Christianity

Easter

When is Easter in 2027, what it celebrates, how its date is calculated from the spring full moon, and how Holy Week and Easter Sunday are kept by Christians around the world.

Next date

Sunday, 28 March 2027

In brief

I.Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, the central event of the Christian faith.
II.It falls on the first Sunday after the spring full moon, so its date moves each year.
III.It ends Holy Week, which recalls the last supper on Thursday and the crucifixion on Good Friday.
IV.Orthodox churches calculate the date differently and often celebrate later.

Chapter I

What it celebrates

The Gospels tell how Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem at the time of Passover, was buried, and on the third day was found to have risen. For Christians this is the heart of their faith: death is defeated, and believers share in a new life.

Easter ends forty days of preparation, Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday, and the solemn days of Holy Week: Palm Sunday for Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, Maundy Thursday for the last supper, Good Friday for his death.

Chapter II

How it is kept

Many churches hold a vigil on Saturday night, lighting a new fire and a great Easter candle in the darkness, and proclaiming “Christ is risen”. Easter Sunday services are full of flowers and joyful music. Baptisms are traditionally celebrated at Easter.

Eggs, signs of new life, are decorated, hidden and shared; special breads and lamb are eaten. The Easter season continues for fifty days, to Pentecost.

Chapter III

Around the world

Processions fill the streets of Spain and Latin America in Holy Week. In Poland baskets of food are blessed on Holy Saturday; in many Protestant communities sunrise services are held outdoors. Easter Monday is a public holiday in many countries.

Questions people ask

Why does the date of Easter change?

Because it follows the moon. The Council of Nicaea in 325 linked it to the first full moon of spring, as the Jewish Passover, during which Jesus died, follows the moon too.

Why is Orthodox Easter often on a different day?

Most Orthodox churches still use the Julian calendar to calculate it. The two dates coincide in some years and are up to five weeks apart in others.

Sources and further reading

Toronto Metropolitan University, “2027 Calendar of Religious, Indigenous and Spiritual Observances”
Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Easter”
Ronald Hutton, The Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain (Oxford University Press, 1996)

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