Christians Worldwide to Mark Easter with Sacred Traditions and Celebrations

Vatican City, 16 April 2025 (BSS/AFP) – Catholics, Protestants, and Orthodox Christians across the globe will celebrate Easter this Sunday, the holiest occasion in the Christian calendar, honouring the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ through deeply rooted spiritual and cultural traditions.

Easter, which signifies the triumph of life over death, does not fall on a fixed date each year. Instead, it is celebrated on the first Sunday following the full moon after the spring equinox. The festivities come at the end of Lent – a 40-day period of fasting, reflection, and prayer, observed in memory of Jesus’s time of temptation in the desert.

The celebrations of Holy Week began with Palm Sunday, which recalls Jesus's arrival in Jerusalem, welcomed by crowds laying palm branches at his feet as he entered the city to observe the Jewish Passover nearly two millennia ago.

On Maundy Thursday, Christians remember the Last Supper, during which Jesus dined with his twelve apostles and is believed to have offered bread and wine as symbols of his body and blood, foretelling his sacrificial death. That same night, Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot and handed over to Roman authorities.

Good Friday solemnly commemorates Jesus’s trial, suffering, and crucifixion. According to Christian belief, he was condemned by Roman officials for inciting unrest and by certain religious leaders for blasphemy, having proclaimed himself the Son of God. He was crucified and is believed to have died at around 3 o’clock in the afternoon. His body was later removed from the cross, wrapped in linen, and laid in a tomb.

In Rome, the Stations of the Cross, a poignant procession held at the Colosseum, retraces the steps of Christ’s final journey, offering worshippers a moment of reflection and reverence.

Holy Saturday, a day marked by silence and contemplation, culminates in the Easter Vigil. This night-time service symbolises the passage from darkness to light, with the lighting of the Paschal Candle representing Christ’s resurrection and victory over death. It is also traditionally the occasion for adult baptisms in many churches.

Easter Sunday marks the joyful celebration of the Resurrection. According to the Gospels, when Mary Magdalene visited Jesus’s tomb, she found the stone rolled away and the tomb empty – a moment Christians regard as proof of Jesus's divine resurrection.

This year is particularly significant as Easter will be celebrated on the same day by both Western and Eastern Christian Churches. While Catholics and Protestants follow the Gregorian calendar, Orthodox Christians typically follow the Julian calendar – and it is rare that both Easter dates coincide.

Easter is rich with customs that blend spiritual meaning with symbolic gestures. The ringing of church bells, which had fallen silent in mourning since Good Friday, resumes on Easter morning to announce the return of joy. The decoration and exchange of Easter eggs, symbolising new life and rebirth, is a tradition that predates Christianity and was later incorporated into the festival.

In many countries, Easter is also a time of family gatherings, festive meals, and community celebrations, echoing the universal themes of renewal, hope, and faith.