What
is....
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What
is Christmas?
The
festival of Christmas marks the time when Christians all
the world over celebrate that Jesus came into the world as
a baby. The word Christmas is made up of two words
that reflect on the feast itself Christ and Mass.
Throughout
His life on earth, Jesus taught people about God: a God who
is loving, just and holy and who wants to have a personal
relationship with human beings. Jesus' own life was the greatest
example of this. Actions speak louder than words, and Jesus
didn't just talk about God and what He was like, but showed
it. Above all, He showed God's love by becoming human, born
in squalor, though he was divine (Letter to the Philippians,
2.5-8).
Jesus
showed God's forgiveness by accepting all kinds of people,
whatever
society thought about them. He showed God's healing power
by restoring the sick and dying to new life. He showed God's
generosity by feeding people who were hungry. He showed God's
compassion by comforting people who were sad, dissatisfied,
or lonely. At Christmas we give thanks to God that His love
for us was revealed in the birth, life, death and resurrection
of His Son Jesus.
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What
is Easter?
Easter
is the feast of the glorious Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. It is the oldest and most important Christian
celebration. The importance of Easter is highlighted by the
long period of preparation that precedes it: the forty days
of Lent, and the special
ceremonies of Holy Week.
It is given further distinction in the Christian calendar
by the fifty days of Paschaltide (from the Greek word pascha,
'Easter', orginally derived from the Hebrew for 'passover')
that follow it. Easter marks a time of great rejoicing, which
is reflected in the Church's liturgy by the litugical shout
of joy 'Alleluia' (from the Hebrew, 'Praise the Lord') at
the Eucharist and daily offices.
In
the early Church, Easter marked the day at which those who
had prepared for baptism during the period of Lent were
received into the Church, by being baptised into the 'death
and resurrection of Jesus Christ' (Saint Paul's Letter
to the Romans, 6.3-4) at a dawn service, following a
night of expectant watching and waiting for the first light
of Resurrection Day. Many Churches still continue the tradition
of a vigil (or, night-watch) service, or a dawn service,
in their celebrations of the Resurrection. At Saint Mary's,
we celebrate the Day of Resurrection with a ceremony of light:
by blessing a new fire, lighting the Paschal (or Easter)
candle to illumine the dark Church, we are reminded that,
in the darkness of our present age, the light of the Risen
Lord illumines us. By immersing the Paschal Candle in the baptismal
font, we are reminded of the light of Christ that we
received at our own Baptisms.
When we are sprinkled with Holy Water from the font, we recall
how Christ died and rose again to set all humanity free from
sin and death.
It
is uncertain where the word 'Easter' comes from. The Anglo-Saxon
scholar and Church-historian Bede the Venerable thought it
derived from the name of the Anglo-Saxon spring goddess 'Eostre',
or the Nordic goddess 'Ostara'. Easter, like Christmas, clearly
superseded a previous pagan celebration, which may even have
entailed the exchange of eggs as signs of fertility.
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Mass: The celebration of Holy Communion, when Christians
meet to break bread in remebrance of the last supper
that Jesus shared with His friends before He died
for them.
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Christ: from Christos, a Greek word for
'anointed', the title given to Jesus because he was
anointed with God's Holy Spirit at His Baptism in
the river Jordan (see for example the Gospel of Saint
Mark, 1.9-11). The Hebrew word for 'anointed' is meshiach,
from which we derive the word 'Messiah', 'The Anointed'.
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Updated:
August 29, 2006
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