Holidays around the world

Catholic Easter Versus Orthodox Easter

Easter is a holiday celebrated by many Christians around the world to commemorate the resurrection of Christ. The days preceeding the holiday and those following it also have a special meaning.

The exact date of Easter changes from year to year and rarely repeats itself. In the Gregorian calendar, which is used by the Catholic and Protestant churches, Easter repeats itself every 5.7 million years. In the Julian calendar, which is used by the Orthodox church, Easter falls on the same date every 532 years. The frequency of repeated dates is based on calculations established by various churches throughout time and take into account lunar cycles, solar cycles, and a factor called the Epact.

When Is Easter (The Short Explanation)Simply explained, Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. If the first full moon falls on a Sunday, then the following Sunday will be Easter.

The meaning of Easter

 

Easter is the central religious feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to Christian scripture, Jesus was raised from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. Some Christians celebrate this resurrection on Easter Day or Easter Sunday, two days after Good Friday and three days after Maundy Thursday. The chronology of his death and resurrection is variously interpreted to be between AD 26 and 36, traditionally 33. Easter also refers to the season of the church year called Eastertide or the Easter Season. Traditionally the Easter Season lasted for the forty days from Easter Day until Ascension Day but now officially lasts for the fifty days until Pentecost. The first week of the Easter Season is known as Easter Week or the Octave of Easter. Easter also marks the end of Lent, a season of fasting, prayer, and penance.

Easter is a moveable feast, meaning it is not fixed in relation to the civil calendar. The First Council of Nicaea (325) established the date of Easter as the first Sunday after the full moon (the Paschal Full Moon) following the northern hemisphere's vernal equinox.Ecclesiastically, the equinox is reckoned to be on March 21 (even though the equinox occurs, astronomically speaking, on March 20 in most years), and the "Full Moon" is not necessarily the astronomically correct date. The date of Easter therefore varies between March 22 and April 25. Eastern Christianity bases its calculations on the Julian Calendar whose March 21 corresponds, during the 21st century, to April 3 in the Gregorian Calendar, in which calendar their celebration of Easter therefore varies between April 4 and May 8.

Easter is linked to the Jewish Passover by much of its symbolism, as well as by its position in the calendar. In most European languages the feast called Easter in English is termed by the words for passover in those languages and in the older English versions of the Bible the term Easter was the term used to translate passover. 

Relatively newer[citation needed] elements such as the Easter Bunny and Easter egg hunts have become part of the holiday's modern celebrations, and those aspects are often celebrated by many Christians and non-Christians alike. There are also some Christian denominations who do not celebrate Easter. 
 

Laboratory works №3

Thanksgiving Day

Part1

Thanksgiving Day

Behind the Turkey: The story of thanksgiving

1.

1.to hold thanksgiving celebrations-праздновать День благодарения

2.to flee oppression-попрощаться с угнетением

3.to have a good harvest of horn and barley-хороший урожай  ячменя

4.to last through the winter-длиться на протяжении зимы

5.to declare a national observance-объявить национальное празднование

6.to begin a campaign for an official holiday-начать кампанию в честь официального праздника

7.an autumn harvest festival-осенний фестиваль урожая

8.side dishes-сторона блюд

9.pecan pie-ореховый пирог

10.charity groups-благотворительные группы

2.

1) Thanksgiving is celebrated every year on the fourth Thursday of November.  The month of November is in autumn, the main season for harvesting crops. 

2)  The writer O. Henry called Thanksgiving the one holiday that is purely American.  It is not a religious holiday.  But it has spiritual meaning.

3) Thanksgiving Day is a harvest festival celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Traditionally, it has been a time to give thanks for a bountiful harvest. While there was an underlying religious element in the original celebration, Thanksgiving today is primarily identified as a secular holiday. Thanksgiving in North America had originated from a mix of European and Native traditions. Typically in Europe, festivals were held before and after the harvest cycles to give thanks to God for a good harvest, to rejoice together after much hard work with the rest of the community. When Europeans first arrived to the Americas, they brought with them their own harvest festival traditions from Europe, celebrating their safe voyage, peace and good harvest.

4) Miz Scott-Buczak serves the traditional American Thanksgiving dinner.  But she adds a few special foods that are especially popular in some African-American homes, dishes like sweet potato pie and corn pudding. Before the meal begins, the people all say a few words about what they are most thankful for.

