How do they decide when Easter is going to be each year?
This question has come up more this year because Easter is so early – March 23. (Its actually the second earliest date that Easter can be.) Heres the explanation: The date for Resurrection Sunday (“Easter”) varies considerably from one year to the next. It should come as no surprise that the date changes each year. Since the Resurrection occurred on a Sunday, the dates for a given Sunday change from year to year. (Its kind of like our Thanksgiving holiday which is always on a Thursday, but the date changes from year to year.) The date for Easter is chosen differently than for Thanksgiving, however. Thanksgiving always occurs on the 4th Thursday in November. Whereas Easter can be anywhere from the 4th Sunday in March to the 4th Sunday in April – quite a range. Heres why: The date chosen to celebrate the Resurrection comes from a formula established by Roman Emperor Constantine the Great and the church-wide Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325. That formula is: The first Sunday after the first
