I’ll be taking a bit of a break for Advent/pre-Nativity fast. I will continue to look after the comboxes but there shouldn’t be new posts until after Christmas. A holy and blessed season to all.
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Cathedra Unitatis 
May your time away be blessed. His mercy is great! May it refresh you.
cathedraunitatis,
Hi there, happy to have found your blog today and the prayer for Unity.
I was trying to find a contact us for you but failing that this seemed an appropriate place.
When you are back after Christmas with Unity week not far away would you consider writing a blog post about an Ecumenical online petition to unite the Dates of Easter?
It currently has just over 4000 signatures and has been translated in to 9 different languages and I am sure you will be happy to hear will be finished being translated in to Greek in the next week or so.
In Christ,
Alistair
Alistair,
Why reinvent the wheel! The 1st Ecumenical Council did that for us nearly 1700 years ago, which the Orthodox Christians still observe.
The Council of Nicaea established that the date of Easter would be the first Sunday after the full moon following the vernal equinox. The date (near March 21 in the northern hemisphere) when night and day are nearly the same length and the Sun crosses the celestial equator moving northward. In the southern hemisphere, the vernal equinox corresponds to the center of the Sun crossing the celestial equator moving southward and occurs on the date of the northern autumnal equinox. There will be a difference depending on one’s location on earth. The point is that His Resurrection, like his Birth (celebrated at the winter soltice), is a harpinger of light overcoming darkness.
>Why reinvent the wheel!
Why Vote to Celebrate Easter all in one date?
Simply, because as one Christian family we are divided on this matter and our division is a sin. When we cannot agree to celebrate the Feast of the Resurrection on the same day, how can we hope to be a sign of Peace and Unity to the world?
It is neither the intention nor the objective of the OneDate.org website to provide the opportunity to debate and discuss the reasons as to why we as Christians celebrate Easter on different dates and not one date.
It is the intention only to provide evidence in the form of a petition that may be submitted to respective members of the Church hierarchy within the existing various denominations.
If you are interested as an individual to take a step towards Christian Unity you can sign the petition to unite the dates of Easter at http://www.onedate.org
“The point is that His Resurrection, like his Birth (celebrated at the winter soltice), is a harpinger of light overcoming darkness.”
Dare I open the can of worms to suggest that His birth may in fact co-incide with the Winter soltice (perhaps by Providence) but the origin of the feast’s not in place strictly because of the WS at all?
Dare I open the can of worms to suggest that His birth may in fact co-incide with the Winter soltice (perhaps by Providence) but the origin of the feast’s not in place strictly because of the WS at all?
I dare say that this idea will prompt little spilling of worms around here. Given Dr Wm Tighe’s input and influence around these parts, I dare say that most of us around here are fairly comfortable with the idea that Christmas may be celebrated on Dec 25 because that is (at least approximately) the actual day on which Our Lord was born.
I believe the same.
This has been talked about on our group blog in two different posts.
St. John Chrysostom: another theory on the date of Christmas
Christmas is Pagan? Hardly. The Origins of Christmas
NiceneHobbit writes “Actually, I can prove Christ was born in December (or darn close):The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary “in the sixth month” of the Jewish year…that is, in Adar (our February/March). Now count nine months for the pregnancy and you come to Kislev (our November/December). According to some Church Fathers, Jesus was born during Channukah. Therefore, Jesus Christ was born of the Holy Virgin Mary in Bethlehem of Judea in the Jewish month of Kislev (December) during the Festival of Lights. And I say likely on what is December 25th. “
I weigh in myself: Simpler still, a hopelessly plain-spoken traditionalist priest (Fr. Wolfe, FSSP) came out shooting straight from the hip on this issue. He asks in a live sermon, “What mother here can forget the date of thier first child’s birth?”
As the Catholic Encylopedia relays “No doubt, the words of St. John (19:27), “and from that hour the disciple took her to his own”, refer not merely to the time between Easter and Pentecost, but they extend to the whole of Mary’s later life.”
Traditions are pretty clear that Mary, our inheritance from the last will & testament of Christ (“Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” ), remained with the Apostles after Pentecost, encouraging the faithful, and recieving pilgrims.Think about that.
If you lived with the Mother of Our Lord, what would you ask of her? EVERYTHING.”Mother what was Jesus’ favorite food? When was He born? What games did He play as a child? What were His first words?…”
They knew when His birthday was. Further, we all celebrate it on the same day. People who tell you eastern Christians celebrate it in January are confused by (a) the Epiphany or (b) use of the Julian calendar! From as far East as India to as far West as Spain, it is on the same date on all liturgical calendars. Coincidence?
This has only been doubted in the recent era by folks adhearing to sola scriptura (though the veracity of this date using Biblical evidence is possible!) and modern biblical scholars who rely heavily on a historical critical method that does not consider ancient traditional teachings. The idea that we can’t be sure of the dating of Scripture or what in Scripture is authentic, is just plain odd and foreign to a Catholic.
December 25: Not just a memorial, an actual birthdate.
agreed
Since his illness was mentioned on this blog, I wonder if you’re aware of the passing of Archbishop Vsevelod? Here’s the info: http://uocofusa.org/home_message.html
May his memory be eternal!
Dear Vito,
Thanks for the note. This is very sad news indeed. I am preparing a post on this now.
Re: #8,
Absolute nonsense. The Mother of God lived her whole life in Israel and than Anatolia, and yet there is no evidence whatsoever in either Greek or Syriac sources for December 25 as the date of the Lord’s birth. The date is first mentioned by Tertullian, and his rationale for it is not based on historical “evidence” or “recollections” by rather on the alleged fact that as Christ died on March 25, AD 29 (which is erroneous), and that as he was conceived on a March 25 (conceived on the same date as his death), he would have been born on a December 25.
See:
http://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=16-10-012-v
for further details.
Again my point for a COMMON DATE OF PASCHA (Easter), as Pope Paul VI proposed at one time, why not just use the Eastern Orthodox reckoning, as is used in many parts of the Middle East currently.
Gee Doctor T, don’t pull any punches.
Dear Hieromonk Gregory: I’d be all for that. I bet most Catholics would. Most Catholics don’t have a clue why Easter falls on the dates it does anyway, so…what the heck? LOL! It’s just not that huge a deal for most of us, at least nowadays. Which really makes the whole brouhaha seem rather silly, when you come right down to it.
Whatever our church leaders decide re dating Easter is fine by me. If adopting the Eastern dating would help effect reunion, then I hope and pray that we’ll go for it.
God bless and happy FD of Saint Stephen Protomartyr!
Diane
P.S. Simple Sinner: LOL! BTW, I love your blog, and I would love to hear about your story sometime. 🙂
dianeski: “Whatever our church leaders decide re dating Easter is fine by me.”
The essence of the site in a nutshell:
“It is not the purpose of this web site (onedate.org) to resolve or suggest how to reconcile the dates of Easter it is simply to register your Vote to celebrate the feast of Easter all in one date.”
http://www.onedate.org/vote-for-one-date.php
OK, OK, I signed the petition! 🙂
Diane,
🙂
Anyone still thinking… ….Why one Easter Date
‘I appeal to you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no dissensions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.’ (1 Cor 1:10 RSV)
“But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against a house falleth”(Lk 11:17 AKJV)
‘I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.’ (Jn 17:20 – 21 RSV)
‘Whoever knows what is right to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.’ (James 4:17 RSV)