Today is Easter Sunday. That brings up the question, "When is Easter?" The rule is fairly complicated:
Prior to A.D. 325, Easter was variously celebrated on different days of the week, including Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. In that year, the Council of Nicaea was convened by emperor Constantine. It issued the Easter Rule which states that Easter shall be celebrated on the first Sunday that occurs after the first full moon on or after the vernal equinox. However, a caveat must be introduced here. The "full moon" in the rule is the ecclesiastical full moon, which is defined as the fourteenth day of a tabular lunation, where day 1 corresponds to the ecclesiastical New Moon. It does not always occur on the same date as the astronomical full moon. The ecclesiastical "vernal equinox" is always on March 21. Therefore, Easter must be celebrated on a Sunday between the dates of March 22 and April 25. (see The Easter Page — Traditions, History, and Dates of Easter
The dates for Easter for the next five years are:
- April 11, 2004
- March 27, 2005
- April 16, 2006
- April 8, 2007
- March 23, 2008
Today is a beautiful day with clear skies and a bright sun — very different from yesterday which was cold with rain or snow most of the day. It was nice of the weather to move out so we could have a lovely day today! Our son Jared drove down from Denver yesterday afternoon to spend the day with us as well. This is a very good day!
Nina and I are singing in an Easter Cantata. For the past twelve weeks we’ve been going to choir practice at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday morning and having to leave a half-hour early at 10:30 to go to Denver to work in the Temple. Yesterday was Dress Rehearsal so we made arrangements to stay for the entire practice. The 90-voice choir sounds wonderful and it’s exciting to sing beautiful music together with so many people. Sally DeFord (Web Page) wrote the music and is conducting the choir. My favorite music in the cantata is titled "In the Silent Garden:"
Come at the dawn to the silent garden; brightly beams the morning sun
Come at the dawn to the silent garden; see what wonder the Lord hath done!
Come to the tomb in the silent garden; Lo! the stone is rolled away
Linger in awe, for the tomb lies empty; see the place where is body lay!
He is risen! He is risen! Risen unto endless life
Weep no more in the silent garden
Death is swallowed up in Christ!
Seek him no more in the silent garden; seek him not among the dead
Find him in glory among the living; risen even as he said
Victory is wrought in the silent garden; joy is born of an empty tomb
Sing for the morning of our salvation; Christ hath brought us life anew!
We sang the cantata last night and the final performance is this evening. Music has such a wondrous effect on our souls. He is risen. I add my witness on this beautiful day, a day when we celebrate the most wondrous event in the history of mankind!