Facets of Faith for April 18, 2008

• By LEILA PITCHFORD-ENGLISH
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Apr 19, 2008 - Page: 1E - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

• Print
• Email
• Save
• Share

• Del.icio.us
• Digg
• Facebook
• Reddit
• 

In addition to Passover (see the story at the bottom of this page), this weekend is full of holidays.

Lazarus Saturday/Palm Sunday
In the Orthodox church, the day before Palm Sunday is a celebration of Jesus’ resurrection of Lazarus. The act is seen as a foretelling of Jesus’ own resurrection and a sign that he is the resurrection for all humans.

The service is a Paschal or Easter celebration, the only time it is not celebrated on a Sunday.

In the Bible story found in John 11, Lazarus and his sisters were friends of Jesus. When Lazarus became ill, the sisters asked Jesus to come help him. However, Jesus waited several days and Lazarus died.

When Jesus arrived, the family was grieving, and he cried with them. (This is the famous shortest verse, “Jesus wept.”)
Jesus then had the tomb opened, and he called to Lazarus to leave the tomb, which he did.

Palm Sunday is the same as the Western church, marking Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem the week of his resurrection. However, Orthodox Christians usually celebrate Holy Week later than Western Christians.

Hanuman Jayanti
This Hindu holiday is Sunday. It is a fast day of worship marking the birth of Lord Hanuman, the monkey-headed god.

Among his many abilities Hanuman is strong and fast. He can change size at will and is eloquent. He is a symbol of perserverence and devotion.

He is the subject of many heroic stories  in Hindusim. His followers say that he protects them from evil spirits. He is also a popular god with wrestlers and bodybuilders.

Teravadin New Year
One of two main branches of Buddhism, this one is most often found in countries such as Myanmar, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

The new year starts in April, three days after the first full moon: Sunday this year.

Theravada Buddhism is considered the oldest existent branch of the religion. The name translates as the  school or doctrine of elders.

In this conservative group, monks have a personal goal: become an arhat. This is an enlightened person without worldly desires and suffering.  It is achieved through  meditation and study.