Divided Christians, Separate Easters - by Thomas FitzGerald
Thomas FitzGerald is a priest and theologian in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. He is Professor of Church History and Historical Theology at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, Massachusetts.

There will be two celebrations of Easter this year!

For most Roman Catholics and Protestants, Easter (2005) will be celebrated on March 27th. But, for most Orthodox as well as some Roman Catholics and Protestants in the Middle East, Easter will be celebrated on May 1st.

Different methods of calculating the yearly date of Easter account for the divergence. Both Western and Eastern churches followed the same formula for determining Easter Sunday coming from the Council of Nicaea, in Asia Minor, in 325. There, it was determined that Easter would be celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon, after the spring equinox.

While all may agree on the formula, however, different methods are used in calculating the date of Easter Sunday. Since the sixteenth century, these differences have resulted chiefly from the use of either the older and less accurate Julian calendar or the Gregorian calendar.

In some years, such as in 2001 and 2004, the different methods of calculation lead to a common date. The next time this will happen will be in 2007. In other years, such as this year, the dates are as much as five weeks apart.

Differences in the Early Church

Differences in setting the yearly date of Easter existed even in the post-Apostolic Church. The early Christians recognized the Resurrection of Christ to be the most important event in his life and the very center of the Gospel message. Yet, there was disagreement as to when to observe liturgically the yearly commemoration of the Lord’s Resurrection. Indeed, the Gospels did not provide the actual date of the Resurrection but only said that it occurred on the first day of the week and that it was related to Passover. According to the Synoptic Gospels, the Last Supper was the Passover meal which would place the death of Jesus on the following day. According to the Gospel of John, the death took place on the day of the Passover itself.

During the first three centuries, many Christian churches in Syria, Cilicia and Mesopotamia followed the Hebrew Lunar calendar and observed the Christian Pascha in direct conjunction with the Passover on the full moon following the spring equinox. Known historically as Quartodecimans, they selected the 14th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan for the festal celebrations of Christ’s death and Resurrection. Like the Hebrew Passover, the event of the death and Resurrection of Christ could be observed on any day of the week.

Other regional churches throughout the Roman Empire of that time, chose to observe the Resurrection separate from the biblical Passover, but not unrelated to it. They preferred to celebrate the Resurrection on the Sunday after the biblical commemoration of the Passover. The yearly observance of a Paschal Sunday was in harmony with the weekly observance of the Lord’s Day, the first day of the week (John 20:1, Rev. 1:10). This practice may have also reflected developing liturgical customs which made distinctions between the event of Christ’s death and the event of his Resurrection. By this time, the majority of Christians within the Roman Empire were following the civil, Julian Calendar and not the Hebrew lunar calendar.

Both traditions of setting the yearly date of the celebration of the Resurrection were said to be of apostolic origin. The advocates of both traditions referred to biblical passages and ancient customs to support their practice. And, these facts contributed to dissension regarding the practice of observing the yearly Christian Pascha. By the fourth century, the annual liturgical celebration of the Resurrection of Christ had become firmly established in the life of the church. The differences in setting the yearly date of this observance, however, had become a source of serious controversy.

The Council of Nicaea, 325

Discussions took place at a number of regional councils throughout the second and third centuries in an effort to find a solution to the controversy. It was not until the Council of Nicaea in 325 that a solution was agreed upon. While this council, recognized as the first Ecumenical Council, is remembered chiefly for its opposition to the Arian heresy, subsequent descriptions of it indicate that the question of the Easter date received considerable attention as well.

The Council of Nicaea determined that Easter would be observed by the entire church on the same Sunday. The formula proposed that Pascha would be celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon after the spring equinox. This formula ensured that the observance of Easter would not be dependant upon contemporary Jewish calculation of the Passover, which at times also varied. In the third century, some Jewish communities were calculating the Passover without reference to the spring equinox. The Nicaea formula did not make an explicit reference to the Passover. At the same time, by referring to the full moon after the spring equinox, the formula ensured that Easter would always follow the remembrance of the biblical Passover (Exod. 12:18, Lev. 23:5, Deut. 16.1-2). This accounts for the fact that Easter does not occur on a "fixed" date each year.

Some difficulties in calculating the yearly Sunday of Easter continued in parts of the Church, especially in Britain, Ireland and Gaul. The famous Synod of Whitby in 664 dealt with the question of the Easter celebration. In some parts of the church, difficulties arose not simply over the acceptance of the Paschal formula of Nicaea but also over the different tables used to determine Easter in advance. Yet, the Council’s formula was generally accepted throughout the church by the seventh century.

An important consensus had been expressed by the Council of Nicaea. There was a profound recognition that the celebration of the Resurrection of Christ should not be a cause of division among Christians. The historic event of the Resurrection of Christ was a powerful expression of the Father’s love, and of the divine victory over the powers of sin, Satan and death. The Resurrection was an affirmation both of God’s victory and of God’s gift of reconciliation in Christ. Thus, the event of the Resurrection of Christ was at the heart of the faith and mission of the Church as well as the New Testament witness and Christian worship.

These convictions appear to have been central to the Council’s determination to affirm that the Feast of Feasts should be celebrated throughout the Church on the same Sunday. Although there was a wide variety of liturgical practices and customs throughout the churches, a consensus had developed that the Feast of the Resurrection was of such importance that the entire Church should strive to be united in observing it throughout the world.

More Recent Divisions

The observance of Easter Sunday once again became associated with church divisions in the wake of the schism between Christian East and Christian West in the Middle Ages as well as the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century.

