Latest Easter

This year Easter falls on its latest possible date: April 25. Only once in the past 100 years--in 1886--has it been so late. It will not happen again in this century.* The timing of Easter, a confusing system mixing astronomy and ecclesiasticism, was worked out by the early Christian Church at the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D. and has never been changed. The Council provided that:

> Easter must closely follow the spring equinox, in accord with the pagan tradition of spring festivals. For convenience, the Council arbitrarily set the equinox on March 21, although astronomically it usually falls on March 20, sometimes on the 19th.

> Easter must closely follow a full moon in order to light the way for pilgrims' travel to the festivals. The Council arbitrarily fixed the 14th day of the Jewish "paschal [Passover] month" (in the Jewish calendar, the lunar month when the full moon occurs after the equinox) as the day of the full moon, although the actual full moon is usually one or two days earlier.

> Easter must follow the Jewish Passover (which always falls on the 14th day of the paschal month) to avoid conflict between the two holy days.

> Easter must be on a Sunday. (Before the Council of Nicea, some parts of the early Church had celebrated Easter on the third day after the Passover, whether it fell on a Sunday or a weekday, but in Rome the practice arose of always celebrating Easter on a Sunday.)

These rules meant that Easter could not fall on a fixed date, since it must always follow the changing Passover. This year there was a full moon at 5:08 p.m. on March 21, and the next lunar month after that begins on April 4. Therefore this year Passover will fall on April 18 (the 14th day of the paschal month). Thus Easter Sunday cannot be celebrated until the following Sunday, April 25.

* The earliest possible date, March 22, last occurred in 1818, also will not recur in this century.

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