In 2024, the Easter weekend will fall on Friday, March 29 and last until Sunday, March 31. Easter's exact date depends on the moon, hence why it changes ever year. The holiday is set to coincide with the first Sunday after the Paschal full moon, the first full moon of spring.
The lunisolar calendar is comprised of lunar months that have been adjusted to fit into solar years. Easter is determined by the Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal (or spring) equinox. For example, in 2024, the vernal equinox is on 20th March and the following full moon is on 30th March.
This is based on the Gregorian calendar. However, many Eastern Orthodox churches follow the Julian calendar rather than the Gregorian. In 2024, Eastern Orthodox Easter will occur on Sunday, May 5(the Julian calendar date converted to the Gregorian calendar).
This year, Easter will be held on Sunday, April 9 (for Western Christians), while Easter 2024 is on March 31, and Easter 2025 is on April 20. So, what's the reason for this somewhat confusing change? Easter's timing is based on the lunar calendar, as opposed to the solar calendar.
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Easter 2024 will fall 10 days earlier on the calendar than it did in 2023 as the lunar cycle shifts the holiday out of April. Western Christians will mark the holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ on March 31, 2024.
Easter, the annual Christian celebration of Jesus Christ's resurrection, can fall anywhere from March 22 to April 25. Easter as early as March 22 is very rare. The last time it happened was 1818, and the next time will be 2285. Easter last fell on the latest date in 1943, and will again in 2038.
The Eastern Christian churches still determine the Easter dates using the older Julian Calendar method. The usual statement, that Easter Day is the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs next after the vernal equinox, is not a precise statement of the actual ecclesiastical rules.
Easter Sunday is determined by the first Sunday after the first full Moon occurring on or after the spring equinox (the March equinox). This means that the date of Easter changes from year to year.
In 2023, Easter falls on April 9. But depending on the year, it can occur on any Sunday between March 22 and April 25.
Easter continues to be celebrated on two different dates depending on which church you belong to. The Orthodox Easter now falls anywhere between April 4 and May 8 and the Catholic Easter falls anywhere between March 22 and April 25.
Eastern Christianity recognises a different date for Easter because it typically follows the Julian calendar. This is instead of the Gregorian calendar, which is widely used by most countries today – and that Great Britain, for example, changed to hundreds of years ago in 1752.
What Other Days Is it Bad Luck to Wash Clothes On? Believe it or not, Good Friday and Easter Sunday are just two days out of a long list of days that you shouldn't do laundry on, or any other chores for that matter, according to different tales and superstitions!
The naming of the celebration as “Easter” seems to go back to the name of a pre-Christian goddess in England, Eostre, who was celebrated at beginning of spring. The only reference to this goddess comes from the writings of the Venerable Bede, a British monk who lived in the late seventh and early eighth century.
The simple standard definition of Easter is that it is the first Sunday after the full Moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox. If the full Moon falls on a Sunday then Easter is the next Sunday.
First off, it's important to know that though the exact date of Easter changes each year, there's a definite period in which the day occurs, and that's March 22 through April 25 (in the Gregorian calendar, not the Julian calendar).
After all, unlike Christmas, the date changes every year. It can be as early as March 22 or as late as April 25. This year, it falls in the middle on April 9, which is more than a week earlier than it fell in 2022. And go ahead and prepare for an early Easter 2024: Next year, the date falls on March 31.
Being the most significant holiday on the Christian calendar, and with 61% of the Australian population identified as Christian, many families attend at least one church service over the Easter period. In Australia Easter begins on Good Friday which marks the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
Good Friday is celebrated on different dates because the date of Easter varies. Good Friday always occurs on the Friday before Easter Sunday, so if Easter Sunday moves, Good Friday also moves. Easter Sunday is usually on the first Sunday following the first full moon that occurs after the Spring equinox.
Eggs represent new life and rebirth, and it's thought that this ancient custom became a part of Easter celebrations. In the medieval period, eating eggs was forbidden during Lent (the 40 days before Easter) so on Easter Sunday, tucking into an egg was a real treat!
Steven Engler, a professor in religious studies at Mount Royal University, says the basic reason the two differ is because Christmas is fixed to a solar calendar, near the winter solstice, and Easter is based on the lunar cycles of the Jewish calendar.
Some sources suggest that the day is "good" in that it is holy, or that the phrase is a corruption of "God's Friday". However, according to Fiona MacPherson, senior editor at the Oxford English Dictionary, the adjective traditionally "designates a day on (or sometimes a season in) which religious observance is held".
The answer may lie in combining iconography. Eggs, just like the rabbit, have long been considered an ancient symbol of fertility, rebirth and new life, all associated with the springtime celebration of Easter! From a Christian perspective, Easter eggs represent Jesus' resurrection and his emergence from the tomb.