Easter and Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection have always been central to the restored gospel and doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a handful of scripture and church history scholars recently told the Deseret News.
The First Vision itself — which Latter-day Saints believe ushered in the restoration of the fulness of Christ’s gospel — stands as a testament of the “living Christ,” according to Casey Griffiths, a BYU professor of church history and doctrine.
Christ’s visit then and other appearances witness to Latter-day Saints that “Jesus was resurrected and continues to visit the earth,” Griffiths said.
Biblical scripture and the “crowning event” of the Book of Mormon also add to the witness of Christ’s death and resurrection and have influenced Latter-day Saint worship since the earliest days of the church.
Outlining the church’s fundamental principles in an 1838 journal, the faith’s founding prophet Joseph Smith declared:
“The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it.”
Here’s some perspective from Latter-day Saint scholars about the church’s doctrine regarding Easter and the faith’s evolving commemoration of the Christian holiday.
Two key events in early church history that coincided with Palm Sunday and Easter in 1836 are also described below.
What Latter-day Saints believe about Easter
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ join with their “Christian brothers and sisters throughout the world in the glorious celebration of Easter,” Robert L. Millet, a former dean of religious education at BYU, recently told the Deseret News.
“We rejoice in the sacred message to each of us that the ministry of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, did not end with his death,” Millet said.
Christ’s “atoning suffering” in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the Cross of Calvary was “prelude to the greatest and most powerfully attested event in the history of the world” — his resurrection.
The “message of Easter” teaches Latter-day Saints that “death is not the end, but rather the beginning of life everlasting” and that because Jesus rose from the dead, so will “each one of us,” Millet said.
The First Vision, wherein Joseph Smith saw the resurrected Christ, offers Latter-day Saints a witness of his resurrection, in addition to what is in biblical scripture.
The Book of Mormon subsequently translated by Joseph Smith also teaches about the need for a Savior, clarifies the complete and infinite nature of Christ’s atonement, and “adds the witness of the resurrected Lord appearing in the Americas,” according to Scott Esplin, current dean of religious education at BYU.
Quoting a 1986 message from former church President Ezra Taft Benson, Esplin told the Deseret News: “Truly, this divinely inspired book is a keystone in bearing witness to the world that Jesus is the Christ.
“The Book of Mormon is also the keystone of the doctrine of resurrection.”
Additional appearances by and visions of the resurrected Lord are recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price. They, along with the words of modern prophets and apostles, testify that Christ lives and continues to guide and direct his people.
How Latter-day Saints have commemorated Christ’s death and resurrection through the years
Latter-day Saints have commemorated Christ’s death and resurrection weekly since the early days of the church by partaking of the emblems of the sacrament.
The “focus of every sacrament meeting is partaking, in remembrance, the emblems of (Christ’s) sacrifice,” Camille Fronk Olson, a BYU professor emeritus of ancient scripture, told the Deseret News.
During the sacrament, bread is broken in memory of Christ’s “broken flesh” and water is used in memory of Christ’s “blood that was shed,” Fronk Olson said.
“Our weekly sacrament hymns focus primarily on (Christ’s) sufferings in Gethsemane and on the cross,” she added. “In this sense, for us, every Sunday is a celebration of Easter.”
Griffiths explained that specific use of the terms “Easter” and “Palm Sunday” in the early history of the church are limited, but that there was — as there is today — a great emphasis placed on testifying of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
One key moment, Griffiths said, is the landmark vision that Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon had in 1832 of the three kingdoms of glory.
The vision, now recorded in Doctrine and Covenants section 76, was written down before the First Vision of Joseph Smith was even recorded and contains a “key passage that has become so prominent” in church literature, Griffiths said.
The key passage states: “And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him (Christ), this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!
“For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father.”
Prophets and apostles following Joseph Smith’s time have consistently added their testimonies of Jesus Christ and the reality of his sacrifice and resurrection, including through their release of “The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles” in January 2000.
