Celebrating festivals

• What is a festival?

  • A festival is a day or period of celebration for religious reasons 
  • Festivals help Christians to remember and celebrate the major events in their religion - particularly the life, death and resurrection of Jesus
• What is Christmas?

  • Christmas is a festival that commemorates the birth and incarnation of Jesus, which is the belief that God became human in Jesus
  • Celebration begin on the 25th of December and last 12days, ending with Epiphany (which recalls the visit of the wise men)

  
• What are some examples of celebrations at Christmas that reflect Christian beliefs and teachings?

  • Lights represent Jesus as the light coming into the world of darkness  
  • Nativity scenes show baby Jesus born into poverty 
  • Carol services with bible readings remind Christians about God’s promise of a saviour and the events of Jesus’ birth 
  • Midnight Mass reflects the holiness of the night and joy Christians feel at Jesus’ birth 
  • Christmas cards and gifts recall the wise men’s gifts to Jesus 
  • Christians give to charity at Christmas because God gave humanity the gift of Jesus

  
• What is Easter?

  • Easter is the most important Christian festival, which celebrate Jesus’ rising from the dead 
  • Celebrations begin before Easter Sunday and finish with the feast of Pentecost - there are many different days/events that are celebrated during the buildup to Easter :  
  • Holy Week 
  • Good Friday 
  • Saturday Night

  
• What is Holy Week?

  • Holy week is the week before Easter Sunday 
  • Holy week remembers the events leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion, including his arrest and trial

  
• What is Good Friday?

  • Good Friday is the day Jesus was crucified 
  • On Good Friday, there are services and processions led by a person carrying a cross

  
• What is 'Saturday Night' ?

  • Saturday night is the night before Easter Sunday 
  • On Saturday night, some churches hold a special service to celebrate Christ’s resurrection 
  • Orthodox Christians walk with candles in procession, then enter the dark church as if going into Jesus’ empty tomb 
  • The priest announces ‘Christ is risen!’ to which people answer ‘He is risen indeed’ 
  • Catholics and Anglicans have a vigil that begins in darkness, before the Paschal candle is lit to symbolise the risen Christ - the service ends with Holy Communion

  
• What happens on Easter Sunday?

  • Easter Sunday was the day that Jesus’ tomb was discovered empty , signifying his resurrection
  • On Easter Sunday, churches are filled with flowers and special hymns are sung to rejoice at Jesus’ resurrection 
  • Services are held at sunrise and shared breakfasts include eggs to symbolise new life