In 325CE the Council of Nicaea established that Easter would be held on the first Sunday after the first full moon occurring on or after the vernal equinox.
In many Christian churches, the chancel is adorned with Easter lilies throughout the Easter season. According to pious legend, after Jesus' death and resurrection, some of these beautiful flowers were found growing in the Garden of Gethsemane, where he had gone the night before His crucifixion. Legend has it that these flowers sprang up where drops of Jesus' sweat fell as he prayed.
A doubting Thomas is a skeptic who refuses to believe without direct personal experience--a reference to the Apostle Thomas, who refused to believe that the resurrected Jesus had appeared to the ten other apostles, until he could see and feel the wounds received by Jesus on the cross.
Bilbies are native Australian marsupials that are endangered. To raise money and increase awareness of conservation efforts, bilby-shaped chocolates and related merchandise are sold within many stores throughout Australia as an alternative to Easter bunnies.
MARK 16:9-11: "Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons. She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept. And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.
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