WARREN, NJ - It's time for the Easter Bunny.
However, for many people, Easter is more than the Easter Bunny. Easter is a festival and holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, described in the New Testament as having occurred three days after his crucifixion. It is the culmination of the Passion of Christ, preceded by Lent, a forty-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance.
The last week of Lent is called Holy Week, and contains the days of the Easter Triduum, including HolyThursday, commemorating the Last Supper and its preceding foot washing, and Good Friday, commemorating the crucifixion and death of Jesus.
Easter customs vary across the Christian world, and include decorating Easter eggs, a symbol of the empty tomb.
Easter is linked to the Jewish Passover by much of its symbolism, as well as by its position in the calendar. In many languages, the words for "Easter" and "Passover" are identical or very similar.
Easter is a moveable feast. The First Council of Nicaea (325) established the date of Easter as the first Sunday after the full moon (the Paschal Full Moon) following the March equinox so the date of Easter varies from March 22 to April 25. Eastern Christianity bases its calculations on the Julian calendar so the celebration of Easter varies between April 4 and May 8.