Many Orthodox churches base their Easter date on the Julian calendar, which often differs from the Gregorian calendar that is used by many western countries. Therefore the Orthodox Easter period often occurs later than the Easter period that falls around the time of the March equinox.

2014: April 20th

​Symbols
Easter celebrations in Orthodox Christian communities usually include a spit-roast lamb dinner and a display of hard-boiled eggs, dyed red to symbolize the blood of Christ. The egg was an important symbol in the mythologies of many early civilizations and was also connected with the springtime fertility rituals. Many Greeks rap their eggs against their friends' eggs and the owner of the last uncracked egg is considered lucky. The red eggs are usually prepared on Holy Thursday in countries such as Greece. According to tradition, the Virgin Mary dyed eggs red to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ and to celebrate life. A traditional Easter dinner may consist of red-dyed eggs baked into a braided loaf of bread, spit-roasted, herb-perfumed baby lamb, and assorted vegetables.

One of the most common Christian symbols associated with Easter is the lamb. It is often depicted with a banner that bears a cross, and it is known as the Agnus Dei, meaning "Lamb of God" in Latin. The symbol’s origin relates to the Jewish Passover. In ancient times the Jews sacrificed a lamb in the course of the festival. The early Christians associated the sacrifice of the lamb with Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the cross. They connected the joyous Passover festival, which celebrates the liberation of Jewish people from years of bondage in Egypt, with the liberation from death represented by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. (timeanddate.com)

 

(Russian)

Па́сха (греч. πάσχα, лат. Pascha, ивр. פסח‎ [Pesaḥ] — «прохождение мимо»), также — Воскресе́ние Христо́во (греч. Ἡ Ανάστασις τοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ) — древнейший христианский праздник; главный праздник богослужебного года. Установлен в честь воскресения Иисуса Христа. В настоящее время его дата в каждый конкретный год исчисляется по лунно-солнечному календарю, что делает Пасху переходящим праздником.

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Общее правило для расчёта даты Пасхи: «Пасха празднуется в первое воскресенье после весеннего полнолуния».

2014: 20 апреля

 

Практически все пасхальные традиции возникли в богослужении. Даже размах пасхальных народных гуляний связан с разговением после Великого поста — времени воздержания, когда все праздники, семейные в том числе, переносились на празднование Пасхи. Символами Пасхи становится всё, что выражает Обновление (Пасхальные ручьи), Свет (Пасхальный огонь), Жизнь (Пасхальные куличи, яйца и зайцы).

Source: wiki >>

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