When is Easter 2024?
Good Friday, 29 March, 2024
Easter Sunday, 31 March, 2024
Easter Monday, April 1, 2024
The Easter date is a complex calculation involving the full moon and the spring equinox. A correct statement is: ‘Easter is the first Sunday after the first ecclesiastical full moon that occurs on or after March 21’. The earliest date for Easter is March 22 and the latest date for Easter is April 25.
Easter Celebrations
- Decorating Easter Eggs
- Easter Calendar
- Easter Eggs
- Easter Gift Ideas
- Easter Parades
- Easter Traditions
- The Easter Bunny
People celebrate the Easter holiday period according to their beliefs and their religious denominations.
Christians commemorate Good Friday as the day that Jesus Christ died and Easter Sunday is celebrated as the day that He was resurrected.
Throughout America, children wake up on Easter Sunday to find that the Easter Bunny has left them baskets of Easter eggs or candy.
In many cases, the Easter bunny has also hidden the eggs that they decorated earlier that week. Children hunt for the eggs all around the house.
Good Friday is a holiday in some states of the USA where they recognise Good Friday as a holiday and many schools and businesses throughout these states are closed.
Easter Day – the Most Important Christian Holiday in the United States
Easter Dates for the years ahead…
Easter 2024
Good Friday, 29 March, 2024
Easter Sunday, 31 March, 2024
Easter Monday, April 1, 2024Easter 2025
Good Friday, April 18, 2025
Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025
Easter Monday, April 21, 2025Easter 2026
Good Friday, April 3, 2026
Easter Sunday, April 5, 2026
Easter Monday, April 6, 2026
Similar to Christmas, which marks the birth of Jesus Christ and is an integral holiday for Christians and non-Christians alike, Easter Day is even more important to the Christian faith in the United States. Also similar to Christmas, Easter has been attached to several secular activities which are widely observed across the United States, from countryside homes to the lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C.
Religious Importance
Easter is the most important Christian holiday in the USA because of the basis of Christianity. What Christians believe sets Jesus apart from other religious leaders is that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead on Easter. Without this day, the major tenets of the Christian faith are unimportant.
In addition to this, there are many elements of Easter that should be understood. First of all, Good Friday, which is a holiday across the US, marks the day on which Jesus was killed. For three days, his body lay in a grave, and on the third day, he came back to life and showed himself to his disciples and to Mary. It is this day of resurrection which is known as Easter Sunday. All churches hold special services on this day to commemorate Jesus’ resurrection from the grave.
In addition to Good Friday and Easter Sunday, other events tied with Easter include the following:
Lent. This is a period of time for people to give up something and focus on prayer and reflection. Lent ends with the Easter weekend.
The Easter Season. This is a period of time spanning from Easter Sunday to Pentecost. In Biblical times, Pentecost was the event in which the Holy Spirit, part of the trinity, descended on the early Christians. Nowadays, the Easter season is not actively celebrated. However, both Good Friday and Easter Sunday are very popular holidays across the country for those who even somewhat associate themselves with Christianity.
Activities Associated with the Religious Easter Celebration
For those who belong to the Christian faith or for those who even loosely associate with it, Easter has many celebrations and activities tied to it. Specifically, a mix of traditions and public observances mark the overall celebration on Easter.
On Good Friday, some businesses are closed. This may include government offices, schools, and other such places. For the majority of Americans who identify themselves as being Christian, certain religious texts are read on this day. For instance, the story of Jesus returning to Jerusalem, riding on a donkey. The people at first were very pleased to have Jesus back in town, and they laid palm leaves in his path and praised his name. However, within a short amount of time, Jesus’ enemies, the Pharisees, has plotted with Judas Iscariot for Judas to betray Jesus and turn him over to Jewish authorities. The story continues with Jesus praying with God the Father, Judas Iscariot leading the Jewish authorities to Jesus, and Jesus’ arrest and scourging.
The tale is recounted in each of the four Gospels of the Bible which are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. As a fulfillment of prophecy, the events surrounding Easter are of the utmost importance for modern day Christians.
In order to celebrate these events now, most Christians will attend special services at their local church, read certain Bible passages together as a family, and spend significant time in prayer. Because of the emergence of spring during this time (in April), many Easter celebrations are held outside in the beautiful spring weather.
On Easter Sunday, those who attend church typically take Communion, a religious ritual. Modeled after Jesus Christ’s Last Supper, where Jesus took bread and wine and gave it to his disciples, modern day Christians take a small piece of bread and some drink (usually grape fruit juice) and eat it in turn with the leading minister. The bread signifies the body of Christ which had to be broken for the sins of the world to be cleansed. The grape juice or wine signifies the blood of Jesus which was shed for the forgiveness of the world.
Celebrations for the General Public
While there are numerous activities specifically associated with the Christian faith, there is a full industry of other activities connected to Easter. Some of the biggest ones include the following:
Easter Egg Hunts.
The Easter Bunny.
Pink, Peach, Orange, Green, and Yellow Color Schemes.
The activity can take anywhere from three minutes to half an hour and is a very enjoyable activity for those who take part in it. It has become such an integral part of Easter that there is held an annual Easter egg hunt at the White House in Washington, D.C. This event is shown on national television every year.
The Easter Bunny is another integral part of the Easter season. This character appears all over promotional materials in retail locations and on TV. In real life, someone usually dresses up in a costume which looks like a large rabbit.
The Easter bunny is responsible for giving cheer and happiness to children all over the United States. Typically, the Easter Bunny delivers candy, Easter eggs, and other gifts to children.
Another important element of Easter is the color scheme. For most Easter materials, the following colors are used:
- Pink
- Peach
- Spring Green
- Yellow
- Orange
These colors are representative of the Easter holidays, but are also commonly used to signify the oncoming spring season.
In the United States, the month of April, in which Easter is celebrated, is also the middle of spring. This is one of the best times to be in the US due to the re-emergence of flowers, plants, and animals. The fields of flowers are typically seen as a symbol of Easter and the general season of spring.
