How remarkable is it that one man could affect the world so much that our entire calendar system is based on his life and ministry?
What is today’s date?
Once, a man who said that he did not believe in Jesus challenged me. Understand, he was not someone struggling with his faith. Rather, he was obstinate in his disbelief and openly hostile to mine. After listening to his faulty arguments about the non-existence of Christ, I casually asked him for the day’s date. When he responded, I pointed out that his response was based on the life, death and resurrection of a man that supposedly did not exist.
No one else in human history can claim influence over the direction of the world like Christ. No monarch, president or billionaire will ever again change the world to the point that our entire calendar system would be based on his or her life.
Jesus Christ is Lord!
Only a truly divine being could do such a thing. Even without faith in Him, the life of Jesus has touched anyone who has dated a check, booked an airline or hotel reservation, disclosed his or her own birthday or simply answered the question, “What is today’s date?”
2010 AD
In recent years, some have tried to diminish this undeniable fact. For example, some historians have abandoned the designation “A.D.” or “Anno Domini”, which means “Year of our Lord” in favor of the secular “C.E.” which means “Christian Era.” Or “B.C.” or “Before Christ” is replaced with “B.C.E.” or “Before the Christian Era.” Despite these efforts at secularization, our calendar system is STILL based on the life of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. A rose by any other name is still a rose. So, as we celebrate the New Year, think about the fact that this is may be the one day everyone in the world expresses a belief in Christ, whether they like it or not.
Happy New Year – New Year of our Lord that is!
I have a question about the liturgical calendar. We celebrate Easter on different dates each year. I understand that the Jewish calendar follows the cycle of the moon, so Passover changes each year. Easter is celebrated after Passover, but Jesus was crucified on only one day after Passover in history- one singular, unique date in time. So, why do we have a changing date for our observation?
Anon,
Great question! – I actually had to go back to my notes from a class I took while in formation to find an answer. Perhaps one of my fellow bloggers can offer a more complete answer but, here is my attempt nonetheless.
Since Jesus is the true paschal Lamb of God, Easter always coincides with Passover. Furthermore, the early Christians did not distinguish themselves from the rest of the Jewish community. So, they celebrated Passover with the rest of the Jewish community with the added theology of Christ’s death and resurrection. While there was always, and still is, some debate on the dating process, all of the currrent methods seems to desire to link the feast of Passover with the Crucifixion of Christ as the perfect Sacrifice and Victim of God.
Excellent Post Reverend Deacon. I usually spend New Years Eve (we have a mass that starts at 11 PM 9and we ring in the New Year right after the homily and then finish Mass) preaching how even the most secular people refer to Christ every time they write a check, everytime they post a date at the top of a memo or letter. 2010 AD. Jesus Reset the clocks!
By the way, even worse than what you describe, many people who use designations like CE and BCE now go even futher and decalre them to mean Common Era (CE) and Before the common era (BCE). 🙁
I saw Common Era in a museum once. They still can’t deny to whom the calendar is “Common”
By-the-way, that is a great way to ring in the New Year of Our Lord. I pray your church is full!!!!!
I can vouch that my high school and university both taught that “C.E.” means “Common Era.”
I bet neither your high school nor your university are in session on Dec 25th. Happy 2010 AD, Thomas.
That’s true. Nor on Good Friday, despite the fact that the date changes each year.