Major Differences Between Passover And Easter: Passover is a major, biblically derived Jewish holiday where Jews celebrate Passover as a memorial and honour of their freedom by God from slavery in initial Egypt and their freedom as a nation under the leadership of Moses. Passover is also known as Pesach.
On the other hand, Easter is the main festival and holiday in the Christian faith which celebrates the revival of Jesus from the dead. The day is also known as Resurrection Sunday or Pascha in Greek and Latin.
Most deliberate that Passover is a Jewish holiday and the Easter is a Christian one. But when we equate the biblical Passover with Easter, we find something very dissimilar so here are those things which separate Passover from Easter.
What Is Easter?
Easter is the Christian holiday commemorating the resurrection of Lord Jesus Christ. In the Modern Times, The Festival is Observed by Attending Church, Having Dinner with Family & Friends, Participating in Festive Traditions Like Coloring the Hard Boiled Eggs, and Hiding Plastic Ones filed with Candy or Surprises.
What Is Passover?
Passover is the Major Jewish Festival commemorating the liberation of Children’s of Israel by Moses From abject slavery and domination of the Pharaohs. Passover is the Festival Celebrated by Jews around the World. It is Celebrated 7 to 8 Days, Which Might Vary in Accordance with the Geographical Location that the Jewish Family Might be Falling in.
Key Difference:
Passover |
Easter |
|
Community | Passover is a Jewish festival. | Easter is celebrated by Christians Around the World. |
Purpose of celebration | The liberation of Israelites from the Pharaohs. | Rebirth of Jesus Christ |
Prophet/ Central Figure | Moses | Jesus Christ |
Duration | Passover is celebrated across 7 to 8 days consecutively. | Easter is celebrated over a week’s time. |
Significance | Passover is important festivals in the Jewish calendar. | Easter is the most important festival in the Christian calendar. |
Biblical Origin
The origin of the Passover is found in Exodus 12 whereas you can’t find Easter commanded in the Bible. The Israelites had been under cruel slavery to the Egyptian Pharaoh, who had rejected to let them go. For the reason of Pharaoh’s obstinacy, God directed a sequence of plagues on Egypt and was about to send the 10th and ultimate plague: assassinating the firstborn of all people and animals.
God would spare, or “pass over,” only those who smeared lamb’s blood on their doorway (Exodus 12:12-13). The day was called the Passover and was to be kept by Israel as a commemorative of their release from slavery in Egypt (Exodus 12:14; Leviticus 23:4-5).
Talking about Easter, the word is in fact found in Acts 12:4 in the 1611 King James Version, but most researchers identify it as a clear translation mistake (modern translations substitute it with the term Passover). There are more than 70 orientations to Passover in the Old and New Testaments but there are no authentic orientations to Easter.
Symbols
Symbols of the Passover are considered to be full of meaning. Jesus Himself is “our Passover” and also he “sacrificed for us” (1 Corinthians 5:7).
The unleavened bread signifies His sinless and damaged body (Matthew 26:26), and the wine signifies His blood that was poured out for us (Matthew 26:28). The foot-washing signifies the humbleness and helping approach of Jesus, which we are to follow (John 13:5-8, 9-11, 12-15).
The main symbols related to Easter are eggs as well as bunnies. But these have deep roots in the earliest pagan customs. Bunnies and eggs are ancient productiveness symbols that were assumed years after Christ’s revival. Even the name Easter has roots in an ancient pagan deity.
Fixed Day vs. Transferrable Day
God intended the Passover to be kept once in a year on a precise day: the 14th day of the leading month on the Hebrew calendar (Deuteronomy 16:1; Leviticus 23:5). The Catholic Church mistreated the initial Christians who kept the Passover, calling them Quartodecimans (Latin for “14thers”) and Judaizers.
The Passover was so reviled that “in 325 CE the Council of Nicaea established that Easter would be held on the first Sunday after the first full moon occurring on or after the vernal equinox. From that point forward, the Easter date depended on the ecclesiastical approximation of March 21 for the vernal equinox”. This gave Easter a movable date that wouldn’t fall on the Passover. Even at that time also, the Western churches use the Gregorian calendar and the Eastern churches use the Julian calendar, so their dates for Easter vary.
God-Ordained vs. Human Belief
One of the main dissimilarities in the middle of Passover and Easter is that the Creator God demanded Passover be kept by His folks. He never demanded anybody to observe Easter memorialize Christ’s revival.
It is a historical point that the Catholic Church directed Easter’s observance at the Council of Nicea in A.D. 325. Church front-runners did not appeal to biblical authority, only their individual authority, to make the alteration. Sadly, Christ’s advice in contradiction of replacing human ritual for the commandments of God was disregarded.
Bottom Lines
The Festival of Easter is Celebrated over 7 Days which is known as the Holy Week. The Holy Wek starts off with ‘Palm Sunday’ and end with ‘Easter Day’. The Friday Following the Maundy Thursday is celebrated as the ‘Good Friday’. This was the Day On which Lord Jesus Christ was crucified to Death. On this Day, Christians All Over the World mourn for the suffering and death of Lord Jesus Christ. While Passover Pesah or Pesach is the Jewish Festival commemorates the exodus of Jews from slavery in Egypt. The Holiday Originated in the Torah, where the Pesach Refers to Ancient Passover Sacrifice.