Easter Sunday commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his
crucifixion on Good Friday, with which Christians across the world will
mark the end of the Holy Week. Also known as Resurrection Sunday, Easter
brings in the end of the Lent period, during which Christians observe
40 days of fasting and penance. Families celebrate this day by painting
Easter eggs and organizing Easter egg hunts as part of customs. For
Roman Catholics, one of the important parts of Easter Sunday is the
Pope's message.
Easter is celebrated to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ who died and rose up from the grave because the grave could not hold him captive...Even in the grave and afterwards, Jesus Christ is still Lord. Below is the message of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to Nigerians.
Easter is celebrated to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ who died and rose up from the grave because the grave could not hold him captive...Even in the grave and afterwards, Jesus Christ is still Lord. Below is the message of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to Nigerians.
Fellow citizens,
I greet you all, especially our Christian brothers and sisters,
as we celebrate Easter in commemoration of the resurrection of our
Lord, Jesus Christ.
For Christians all over the world, the major lessons of Easter,
which we celebrate this year in the midst of general elections in our nation,
are to be found in the Messiah’s Divine love and glorious self-sacrifice for
the redemption of mankind.
This year’s celebration of Easter is taking place at a period of
very critical national choices and decisions, during which we must all be
prepared and willing to make sacrifices for greater unity, peace, political
stability and progress in our beloved country.
We must therefore seize the opportunity of the Easter holiday to
reflect deeply on what more we need to do as a people, to ensure that the
political process in which we are currently engaged is successfully concluded
and that our beloved country, Nigeria continues to move towards a better future
for all of its citizens.
Happily, we have already successfully scaled the hurdle of the
Presidential and National Assembly Elections. I am quite hopeful that the
Gubernatorial and State Assembly elections will also be conducted peacefully.
To the glory and pride of our fatherland, our collective actions
since March 28 have assured the world that the democratic spirit is alive and
well in our nation.
By the grace of God, our beloved nation, Nigeria is moving forward
despite all challenges.
Let us all pray this Easter, that God Almighty who has brought us
this far, will continue to bless our nation as we march onward towards the fulfillment of our
collective vision of a truly united, strong and prosperous nation.
I wish you all very happy Easter celebrations.
Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR
President,
Federal Republic of Nigeria
April 4, 2015