Easter 2021: Egg Hunts, Services In And Near Strongsville

STRONGSVILLE, OH — Easter celebrations across the country and in Strongsville will look different from ever before in 2021 as traditional events such as egg hunts, religious services and restaurant deals will go on virtually as well as in person.

Here's what local churches are doing for Holy Week:

• Strongsville United Methodist will hold in-person and virtual services.
• Strongsville Christian Church will hold in-person services.
• Pathway Church will hold in-person services.
• Strongsville United Church of Christ will hold in-person and virtual services.
• St. Joseph Catholic Church will hold in-person and virtual services.
• LifeChurch Strongsville will hold in-person and virtual services.
• St. John Lutheran Church will hold in-person services.
• First Baptist Church of Strongsville will hold in-person and virtual services.
• Strongsville Bible Fellowship will hold in-person and virtual services.
• First Lutheran Church will hold virtual services.
• St. John Neumann will hold in-person and virtual services.
• Resurrection Presbyterian Church will hold in-person and virtual services.

Mostly religious services went virtual during the Easter season last year, when the coronavirus pandemic was still fairly new and most states remained under strict shutdown orders in mid-April. This year, there’s more of a combination of virtual and in-person services taking place with the pandemic having passed the one-year mark. Check with your local church on what they have planned for this year.

Many major American archdioceses, such as in Chicago, will continue to hold virtual services that will be streamed throughout Holy Week, which includes the Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday and Good Friday holidays leading up to Easter.

Good Friday, on April 2 this year, marks the death of Jesus Christ. Easter, two days later, celebrates the time when he was resurrected. The Sunday holiday always occurs on the Sunday after the first full moon of spring, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

Religious traditions on Good Friday include periods of silence and fasting for many Christians, prominently in the Catholic faith.

Fairfax United Methodist Church in Virginia is also streaming its Holy Week services, with an in-person service offered to a limited number of attendees on Palm Sunday, Good Friday and Easter.

Many Protestant churches will have their traditional sunrise services with social distancing in mind. The Daytona Beach Drive-In Christian Church is having its services on Easter morning, while the Colorado Council of Churches canceled its service at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre and instead will have Bishop Kym Lucas of the Episcopal Church in Colorado lead a virtual service.

One of the most celebrated Easter traditions outside of church is the Easter egg hunt, many of which were canceled last year but will return in some form in 2021. In La Grange, Kentucky, an egg hunt is planned in conjunction with a drive-in theater and movie; and St. John’s United Methodist Church in Rock Hill, South Carolina, already held its egg hunt over two sessions, with early sign-ups required.