April 14, 2023
Considering "Easter," "Sunday," and what is the Lord's
The history of Christian calendar, though a great deal of fun to study and research, can be a bit confusing, if not frustrating. There is a great deal that we do not know because we have very few early records. Further, the early records we have reflect local practices which varied widely across Christian churches in the first two centuries. The calendar we (Protestants and Catholics) have now reflects a collection of practices across western churches over the ages. Yet even now there are some variations between Catholics and Protestants, and between Protestant denominations and groups.
But with all this diversity, this reflection is about where most Christians agree. The earliest Christian holy day is the Lord’s Day. Referred to only once in the New Testament (Rev.1:10), which referred to Sunday, the first day of the week. The concept of a week was new to the Greco-Roman world, as a year was divided into months and days. The idea of a seven-day week was uncommon outside of Judaism. Time was based on the movements of the universe. And a week was not based on the earth’s movement around the sun (year), a rotation of the earth (day), or phases of the moon (month). The concept of week is connected to the first chapter of Genesis and the seven days of creation, the seventh day being when God established the Sabbath. The Sabbath was one day out of seven set aside to celebrate gift of God’s peace, or “shalom.” The first day after the Sabbath, known as the “8th day,” was considered to be a day of perfection, the first day that began when everything was in place. Jews would circumcise their infant sons on the 8th day after their birth. Sunday is the 8th day of the week. Many ancient Jews believed that the messiah would return on the 8th day. Jesus was resurrected on the 8th day, the first day of the week. We know from the New Testament that Jews who followed Jesus after the Ascension continued to observe the Sabbath as Jews, but also worshipped as followers of Jesus on the first day of the week, or the Lord’s Day.
That is why almost all Christians worship on Sunday. We worship on Sunday as a testimony that we worship the risen Christ, made Lord of all by God in his dying and rising. The earliest Christians would gather daily, sometimes more than once a day, to pray for the salvation of the world before the return of Jesus. But on the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day, they would gather for the reading of the scriptures (Old Testament) and the “memoirs of the apostles” (gospels and epistles), and would conclude with a meal, the Lord’s Supper. Only two things are described as the Lord’s in the New Testament: the Lord’s Day and the Lord’s Supper. And they originally went together.
The earliest records of the Lord’s Supper, surprisingly have no reference to the Upper Room, or the “body and blood of Christ.” This appears to come later into the second century. Instead, the reason for celebrating a meal on the Lord’s Day was to celebrate their ongoing communion with God in Christ, and their being the Body of Christ together. This was a resurrection meal. In fact, one of the earliest depictions near an altar table was of fish and bread, referring both to the miraculous feedings during Jesus’s ministry, and the meal shared with the disciples on the beach after the resurrection (John 21:1-14). Christ’s Table is the celebration of the ongoing table fellowship with Christ, from his earthly ministry, to after his resurrection, and until Christ returns.
When serving at Covenant Bible College in Canada, a group of students and I were asked to contribute to the Easter worship service of a nearby Covenant church. That day the pastor celebrated the Lord’s Supper, which I thought was odd. Didn’t they just do that on Thursday? Isn’t that a rather somber rite for Easter? When I began my worship studies, I realized the wisdom of this. Maundy Thursday we commemorate the meal on the night Jesus was betrayed. It is somber. But on the Lord’s Day we celebrate the resurrection of the Lord and our ongoing communion with God and communion with one another in Christ, all because of the resurrection. This is especially true of Easter, where we celebrate the “joyous feast of the people of God,” as the Covenant Book of Worshipproclaims.
But of course, every Sunday is an Easter, of sorts; a celebration of the resurrection of the Lord as the cornerstone of our common faith each week.
Christ is risen indeed. Alleluia!
~ Pastor Todd
