EASTER

Easter is a festival celebrated by Christians to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The
date of the festival is not fixed. It is celebrated on the first Sunday of a full moon day after March
21. It usually falls between March 21 and April 25.
The festival celebrates the resurrection of Jesus and is considered as a rebirth of Christianity. The
earliest references of the celebration of this festival date back to the 2nd century. In ancient
history, many controversies arose regarding the celebration of this festival. The first evidence of
controversy surrounding the festival dates back to 2nd century, when Bishop Victor tried to
punish bishops of Asia for celebration of the festival. The controversy was largely pertaining to
the dates of the festival and the rights of celebrating the festival.
The second controversy arose in the 4th century, when a large majority was unhappy with
following the Hebrew calendar for the festival. Many considered it an offence to consult the Jews
for the appropriate time to celebrate this holy festival. This controversy was promptly resolved
by the First Council when it was decided that the festival would be celebrated through
independent computations. From then on, the day is celebrated on the first Sunday after the first
moon after March 21. The festival marks the end of Lent, which is a 40 day fasting period of the
Christians.
Easter is a holy festival which is celebrated by churches around the world. The traditional
celebration of the festival involves a dimly lit church with special prayers sung in praise of Jesus
Christ. It is then followed by an elaborate Sunday mass, with happy music being played in the
background. In some cultures, such as the Polish, the celebrations are more pronounced with
large processions being carried out in the church followed by an elaborate mass. People are often
involved in charitable causes on this day and sing happy prayers in the church to commemorate
the rising of Jesus Christ from dead. One more vital feature of Easter is egg. Egg is a symbol of
resurrection for Christian community, so well decorated eggs and egg hunting have become very
important in Easter.
Easter is the time of the Christian year when Christians remember the Death and Resurrection
of Jesus Christ. They believe that Jesus, who they believe was the son of God, died for
everyone's wrong-doings and then came back to life three days later to defeat death and evil: so
if you believe in Him you will live forever in Heaven.
The word 'Easter' comes from two old pagan spring festivals. The old European pagan festival
of 'Ostara' that celebrated new life and Arabian Sun festival of 'Ishtar'. The early Christians
took over the festivals and turned the pagan festivals of new life to mean the new life that Jesus
gave the world when he rose from the dead. Unlike Christmas, when Jesus's birth is celebrated
(although we don't know what time of year Jesus was born!), Easter is celebrated around the
same time of year that he was killed. This is because Jesus died at the time of the Jewish
Passover festival.
The Passover festival dates from about 4,000 years ago when Jewish people remember that
God saved them from slavery in Egypt. Jesus was a Jew and so celebrated the Passover.
Passover takes place in the first month of the Jewish New Year (14-15 of the month of Nisan).
The Jewish calendar follows the cycle of the moon, so the date changes a bit every year.
The first Jewish Christians added Easter celebrations to the Passover festival and because Jesus
rose from the dead on a Sunday, so Easter Daybecame the first Sunday after Passover.
Over the years, the Christian festival moved in date slightly from the Jewish Passover, so they
don't now have the same date, but sometimes they are very close! The Christian date for Easter
also follows the moon, so it also changes every year. To make things even more complicated,
Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter, like Christmas, on a different day to Catholic and
Western Christians!
For Christians, the full Easter period lasted for a long time. Easter officially starts
with Lent on Ash Wednesday, 46 days before Easter Day. (Lent lasts for 40 days but you don't
count the Sundays!) Then 39 days after Easter Day, Christians celebrate Ascension Day, when
they remember Jesus going back into Heaven and promising to come back to earth one day.
Easter officially ends 49 days after Easter Day with the Christian Festival of Pentecost or
Whitsun, when Christians remember that God sent his Holy Spirit to help Christians. So Easter
is a very busy time for Christians!

X-MAS
Christmas is an annual commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ and a widely observed
cultural holiday, celebrated generally on December 25 by billions of people around the
world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, it closes the Advent season and initiates
the twelve days of Christmastide, which ends after the twelfth night. Christmas is a civil
holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated by an increasing number of non-
Christians, and is an integral part of the Christmas and holiday season.
While the birth year of Jesus is estimated among modern historians to have been between 7 and 2
BC, the exact month and day of his birth are unknown. His birth is mentioned in two of the
four canonical gospels. By the early-to-mid 4th century, the Western Christian Church had
placed Christmas on December 25, a date later adopted in the East, although some churches
celebrate on the December 25 of the older Julian calendar, which corresponds to January in the
modern-day Gregorian calendar. The date of Christmas may have initially been chosen to
correspond with the day exactly nine months after early Christians believed Jesus to have been
conceived, or with one or more ancient polytheistic festivals that occurred near southern
solstice (i.e., the Roman winter solstice); a further solar connection has been suggested because
of a biblical verse dentifying Jesus as the "Sun of righteousness".
The celebratory customs associated in various countries with Christmas have a mix of
pagan, pre-Christian, Christian, and secular themes and origins. Popular modern customs of the
holiday include gift giving, Christmas music and caroling, an exchange of Christmas
cards, churchcelebrations, a special meal, and the display of various Christmas decorations,
including Christmas trees, Christmas lights, nativity scenes, garlands,wreaths, mistletoe,
and holly. In addition, several closely related and often interchangeable figures, known as Santa
Claus, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, and Christkind, are associated with bringing gifts to
children during the Christmas season and have their own body of traditions and lore. Because
gift-giving and many other aspects of the Christmas festival involve heightened economic
activity among both Christians and non-Christians, the holiday has become a significant event
and a key sales period for retailers and businesses. The economic impact of Christmas is a factor
that has grown steadily over the past few centuries in many regions of the world.
Many Christians mark Christmas Day by attending special church services, spending time with
family members, wearing new clothes and eating a festive meal. Some families exchange gifts or
give small presents or sweets to children. They may display small electric lamps or small clay
oil-burning lamps and decorate their homes with banana or mango leaves. Some also put up a
nativity scene with clay figures or a Christmas tree. Christmas trees in India are usually imitation
pine trees or branches of native trees or bushes.
Some stores and malls may put up Christmas decorations and have actors playing Santa.
Christmas celebrations in tourist areas and hotels may be created to emulate how Christmas Day
is celebrated in the countries where tourists and travelers are from.

Many Christians in India celebrate Jesus Christ's birth on on Christmas Day, which is annually
held on December 25. The celebrations are most noticeable in states where there are many
Christians. Christmas Day is a gazetted holiday in India.

Public life
National, state and local government offices, post offices and banks are closed on Christmas
Day. Christian stores, businesses and other organizations may be closed or have reduced opening
hours. Those wishing to use public transport on the day may need to contact the local transport
authorities to check on timetables.

Background
Many Christians remember Jesus Christ's birth when they celebrate Christmas Day, which is on
December 25 in the Gregorian calendar. His actual birthday remains unconfirmed. Scholars think
that Saint Thomas the Apostle introduced Christianity to the area that is now India around 52
CE. There are now around 24 million Christians in India. The states with the largest percentages
of Christians are:
Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland in north-west India.
Goa on the west coast.
Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the south.
Christmas Day is widely celebrated in these states, but may be barely marked in others.

Symbols
Symbols of Christmas in India include:
Small electric lights and oil burners.
Decorations made of banana or mango leaves.
Artificial pine trees or branches of native tree and bushes decorated with Christmas themed
ornaments.
Nativity scenes with small clay figures.
Statues of or actors playing Santa Claus.
These are just some examples how Christmas is symbolized in India.