period marked by penances, when many are deprived of something or perform some act of charity. Also, if you are interested in knowing why people don't eat meat on Good Friday, click here: Why not eat meat on Good Friday?
|1| I Corinthians 15. To access, click on here.
|2| A tradition for 273 years, Procissão do Fogaréu gathers thousands of faithful in the city of Goiás. To access, click on here.
*Image credits: Renata Sedmakova and Shutterstock
By Daniel Neves
Graduated in History
