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 This April, there are a number of religious celebrations going on in various cultures. Here is a brief review of a few of them that I received from my employer.
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday which is celebrated in the spring. It begins on the 15th day of Nisan (on the Hebrew calendar), which falls between March 15 and April 30. Passover commemorates the exodus and freedom of the Israelites from ancient Egypt.
Holy (Maundy) Thursday
Orthodox Holy Thursday In the Christian calendar, Holy Thursday or Great Thursday, called in England and in a few other English-speaking countries Maundy Thursday, is the feast or holy day on the Thursday before Easter that commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the Apostles.
Good Friday
Orthodox Holy Friday
Good Friday is a holy day celebrated by most Christians on the Friday before Easter or Pascha. It commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus at Calvary.
Easter
Orthodox Easter
Easter, also known as the Feast of the Resurrection, "the Sunday of the Resurrection", or "Resurrection Day", is the most important religious festival of the Christian liturgical year. The date of Easter, a moveable feast, is derived from the lunar calendar: the first Sunday following the first ecclesiastical full moon on or after March 21-always between March 22 and April 25. It celebrates the resurrection of Jesus, which occurred after his death by crucifixion in AD 27-33. In the Catholic Church Easter is actually an eight-day feast called the Octave of Easter.
As my kids are home from school for most of these holidays and they have asked questions surrounding them. Questions such as, “who celebrates them and why is school out?” I’m taking this opportunity to share with them different cultures, faiths and belief systems. What’s your knowledge behind these religious observances? If you are not familiar with them, why not engage in a discussion with someone of another faith/belief to gain more insight into them.
Layout by Lisa Sanford from her soon to be released idea book, “Ethnic Scrapbooking”. | 