The reform of the Julian calendar approved by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 was based upon a desire to have the calendar date of the spring equinox, March 21, agree with the actual astronomical event. In the 16th century, the true spring equinox took place 10 days before the traditional calendar date because of the accumulated inaccuracies of the Julian calendar. This meant that Easter was not being properly calculated in accordance with the Nicaea formula.

The revision of the calendar, which included the correction of the Easter observance, was not easily accepted by those who were not Roman Catholic. The "new" calendar became another point of dispute among divided Christian churches and communities. In the Protestant churches there was controversy well into the 18th century.

The Orthodox refused to accept any calendar change until the early 20th century. Only since 1923 have most regional Orthodox Churches adopted a revision of the old Julian calendar similar to the Gregorian. This means that most Orthodox Churches celebrate the "fixed feasts" such as Christmas on the same date as Roman Catholics and Protestants. The most notable exceptions to this are the Orthodox Churches of Russia and Jerusalem which continue to follow the "Old Calendar" for all feasts.

Most regional Orthodox Churches, however, did not alter the method for calculating the date of Easter. For most Orthodox, the dating of Easter as well as the related feasts of the Ascension and Pentecost are determined by calculations using the old Julian calendar. The major exception to this is the Orthodox Church of Finland which also calculates Easter according to the new revised calendar. The other Orthodox churches have been reluctant to revise the calculations of the Easter date for fear of further divisions in the regional churches.

The present differences in calculating Easter Sunday in advance each year reflects the tragic divisions among the Christian churches. As a consequence of these divisions, the Easter date is used in some places as an expression of distinction and difference among the Christian churches. The insight of the Council of Nicaea seems to be forgotten especially in places where historic tensions between the Christian traditions are ongoing.

New Discussions

Greater attention has been given to the topic of the date of Easter as contact among the divided churches, theological dialogues, and the desire for reconciliation have grown in the past hundred years.

There is an increasing recognition in many of the churches of the need to find a solution enabling all Christians to celebrate together the Feast of the Resurrection every year. In many places, families are divided over the separate observances. In many societies, the witness to Christ and His Gospel is weakened by this sign of church division. In recognition of this fact, some Roman Catholic and Protestant churches in parts of the Middle East have agreed to follow the Orthodox date of Easter as an interim expression of common witness.

During the 1960s and 1970s there was some discussion among the churches of the possibility of establishing a "fixed date" for Easter Sunday which would be the same each year. The day usually proposed was the second Sunday of April. While not all the churches were enthusiastic about this proposal, it received some support from those interested in standardizing calendars for governments, businesses and schools.

After a number of conferences dealing with the calendar dating back to 1977, this proposal was implicitly rejected by Orthodox churches in 1982. The reasons for this rejection also reflected concerns which had also been raised by some Roman Catholic and Protestant theologians. The Orthodox were especially troubled by the fact that the proposed "fixed date" was a dramatic departure from the decision of the Council of Nicaea, still followed in principle by most Christian churches. The Orthodox also cautioned that a new formula, followed by some Christians, would not contribute to the process of reconciliation and church unity.

The most recent high level ecumenical consultation on the topic was held in 1997 in Aleppo, Syria. Co-sponsored by the Middle East Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches, the consultation brought together official representatives from the Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion and a number of Protestant churches.

The Aleppo Consultation reaffirmed the centrality of the Resurrection of Christ for the Christian faith, the church’s worship, and the life of every believer. The Consultation also recognized the role which the Council of Nicaea played in affirming the importance of a unified observance of the Resurrection by the entire church.

With this in mind, the consultation made a number of important recommendations to the churches in order to achieve an agreement for determining the date for Easter in the coming years.

Firstly, the consultation recommended that the churches maintain the norms established by the Council of Nicaea. In so doing, the consultation affirmed the on-going importance of the decision of Nicaea in emphasizing the significance of a unified celebration. To follow the norms of Nicaea also would mean that the link between the biblical Passover, and the New Testament description of the death and Resurrection will be maintained. The consultation rejected, therefore, any move towards a yearly "fixed date" such as a particular Sunday in April.

Secondly, the consultation recommended that the astronomical data required to predict Easter Sunday from year to year be calculated by the most accurate scientific means available. As an appendix, the consultation provided a table of Easter dates based upon accurate astronomical data.

Thirdly, the consultation recommended that the basis for this reckoning be the meridian of Jerusalem, the place of the death and Resurrection of Christ.

Finally, the consultation urged the churches to undertake a period of study and reflection towards the goal of establishing together the date for Easter in the coming years.

Two Celebrations This Year

The difficulties surrounding the date of Easter Sunday will be especially prominent this year. Most Orthodox Christians will be observing the Feast of the Resurrection five weeks later than most Roman Catholic and Protestants. In many places, families will be divided in their celebrations. In many lands, Christian churches will bear witness to their divisions through these celebrations. In many places, especially where Christians are a minority, their divided celebrations will weaken their witness to all.

The Council of Nicaea recognized the difficulties inherent in such a divided celebration. In emphasizing the importance of a unified celebration, the Council of Nicaea was in fact affirming the deepest meaning of the Resurrection and drawing the churches away from a counter witness of division. In celebrating this "Feast of Feasts," Christians are recalling all the mighty acts of God which are centered upon the death and Resurrection of Christ. The Triune God has acted to restore us to unity with himself, with one another and with the entire creation. The joyous remembrance of the Resurrection of Christ is a celebration of unity and reconciliation.

A solemn and joyous celebration of the Resurrection together by all Christian churches throughout the world can be a powerful witness to the Father’s mighty act in Christ and our faithful response to him in the Spirit.
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