5. Choose the right variant out of two.

1. Easter is a Christian religious holiday that commemorates the crucifixion and ……….. (resurrection / revival) of Jesus Christ. These days, Easter has a lot of……… (secular / sectional) traditions as well, which is why many non-Christians also celebrate it.

2. Good Friday commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. It is an ………. (efficient / official) or “public” holiday in some parts of the English-speaking world.

3. Easter and all of its related holidays (Good Friday, Lent, etc.) are known as …….. (movers / moveable) feasts / holidays, which means their date changes from year to year.

4. One of the main Easter traditions is ……. (decorating / dressing) eggs – which involves painting them in a variety of colours.

5. On Easter Sunday, many people participate in a traditional Easter egg ……. (look / hunt) – the coloured eggs are hidden by the parents, and the children have to look for them.

6. Many Christians (even the ones who don’t normally go to church) attend ……. (mass / sermon) on Easter Sunday.

7. A very popular symbol of Easter is the Easter ……. (Bunny / Hare), – traditionally, he's the one who “hides” and delivers the eggs.

8. Many families place colored eggs, and other decorated items, in an Easter ……… (basket / bowl). These are given to children when they wake up on Easter Sunday.

9. In England, many people …… (exchange / change) chocolate eggs instead of real ones.

10. Lent is a period of ……. (fasting / feasting) – when one is not allowed to eat certain foods – which starts 40 days before Easter. Most people no longer …….. (absolve / observe) Lent.

6. Read the following dialogues.

A: Are you going to the party on Saturday?

B: I was thinking about it. Are you?

A: Yeah, I heard it’s going to be a lot of fun.

B: Really? Well, what time does it start?

A: It starts at 8:00 pm, and I really think you should go.

B: Well, who all is going to be there?

A: Everybody from school.

B: How do you know it’s going to be so fun?

A: This party is going to have a DJ, food, and drinks.

B: Wow, that does sound like it’s going to be fun.

A: So am I going to see you at the party?

B: Yeah, I will be there.

*****

A: Do you have any plans for the weekend?

B: I haven’t given it much thought. What were you thinking of doing?

A: I was planning on taking a trip up the coast to the beach.

B: What a perfect thing to do on a beautiful weekend!

A: Would you like to come along?

B: I think I would enjoy that a lot. When would we leave?

A: Saturday morning around 8:00.

B: Good. That would get us there with time to look around. There is a music festival in Santa Barbara on the beach that day.

A: Yes, I was hoping to be able to go to the festival.

B: I am so glad we talked. Thank you for inviting me to the beach with you.

6. Read the text and do the activities.

In many parts of the world, Christmas is the day when people celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem two thousand years ago. People who remember Christmas as a religious holiday celebrate the birth of Jesus and his coming into this world. To them, he is recognized as the Son of God and the Saviour of the world. According to the Bible, Jesus was born in a manger because there was no room for him and his parents, Mary and Joseph, in an inn.

Today, people often attend church, organize family gatherings, and decorate their homes and businesses (with real or artificial Christmas trees). People feel the giving spirit and donate their time and money to worthy causes, or provide volunteer service to the needy. Christmas is also celebrated as a secular holiday when parents and children talk about Santa Claus and Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer.

a. Discussion

1. Is Christmas celebrated by people in your country?

2. What kinds of Christmas gifts do people give to each other? If not, do you have other holiday traditions or days at the end of the year?

3. What meaning does Christmas day have for you or other people you know?

b. Online investigation

Although Christmas is not celebrated by all people around the world, it does have important significance in the lives of many people. Choose a country and use the Internet to find out how Christmas is celebrated in that country.