5) Mister Sanghua was born in Sierra Leone.  He says the family began a Thanksgiving tradition because the children, ages nine through sixteen, wanted to celebrate an American holiday.   

6) Joan and Sandy Horwitt of Arlington, Virginia, have been holding a Thanksgiving dinner for almost thirty years.  All the guests bring food to share.  The Horwitts started this tradition when they moved to Virginia from the Midwest. They regretted not being able to be with all their family members.  But they soon met new friends.  So they started a holiday dinner for others who were also unable to travel to family homes for the holiday.

7) The centerpiece of contemporary Thanksgiving in the United States and Canada is a large meal, generally centered around a large roasted turkey. A Thanksgiving Day dinner served to the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1935 included: pickles, green olives, celery, roast turkey, oyster stew, cranberry sauce, giblet gravy, dressing, creamed asparagus tips, snowflake potatoes, baked carrots, hot rolls, fruit salad, mince meat pie, fruit cake, candies, grapes, apples, French drip coffee, cigars and cigarettes.

8) Americans  have   added   new   traditions  to their  Thanksgiving  celebration.  For example, a number of professional and college football games are played on  Thanksgiving  Day.  Some of the games are broadcast on national television.

9) When Europeans first arrived to the Americas, they brought with them their own harvest festival traditions from Europe, celebrating their safe voyage, peace and good harvest.

10) After  the   first  harvest, the governor of Plymouth Colony - William Bradford - suggested that the  Pilgrims  hold a feast of thanksgiving. He felt that it was a good time to thank God for the  Pilgrims ’ survival in their new homeland. And to their thanksgiving feast the  Pilgrims  invited the Indians. The  Pilgrims  were grateful to the Indians for helping the Colony  survive . In addition, they hoped that the celebration would strengthen their friendship with the Indians. But we do know that the  Pilgrims  and Indians enjoyed a huge feast of deer, goose, duck, oyster, eel, bread, fruit, and corn meal pudding. Everything was cooked over open fires, and the Indians even showed the  Pilgrims  how to roast corn over the flames to make popcorn!

11) In 1827, Mrs. Sarah Joseph Hale began lobbying several Presidents for the proclamation of  Thanksgiving  as  a   national   holiday . It didn't see success until 1863 when Abraham Lincoln finally made it  a   national   holiday  with his 1863  Thanksgiving  Proclamation. 

Part 2

3.

1)  Thanksgiving  is what the social scientists call a civil holiday.  It is not religious but it  does   have   spiritual   meaning .  For some families,  Thanksgiving  may be the only time of year when everyone gets together.  The government says the Sunday after  Thanksgiving  is the busiest day of the year for long-distance travel as people return from gatherings.

2)  The   Friday   after   Thanksgiving , although not a Federal holiday, is often a company holiday for many in the U.S. workforce, except for those in retail. It is also a day off for most schools.  The   Friday   after   Thanksgiving  is popularly known as Black  Friday , so-called because of the heavy shopping traffic on that day. Black Friday is considered to be the start of the Christmas shopping season.

3) The  Macy's   Thanksgiving   Day   Parade , often shortened to  Macy's   Day   Parade , is an annual  parade  presented by  Macy's . The tradition started in 1927, tying it for the second-oldest  Thanksgiving   parade  in the United States along with America's  Thanksgiving   Parade  in Detroit.

4) In the 1920s many of  Macy's  department store employees were first-generation immigrants. Proud of their new American heritage, they wanted to celebrate the United States holiday of  Thanksgiving  with the type of festival their parents had loved in Europe.

5) New safety measures were incorporated in 2006 to prevent accidents and balloon related injuries. One measure taken was installation of wind measurement devices to alert  parade  organizers to any unsafe conditions that could cause the balloons to behave erratically. Also,  parade  officials implemented a measure to keep the balloons closer to the ground during windy conditions.

6) One measure taken was installation of wind measurement devices to alert  parade  organizers to any unsafe conditions that could cause the balloons to behave erratically.

7)  Thanksgiving  memories are often made of --  the   big   Thanksgiving  Day  meal .  Some families serve ham.  Others serve a meatless dinner.  But the traditional main dish is turkey.  Most people cook the bird in an oven; some prepare the turkey other ways,  like  fried in oil.

