In the Maronite Catholic Tradition, in Lebanon, there is no “Happy Easter.” Instead, during the Easter Season the greeting is translated, literally, as:
Christ is risen!
Imagine greeting your loved ones, friends and others with that! Do you think it might have an impact? How do you think they would take it? While nothing is wrong with “Happy Easter!” saying, “Christ is risen!” certainly frames it concisely and accurately, and with no possibility of misinterpretation (i.e., no commercial or secular connotation). Most important, it directly conveys not only what happened 2,000 years ago, but the true hope that is Easter — The Resurection brings us the promise of eternal salvation.
Now let the heavens be joyful,
Let earth her song begin:
Let the round world keep triumph,
And all that is therein;
Invisible and visible,
Their notes let all things blend,
For Christ the Lord is risen
Our joy that hath no end.
- Saint John of Damascus
