HOLIDAYS:

THE PASCHAL FULL MOON:

Yesterday, at 6:40 pm UT (1:40 pm here in Winnipeg in the CDT zone), the 'Paschal Full Moon' arrived. This is the full moon that is taken as the event from which the day that Easter falls on is decided. There has actually been a long history about the setting of the date of Easter, and I hope to deal with this tomorrow on Easter Sunday. In traditional western Christianity Easter is traditionally the first Sunday after the first full moon following the Vernal Equinox. In actual fact the date of this full moon is not taken from reality but rather from a set of ecclesiastical tables known as a "Computus". The date of the "full moon" as given by these religious devises may differ from reality by up to two days. Ah, the miracle of faith !

The Paschal full moon has a few other names, derived from native American traditions. These include the 'Full Worm Moon', the 'Full Crow Moon', the 'Full Crust Moon' and the 'Full Sap Moon '. See 'The Moons of 2008' earlier on this blog for the names of the full moons of this year. You can also find the exact time of any full moon by consulting the tables on the Time and Date website.