EASTER SUNDAY – Resurrection of our Lord

 Resurrection of Jesus – The belief that Jesus was raised bodily from the dead by God on the third day after Jesus’ crucifixion and burial, exalting him to the near presence of God in eternal glory. The resurrection of Jesus is at the heart of Christianity (Acts 2:22-36). Christian faith would be meaningless without the resurrection of Jesus (1 Cor 15:14). The reality of Jesus’ resurrection was experienced by chosen witnesses and proclaimed by the early Christian community. Easter is the day of Jesus’ resurrection. Jesus is understood to have been raised on the Sunday following the Friday of his crucifixion. The resurrection is to be distinguished both from resuscitation (restoration to the prior mode of human existence) and the immortality of the soul. Jesus’ resurrection began the transformation and glorification of the whole cosmos, including the redeemed Christian community. Christ was raised as the “first fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor 15:20). By Christ’s resurrection, this same new mode of existence is made available to all. The Catechism notes that “By his resurrection, Jesus overcame death and opened for us the way of eternal life” (BCP, p. 850). Jesus’ resurrection is celebrated by Christians at all times, especially at Easter and throughout the Great Fifty Days of the Easter season, and on Sunday, which is the Lord’s Day and the day of resurrection.

 Easter – The feast of Christ’s resurrection. According to Bede, the word derives from the Anglo-Saxon spring goddess Eostre. Christians in England applied the word to the principal festival of the church year, both day and season. 1) Easter Day is the annual feast of the resurrection, the pascha or Christian Passover, and the eighth day of cosmic creation. Faith in Jesus’ resurrection on the Sunday or third day following his crucifixion is at the heart of Christian belief. Easter sets the experience of springtime next to the ancient stories of deliverance and the proclamation of the risen Christ. In the west, Easter occurs on the first Sunday after the full moon on or after the vernal equinox. Easter always falls between Mar. 22 and Apr. 25 inclusive. Following Jewish custom, the feast begins at sunset on Easter Eve with the Great Vigil of Easter. The Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates Easter on the first Sunday after the Jewish pesach or Passover (which follows the spring full moon). Although the two dates sometimes coincide, the eastern date is often one or more weeks later. 2) Easter Season. See Great Fifty Days.

https://episcopalchurch.org/library/glossary/resurrection-jesus