Most people think of Easter as a single day. It’s never had the commercial appeal of Christmas, and because it always falls on Sunday, most people don’t get an additional day off from work. But for Catholics, Easter isn’t just a day, it’s a whole season. The Easter season stretches all the way to the feast of Pentecost. Lent, which sometimes feels like it’s stretching on forever, is actually forty days long. Easter, on the other hand, is all of fifty days long. About these fifty days theologian Nathan Mitchell writes:

“The great fifty days of Pentecost are not an unwelcome, unrealistic obligation to ‘party on,’ even if we don’t feel like it, but an invitation to explore more deeply ‘the weather of the heart,’ to awaken our memory of God’s presence and power in our lives, to look more closely at all the rich and varied textures of creation.”

One way the Church pursues this goal of seeing God present in the world is through the reading of the Acts of the Apostles. At Masses all through the Easter season, our usual practice of reading from the Old Testament is replaced by reading from the Acts of the Apostles. These readings tell the story of the church’s earliest days, and the beginning of our faith spreading throughout the ancient world. These stories of heroism, controversies, persecutions, and miracles all testify to the continued presence of the Risen Christ in the world, through the lives of his disciples, and the actions of the Holy Spirit.

All of this should be an encouragement and a sign of hope for us today. Despite war, violence, personal struggles, and an under-performing economy, God has not abandoned us, nor left us to our own devices. The risen savior is still with us. These 50 days of Easter ask us to reflect on his presence, and—even in the face of danger or fear—to live with joy.

For reflection

How can you and your family mark the 50 days of Easter this year? Here are some suggestions:

• Check out For Your Marriage’s Easter Pinterest board.
• Decorate your house for the season! Place fresh flowers on your table and mantle – you can even place flowers on crucifixes in your house. Frame or write out a quote from one of the Gospels and display it somewhere prominent.
• Continue with spiritual resolutions, such as reading the Scriptures together as a family.
• As the weather warms, plant a garden together to commemorate Easter morning, where Mary Magdalene found Christ in the garden.
• Consider reading Acts of the Apostles or some of the New Testament letters as a family during this liturgical season.
• The Easter season is a time of celebration! The Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary are particularly fitting for this time. Pray a decade as a family each weeknight.
• Divine Mercy Sunday is celebrated the Sunday after Easter. To prepare for the celebration, consider praying the Divine Mercy novena that Christ revealed to St. Faustina. Starting on Good Friday, the novena spans from Good Friday through Saturday of the Octave of Easter. The novena can be found on EWTN’s website.

Here are some articles across For Your Marriage reflecting on the Easter season:

• “The Resurrection at Work in Our Homes” – Heaven in Your Home
• “Family Strong” – From Vow ’til Now
• “My Lenten Insight” – Happily Even After
• Happiness, Suffering, & the Meaning of Easter