When someone says Easter, many people think of Easter Sunday and the delicious feast usually shared with family and friends.
Easter is actually much longer than just one day and has much more history to it.
There is a lot to debate about the actual origin of the word Easter, but there is no confusion as to why Easter is celebrated by Christians.
In many churches, the Easter period starts with Ash Wednesday. This is the first day of the day of the 40 days of lent, which represent Jesus’ 40 days and 40 nights fo fasting in the wilderness while being tempted. (Matthew 4:1-2, Mark 1: 12-13, Luke 4: 1-2). Lent typically ends on the Saturday of Holy Week ( or the day before Easter.)
Many Christians celebrate Shrove Tuesday as well. This is the day before Ash Wednesday and is sometimes called Fat Tuesday or Pancake Tuesday. Because the period of lent was a time of fasting and prayer, self-discipline, and denial; families would use up all of the goods not allowed during lent, including eggs, milk, fats, and meats. One great way to use up the eggs, milk and fats was to make delicious pancakes! It became a day of feasting before the fasting.
Palm Sunday is the next recognized day of the Easter period. Palm Sunday is always 1 week before the resurrection of Jesus and was the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, while people laid down palm leaves, celebrating and welcoming a king, their Messiah (Matthew 21: 1-11, John 12: 12-19). Palm Sunday now marks the beginning of the Holy Week – a week when we remember and reflect on the events leading up to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Of particular note during this week are Monday and Thursday, and Good Friday.