4.

Paragraph

Thanksgiving Day Traditions :The Big Thanksgiving Meal

  Thanksgiving  memories are often made of --  the   big   Thanksgiving  Day  meal .  Some families serve ham.  Others serve a meatless dinner.  But the traditional main dish is turkey.  Most people cook the bird in an oven; some prepare the turkey other ways,  like  fried in oil. Turkey on  Thanksgiving  is usually served with a bread mixture inside.  Some Americans call it stuffing; others call it dressing.  Popular side dishes on  Thanksgiving  include cranberries, sweet potatoes and green beans.  Then for a rich, sweet dessert there is often pumpkin pie or pecan pie. Many  Thanksgiving  tables also are heavy with other dishes, often brought by guests.  And if the guests eat all that is served, they too will feel heavy. Some people  like  fruit soup, green salads and baked potatoes with their turkey.  Others  like  baked squash, creamed onions, creamed spinach and corn pudding.  Many people eat more at  Thanksgiving  than any other time of the year. For people who do not have much food, or a home to go to at  Thanksgiving , charity groups play an important part.  To help the needy, religious and service organizations across the country serve special  Thanksgiving   meals . 
 

Laboratory works №4

Other Holidays

Part 1

A Day to Dream:

Remembering Martin Luther King and his Work

1) Martin Luther King, Jr., (January 15, 1929-April 4, 1968) was born Michael Luther King, Jr., but later had his name changed to Martin.

2) Always a strong worker for civil rights for members of his race, King was, by this time, a member of the executive committee of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the leading organization of its kind in the nation. He was ready, then, early in December, 1955, to accept the leadership of the first great Negro nonviolent demonstration of contemporary times in the United States, the bus boycott described by Gunnar Jahn in his presentation speech in honor of the laureate.

3) In 1957 he was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization formed to provide new leadership for the now burgeoning civil rights movement. The ideals for this organization he took from Christianity; its operational techniques from Gandhi. In the eleven-year period between 1957 and 1968, King traveled over six million miles and spoke over twenty-five hundred times, appearing wherever there was injustice, protest, and action; and meanwhile he wrote five books as well as numerous articles.

4) he planned the drives in Alabama for the registration of Negroes as voters; he directed the peaceful march on Washington, D.C., of 250,000 people to whom he delivered his address, "l Have a Dream", he conferred with President John F. Kennedy and campaigned for President Lyndon B. Johnson; he was arrested upwards of twenty times and assaulted at least four times; he was awarded five honorary degrees; was named Man of the Year by Time magazine in 1963; and became not only the symbolic leader of American blacks but also a world figure.

At the age of thirty-five, Martin Luther King, Jr., was the youngest man to have received the Nobel Peace Prize. When notified of his selection, he announced that he would turn over the prize money of $54,123 to the furtherance of the civil rights movement.

5) On the evening of April 4, 1968, while standing on the balcony of his motel room in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was to lead a protest march in sympathy with striking garbage workers of that city, he was assassinated.

6) In 1991, the New Hampshire legislature created "Civil Rights Day" and abolished "Fast Day". In 1999, "Civil Rights Day" was officially changed to "Martin Luther King Day," becoming the last state to have a holiday named after Dr. King.

On May 2, 2000, South Carolina governor Jim Hodges signed a bill to make Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday an official state holiday. South Carolina was the last state to recognize the day as a paid holiday for all state employees. Prior to this, employees could choose between celebrating Martin Luther King Day or one of three Confederate holidays. 

Part 2

Mothering Sunday 

1.

1) Mothering Sunday is a Christian festival celebrated throughout Europe and it falls on the 4th Sunday in Lent. Secularly it became a celebration of motherhood.

2) It is increasingly being called Mother's Day, although in countries other than the UK and Ireland that holiday has other origins. In the UK it is considered synonymous with Mother's Day as celebrated in other countries.

3) In the Roman religion the Hilaria festival was held in honour of the mother goddess Cybele and it took place during mid-March. As the Roman Empire and Europe converted to Christianity, this celebration became part of the liturgical calendar as Laetare Sunday, the fourth Sunday in Lent to honour the Virgin Mary and the "mother church"