Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VI.djvu/382

 374 EASTER EASIER ISLAND the lunar month of which the 14th day either falls on or next follows the day of the ver- n;il equinox, all Christians who persisted in following this custom in the celebration of Easter came to be called quartodecimans or "fourteenth-day men," or, still more oppro- briously, Jud&izing Christians. The great ma- jority of Christian churches, attaching most importance to the day of Christ's resurrection, which was the first day of the week (hence called the Lord's day, our Sunday), held to Easter's being celebrated on that day, and on the Sunday which followed the 14th day of the moon of March, the day on which Christ suf- fered. This question, one of custom and local discipline in the beginning, had given so much trouble that about 158 Folycarp, disciple of St. John the Evangelist and bishop of Smyrna, went to Rome to consult with Pope Anicetus on the means of healing the dhTerence. In the council held in Rome on this occasion, the western or present manner of celebrating Easter was affirmed; but Polycarp departed with the full friendship of the pope and in the communion of the church of Rome. Gradually, however, the question of the Easter celebration from one of discipline became one of dogma. In 182 a priest called Blastus made himself very obnoxious in Rome by endeavoring to have the Jewish rule of celebrating Easter on the 14th day of the moon of March adopted as a rule of faith. The discussion throughout the Christian world had become so angry that Po- lycrates, bishop of Ephesus, appealed to Vic- tor, bishop of Rome, asking to have this mat- ter decided once and for all. Councils were at once assembled in Gaul, Pontus, Osroene, Achaia, and other countries, as well as in Rome. The result was a decision fixing the feast of Easter, or the resurrection, on the Sunday immediately following the 14th day of the March moon. Polycrates refused to ac- quiesce in this decision, because it involved an abandonment of the customs of his fathers. The decree of excommunication pronounced against the quartodecimans by the council of Rome was held in abeyance, at the prayer of Ire- naeus of Lyons ; and a schism was thus averted. After this the contending parties agreed to maintain their respective customs and practices in this respect without censuring one another. Constantino had the subject brought before the council of Nice, in 325. The question was ful- ly discussed, and finally settled for the whole church by adopting the rule which makes Eas- ter day to be always the first Sunday after the full moon which happens upon or next after March 21 ; and if the full moon happen on a Sunday, Easter day is the Sunday after. By i his arrangement Easter may come as early as March 22, or as late as April 25. In France the year began with Easter from the 12th cen- tury till 1564, for which year Charles IX. fixed Jan. 1 as the first day. This sacred fes- tivaj has been termed the queen of festivals; it has been observed from the very beginning, and is celebrated in every part of the Christian world with great solemnity and devotion. For- merly the churches were ornamented with large wax candles, and the Christians saluted each other with a kiss and the words " Christ is risen," to which the response was made, "He is risen indeed." This custom is still retained in the Greek church, particularly in Russia. The day before Easter Sunday, or Holy Satur- day, has ever been set apart as a day for spe- cially solemnizing baptism. Courts of justice were closed, alms were distributed, slaves were freed, and the people gave themselves up to enjoyment and feasting. In nearly all Chris- tian countries the recurrence of Easter has been celebrated with various ceremonies and popu- lar sports and observances. Among the best known is the custom of making presents of colored eggs, called pasch or pace eggs, which were often elaborately ornamented; and in a royal roll of the time of Edward I., preserved in the tower, appears an entry of 18d. for 400 eggs to be used for this purpose. Colored eggs were used by children at Easter in a sort of game which consists in testing the strength of the egg shells, and this practice is still con- tinued in most Christian countries. In some parts of Ireland the legend is current that the sun dances in the sky on Easter Sunday morn- ing. This was once a prevailing superstition in England also, which Sir Thomas Browne, in his " Inquiry into Vulgar Errors," thought it not superfluous to declare unfounded. The game of ball was a favorite Easter sport, in which municipal corporations formerly engaged with due parade and dignity; and at Bury St. Ed- mund's within a few years the game was kept up with great spirit by twelve old women. In the northern counties of England the men parade the streets on Easter Sunday, and claim the privilege of lifting every woman three times from the ground, receiving in payment a kiss or a silver sixpence. The same is done by the women to the men on the next day. EASTER ISLAND, an island in the eastern part of the Pacific, lat. 27 6' S., Ion. 109 17' W., distant about 2,300 m. from the coast of South America. From its solitary position it has been but seldom visited. It was discovered in 1722 by Roggeween, a Dutch navigator, and was visited in 1774 and described by Cook. It is about 11 m. long and 6 broad, and contains three extinct volcanoes of large size, rising to the height of 1,200 ft. above the sea. The land in the valleys is fertile and well cultivated; but the island is deficient in water. The na- tives, who number about 1,000, are tall and robust, with regular features and dark com- plexion. They belong to the Polynesian race, and until lately were fiercely hostile to the whites. In 1865 some French missionaries landed among them, and, though at first treated with great rudeness, finally succeeded in con- verting them to Christianity, which is now professed by the entire population. The re- markable feature of the island is that it con-