Come Home Running

I know that Easter is all about Jesus' resurrection but being that I am on a crusade to truly understand every holiday that we celebrate (whether culturally or spiritually) I wanted to dig a little deeper into what Easter is really all about.

According to one website

The timing of the Christian celebration of Easter is linked to the Jewish celebration of the Passover. Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were observed by the ancient Israelites early in each new year. (The Jewish people followed the Persian/Babylonian calendar and started each year with the Spring Equinox circa MAR-21). "Equinox" means "equal night;" on that date of the year, the night and day are approximately equal. The name "Passover" was derived from the actions of the angel of death as described in the book of Exodus. The angel "passed over" the homes of the Jews which were marked with the blood obtained from a ritual animal sacrifice. The same angel exterminated the first born(s) of every family whose doorway was not so marked.. Passover was the most important feast of the Jewish calendar, celebrated at the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox. (The Equinox typically occurs on March 20, 21 or 22 according to our present calendar.)
The Gospels differ on the date of Jesus' execution:
The Synoptic gospels (Mark, Matthew and Luke) state that Jesus' last supper was a Seder - a Passover celebration at the start of 15th Nisan, just after sundown. (Jewish days begin at sundown and continue until the next sundown). Jesus was executed later that day and died about 3 PM.
The gospel of John states that the last supper at the beginning of 14th Nisan. Jesus is recorded as having died on the afternoon of 14th Nisan.

All the different sites I read helped me to realize that the date doesn't really matter. What really matters is that as a church body we are choosing to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord. That we are saying to the world that "Christ is risen" and asking of those around us to recognize that "He is risen, indeed"

Some interesting side notes:

Over the centuries, these religious observances have been supplemented by popular customs, many of were incorporated from springtime fertility celebrations of European and Middle Eastern pagan religion. Rabbits and eggs, for example, are widely-used pagan symbols for fertility. Christians view the Easter eggs as symbols of joy and celebration (as they were forbidden during the fast of Lent) and of new life and resurrection. A common custom is to hide brightly colored eggs for children to find.

I read through the Gospels as a way to prepare for Easter. While reading John 11 I was struck by the words Jesus used as he brought lazarus back from the dead.

John 11:25-27

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?"She said to Him, "Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world."

John 11:40

Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?"

It is my prayer that we would all recognize that Jesus is indeed the resurrection and the life and that we would believe in Him and see His glory spread throughout all of the earth.