Easter Is A "coming Out" Event

Fr. Paul Lelen Haokip *

Easter Sunday at MBC Church, Chingmeirong, Imphal on April 8 2012 :: Pix - Banti Phurailatpam

Introduction:

Irrespective of varied denominational hiccups and visible differences in beliefs and doctrines, the feast of EASTER binds all Christians around the globe (2.2 billion). More than the differences, each church seems to celebrate the resurrection of the Nazarene Jesus, called the Christ. I think, this is the focal point of being a Christian – not division but Unity. Once again, Easter is coinciding with Yaoshang (holi) the festivity of colours that signifies life.

Manipur – a land of multiplicity is celebrating life from the infants to adults. "So, if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God" (Col. 3:1). The Ash Wednesday was on the 13th February 2013, we have travelled through the season of lent (fast, penance and alms giving) to come to the joyful celebration of Easter.

The Easter Vigil:

Vigilance department of any society/country is indispensable. This office safeguards and provides convenience to people of high profile. It also averts possible catastrophes. Vigil is also kept during times of emergency, uproars, tension, fight, wars, death, etc. The Easter Vigil concludes with the celebration of the Eucharist (known in some traditions as Holy Communion). Certain variations in the Easter Vigil exist: Some churches read the Old Testament lessons before the procession of the Paschal candle, and then read the gospel immediately after the Exsultet (Easter Proclamation).

Some churches prefer to keep this vigil very early on the Sunday morning instead of the Saturday night, particularly to reflect the gospel account of the women coming to the tomb at dawn on the first day of the week. These services are known as the Sunrise service and often occur in outdoor setting such as the church cemetery, yard, or a nearby park.

The first recorded "Sunrise Service" took place in 1732 among the Single Brethren in the Moravian Congregation at Herrnhut, Saxony, in what is now Germany. Following an all-night vigil they went before dawn to the town graveyard, God's Acre, on the hill above the town, to celebrate the Resurrection among the graves of the departed. This service was repeated the following year by the whole congregation and subsequently spread with the Moravian Missionaries around the world, including Old Salem in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Date of Easter:

At the First Council of Nicaea in 325 it was decided that all Christian churches would celebrate Easter on the same day, which would be computed independently of any Jewish calculations to determine the date of Passover.

Name Derivation:

The second-century equivalent of Easter and the Paschal Triduum was called by both Greek and Latin writers Pascha, derived from the Hebrew term Pesach (??????), known in English as Passover, the Jewish festival commemorating the story of the Exodus. Paul writes from Ephesus that "Christ our Pascha has been sacrificed for us," although the Ephesian Christians were not the first to hear that Exodus 12 spoke about the death of Jesus. In most of the non-English speaking world, the feast today is known by the name Pascha and words derived from it.

The modern English term Easter, cognate with modern German Ostern, developed from the Old English word Eastre or Eostre, which itself developed prior to 899. This is generally held to have originally referred to the name of an Anglo-Saxon goddess, Eostre, a form of the widely attested Indo-European dawn goddess. The evidence for the Anglo-Saxon goddess, however, has not been universally accepted, and some have proposed that Eostre may have meant "the month of opening" or that the name Easter may have arisen from the designation of Easter Week in Latin as in albis.

What is Easter?

Easter is the heart of Christianity. Easter is the culmination of the Passion of Christ, preceded by Lent, a forty-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance. The last week of Lent is called Holy Week, and it contains the days of the Easter Triduum, including Maundy Thursday (also known as Holy Thursday)-commemorating the Last Supper and its preceding foot washing, as well as Good Friday-commemorating the crucifixion and death of Jesus. Easter is followed by a fifty-day period called Eastertide or the Easter Season, ending with Pentecost Sunday.

Christian world, but attending sunrise services, exclaiming the Paschal greeting, clipping the church and decorating Easter eggs, a symbol of the empty tomb, are common motifs. Additional customs include egg hunting, the Easter Bunny and Easter parades.

Easter for denizens of Sanaleipak:

Few days from now, on the 11th April, the Vaisnavite Hinduism of Manipur will be celebrating CHEIRAOBA - a New Year celebration indeed. For the Christians, the spiritual New Year (EASTER) has begun. We hope for better tolerance, co-operation, non-violence and less bandhs.

May the risen Lord Jesus raise us from our fallen nature to stand up boldly and say "eikhoi amatani", "ching-tam khaide", "shantiga loinana leiminnasi".

Wishing you a New Life.