Vito’s Council Reflection – Day 5

Most Gracious Constantine, Ossius, and fellow council members,

I am afraid that our success at the previous council meetings has not followed us to the final days of this council. Our last council session was full of deals, confusion, and disunity. We seemed to lose sight on compromises. I agree with the other opponents of the third canon that basing the date of Easter on the date of Passover desacralizes Christ. The others argue that Jesus was a Jew who was observing Passover when he died. Yet they also acknowledge that Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross served as the ultimate sacrifice of all of Gods people, including the Jews, and thus makes the sacrificial lamb irrelevant. God’s truth has been revealed to us thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ, therefore we have no reason to observe Jewish holidays and practices. In the past we have declared Jewish Christians as heretics, yet it seems that some on this council wound like to reclaim that title. It is also important for the Church to determine the date of Easter. If we base Easter off of Passover, then we are basing our calendars on the Jewish calendar. This could lead to many problems in the future. I believe that this topic needs to be revisited prior to the ending of this council due to its strong opposition.

While our discussion regarding Easter was subpar, I believe we mostly made up for it through the discussion of celibacy in the clergy. Bishop Sylvester and I are both indifferent on this, so I watched as others discussed and voted on the side that seemed nearly unanimous. And in hindsight, I believe it is best that Bishops are not distracted by the temptations of women. It takes a strong soul to be a Bishop.

I think most members came out of this council meeting with some good news, but I must urge that we revisit the canon on the date of Easter because basing it off of Passover will denounce the Church.

Yours Truly,

Vito