This is for all the church geeks out there:
Easter is always the 1st Sunday after the 1st full moon after the Spring Equinox (which is March 20).
This dating of Easter is based on the lunar calendar that Hebrew people used to identify passover, which is why it moves around on our Roman calendar.
Based on the above information, Easter can actually be one day earlier (March 22) that is rare.
Here’s the interesting information. This year is the earliest Easter any of us will ever see the rest of our lives! And only the most elderly of our population have ever seen it this early (95 years old or above). And none of us have ever, or will ever, see it a day earlier! Here’s the facts:
1) The next time Easter will be this early (March 23) will be the year 2228 (220 years from now). The last time it was this early was 1913 (so if you’re 95 or older, you are the only ones that were around for that!).
2) The next time it will be a day earlier, March 22, will be in the year 2285 (277 years from now). The last time it was on March 22 was 1818.
So, no one alive today has or will ever see it any earlier than this year!
February 28, 2008 at 9:58 pm
In my confirmation class when I was a girl (approximately eleventy gazillion years ago according to my kids), we had to figure out the year in our life (positing an 80 year lifespan) Easter would be the earliest. I remember a) getting the wrong answer and b) upon learning the correct anwer, feeling like I’d be VERY OLD by then – which I’m NOT. What a great churchy thing to post – and what a fun memory you stirred up for me! Peace.
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February 28, 2008 at 6:02 pm
I knew (and sort of disliked the fact) that it was really early this year. I had no idea that it was such a rare occurence. Very interesting info.
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February 28, 2008 at 5:29 pm
It’s kind of depressing…. knowing we won’t see another one like it. So, you want to be a biker mamma, huh? Way cool!
February 28, 2008 at 3:19 pm
I knew it was early, but had no idea it was so momentous.
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February 28, 2008 at 11:23 am
Wow! Where did you find those facts? Very interesting.
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