In recent decades, scholars such as Esplin and Eric Huntsman — a BYU professor of ancient scripture — have noted increased Easter references, including mentions of “Good Friday” and “Palm Sunday,” in church leaders’ messages, they said.
In recent years, church leaders have also increasingly encouraged “elevating Easter observance from a single day to a season,” according to a recent news release published on ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
What’s “really been exciting in recent years,” Huntsman said, is seeing an increased focus on the “core doctrine of the atonement of Jesus Christ,” which spans from Gethsemane, through Christ’s betrayal, abandonment, suffering, false judgment, crucifixion, burial, resurrection and ascension to heaven.
“I think we’re turning our attention to and understanding the breadth of (Christ’s) atoning sacrifice and resurrection more fully,” Huntsman said.
Some other ways the church and its leaders have been inviting Latter-day Saints and friends to celebrate the Easter season include:
- Publishing an annual First Presidency Easter message for the past few decades
- Hosting the world’s largest annual Easter pageant on the grounds of the Mesa Arizona Temple for more than eight decades
- Performing the “Lamb of God” oratorio around the world for more than 15 years
- Producing a variety of Easter resources and videos, such as “Jesus Christ’s Greater Love for You” and “Because of Him”
The church’s “current approach to Easter invites members to focus on the centrality of Jesus Christ as the way, the truth, and the life by modeling their lives even more this time of year after his teachings, experiencing his love personally in their lives and sharing his light with others,” Esplin said.
Easter and heavenly visitations in early church history
“If you’re looking for an Easter connection (in early church history), Kirtland is where you want to go,” Griffiths said.
The Kirtland Temple was the first Latter-day Saint temple built since the Church of Jesus Christ was officially organized in April 1830 and was dedicated on Palm Sunday, March 27, 1836.
A week later, the Lord appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery inside the temple on Easter Sunday, April 3, 1836.
In his visit, the Savior testified of his own suffering, death and resurrection, saying, as is recorded in Doctrine and Covenants section 110: “I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father.
“Behold, your sins are forgiven you; you are clean before me; therefore, lift up your heads and rejoice.
“Let the hearts of your brethren rejoice, and let the hearts of all my people rejoice, who have, with their might, built this house to my name.
“For behold, I have accepted this house, and my name shall be here; and I will manifest myself to my people in mercy in this house.”
That Easter Sunday was “probably the most important” during Joseph Smith’s era, said Griffiths.
The Savior appeared, explained that he lives, bore witness that his resurrection was real, and Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery subsequently went and did the same, Griffiths said.
Other appearances, revelations and visions of Jesus Christ, including one where he speaks of his own suffering, can be found at the following references:
- Doctrine and Covenants 19:18-19
- Doctrine and Covenants 76:22-23
- Doctrine and Covenants 110:2-3
- Doctrine and Covenants 137:1-3
- Joseph Smith — History 1:17
How Holy Week and Palm Sunday align with Latter-day Saint doctrine
Holy Week, Palm Sunday and Good Friday align with Latter-day Saint doctrine because they tell the story of the last week of Christ’s life.
“It’s the life of the Savior,” Max Molgard, former managing director of the church’s Correlation Department, told the Deseret News.
He explained that studying the last week of Christ’s life puts his eventual resurrection in perspective.
“It’s a preparation for us to appreciate the actual event of (Christ’s) resurrection” and acts as a type of “Christmas Eve” to Easter Sunday.
“Without Easter, there is no Christmas,” Molgard said. Christ’s birth “isn’t anything meaningful until he fulfills his mission,” so it’s appropriate and important to find ways to commemorate Easter like many do with Christmas, he said.
Griffiths said celebrating these holidays long-embraced by other faiths is a “great thing” since they’re scriptural and part of a shared story.
“It’s okay for us to share these great traditions with other Christians,” he said. “In fact, it’s really positive. I think it’s what the Savior would want us to do.”