Do the preparation task first. Then read the article and do the exercises.
Preparation
The meaning of Easter
Easter is a Christian festival which marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ. For many Christians, Easter is a celebration of the triumph of life over death, and a very important time of the year. Many non-Christians also have a holiday at this time, so it is a popular time to travel or spend with friends and family. We see lots of symbols of new life at Easter, especially eggs, chicks, flowers and rabbits. These symbols go back to ancient pagan traditions which celebrated fertility, rebirth and new growth after the long, winter months.
When it is celebrated
The dates of Easter change from year to year but it usually falls sometime between the end of March and the end of April. In Western Christianity, Easter Sunday is the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring, which starts on 21 March. The Eastern Orthodox churches, which use a different calendar, have a slightly different way of calculating Easter and usually celebrate Easter a little earlier or later.
Holy Week
The week before Easter is called Holy Week. The first day of Holy Week is Palm Sunday, which is the Sunday before Easter. Many Christians celebrate this as the day that Jesus entered Jerusalem and people threw down branches from palm trees on the road to welcome him. Four days later is Maundy Thursday, which marks the Last Supper, when Jesus ate bread and drank wine with his twelve disciples. The following day is Good Friday, which is significant for Christians as the day that Jesus was put to death on the cross. Many Christians believe that Jesus was killed and buried in a tomb on the Friday and that God raised him from the dead on the Sunday. So Easter Sunday is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus.
How Easter is celebrated
In many countries there are religious processions during Holy Week, and practising Christians attend special church services. On Palm Sunday, many churches bless palm branches and people put them on the ground during processions to mark the day that Jesus arrived in Jerusalem. The Last Supper on Maundy Thursday is celebrated in many Christian traditions in the form of the Communion, when believers share bread and wine. Good Friday is traditionally a day of fasting, reflection and sadness. A lot of church services start at midnight the night before Easter Sunday with the lighting of candles or, in Greece, fireworks. This represents the triumph of light over darkness. On Easter Sunday, churches are filled with flowers representing new life, and at home chocolate Easter eggs are given as presents.
Other Easter traditions
There are many different Easter traditions around the world. In some places, people eat lamb on Easter Sunday, but there are many other foods, such as hot cross buns – spiced, sweet bread buns made with raisins – that are traditional in the UK.
In some places in Eastern Europe, boys and girls throw water at each other, while in Corfu, Greece, there is a tradition of throwing pots and pans out of windows and from balconies, breaking them on the street. In the United States, a tradition of wearing new clothes at Easter has evolved into making Easter bonnets – fancy hats decorated with flowers, rabbits and other symbols of spring. For fans of crime fiction, Norway is the place to be at Easter, when it has become traditional to read crime novels and solve mysteries.
Eggs are a popular part of Easter celebrations. Traditionally, people paint chicken eggs and decorate them with bright colours to give as presents. Nowadays, chocolate eggs are more popular than the traditional kind, especially with children. They are often hidden around the house and garden so that children can find them in an Easter egg hunt.
In my family we don't celebrate Easter anymore. However, Easter is a important celebration for the Christians and where I live (Poland) it's commonly celebrated. When I was younger I remember seeing families carrying baskets with eggs to church or I vividly remember a fun time when my parents threw water at me, which eventually ended up in a water fight.
Also, since I grew up in Norway I can confirm that it's common to watch different mystery thrillers or read crime Novels during Easter.
I'm not a Christian but it always good to learn new things.
Unfortunately no. I have Christian friends who celebrate but not in a big way. I could occasionally see some wearing new clothes and sharing big dinners but I haven't seen the eggs hunting like I did while I was living in Michigan when my friend's nieces would happily go looking for these carefully painted eggs hidden not only in the yards but also indoors. This could be probably due to most of my friends are bachelors and Easter tradition befits family more, I think. Or, maybe because there is only a small percentage of Christians in my country and most are living in big cities and almost none is living in rural areas thus I have never ever encountered any of the locals Christian celebrate it except on air.
Do you celebrate Easter?
No, I don't because I'm from in different religious nobody here celebrates this easter festival but I love Christian people and crunch.
Yes, I do. I'm a devoted Christian who goes to church every Sunday, the Easter Sunday is just more important than the other Sundays. The atmosphere at this celebration brings me lots of joy and happiness. It is a good occasion which brings people together, that is one more reason to celebrate Easter.
no, i don`t
my family is not religious. me too. but we have a holiday and always spend time together. my mum cooks different dishes and my granny cooks cakes (yummyyyy). it is a great time.
I wish there was an easter festival in my country, so that we can have one more fascinating holidays.