Easter Sunday
Easter Sunday marks Jesus' resurrectionChristian belief that Jesus rose from the dead after the crucifixion; the rising from the dead of believers on the Last Day; the new, or risen, life of Christians. and is the most important event in the liturgical year. The gospels record that after Jesus was crucified, his body was taken down from the cross, and placed in a cave. The cave was guarded by Roman soldiers and an enormous stone was put over the entrance, so that no one could steal the body.
Pilate said to them, 鈥淵ou have a guard of soldiers; go, make it as secure as you can.鈥 So they went with the guard and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone.
On Sunday, three days after the crucfixion, Mary Magdalene followed by some of Jesus' disciples visited the tomb to find that the stone had been moved and Jesus' body had gone.
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in, they did not find the body. While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, 鈥淲hy do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.
According to the Gospels, Jesus was seen that day by Mary Magdalene, and was seen for 40 days afterwards by the disciples. Christians call this the Resurrection and the belief is that God raised Jesus from the dead as a sign that He accepted Jesus' sacrifice for the redemption of sin and that mankind is forgiven and will have eternal life in Heaven. The resurrection of Christ also fulfils the prophecyA prediction of what will happen in the future. that the Son of God will rise again. It celebrates God raising his son Jesus from the dead as well as the destruction of the power of sin and death forever. It symbolises the opening of Heaven with the gift of eternal life to everyone.
How is Easter celebrated today?
The season of Easter lasts for six weeks. The liturgical colour of Easter is white 鈥 a sign of joy and glory of the resurrection. Easter is a joyous celebration and many families will gather together to celebrate. Easter eggs will be exchanged as a sign and symbol of new life.
Within church a new Paschal candle will be lit. This represents the Risen Christ, with the light dispelling the darkness. The Paschal candle, sometimes known as an Easter Candle, will remain lit throughout the Easter season, and then lit on occasions such as baptisms.