The early believers differed on the day on which they remembered the Passion and the day on which they rejoiced in the Resurrection. They divided into two teams. The churches of Asia Minor, Cilicia, Northern Syria, and Mesopotamia held this anniversary on any day of the week that fell on the fourteenth of the Hebrew month of Nisan and the sixteenth of it. As for the churches of Greece, Italy, Africa, Egypt, Palestine, and Punt, they designated Friday alone for the Passion and Sunday for the Resurrection, and in years that did not coincide with the fourteenth of April, they would remember the Passion on the first Friday following this date, as well as the first Sunday for the Resurrection.

The churches that adhered to the fourteenth of April used to mourn and fast on the Day of Passion, as they rejoiced on the day of the Lord’s death, citing the beloved John and Philip. As for other churches, they consider the day of the crucifixion a day of sorrow and do not allow fasting to be permissible before the Resurrection. Citing the teachings of Peter and Paul.

This difference continued for long periods, but it did not affect the love and brotherhood that united them in Christ. The members of all the different churches in determining Easter practiced their own liturgy in the areas whose churches differed from the calendar. No one was forbidden, and they practiced the Eucharist together. Until the year 154 came, and Saint Policarius, Bishop of Izmir, traveled to Rome to fulfill interests, including examining the issue of Easter. He met there with St. Enicetus, Bishop of Rome, and they discussed the dispute, and each of them remained committed to his tradition. However, the bonds of love and brotherhood that united them remained. And participation in the service of the Divine Liturgy. When consecrating the offerings, Oneqitus stepped aside to go to Policarius, the old man - 85 years old - and the apostolic father, as he was a disciple of the beloved John.

In the year 155, Polycarius was martyred, and then Oneqitus in the year 166, and disagreement existed among the believers. In the year 170, a Judaizing movement appeared within the church, to which Apollinarius Hierapolis rose up to oppose it. Clement of Alexandria and Hippolytus feared the existing relationship between the opinion of the Asians and Passover among the Jews, so they categorized and defended the true faith in Passover. But nothing of these two works has reached us.

It is certain that the bishops of the East held local councils and discussed the issue of Easter. They all agreed on one opinion, which is that Sunday should be observed during the Resurrection, and fasting should not be permissible except on it.

In the year 1988, the Council of Caesarea was completed under the chairmanship of Theophilus, the bishop of Jerusalem, Narcissus, the bishop of Jerusalem, and Cassius, the bishop of Tyre. They began to designate Easter to fall on the Lord’s Day - the Lord’s Day is the first day of creation and the Sabbath is the last. After everything was completed in the council, they sent letters to all the churches informing them of this matter, so that the whole church could celebrate this holy day.

The bishops of Asia Minor consulted and insisted on keeping the old one, and Polycrates, Bishop of Ephesus, wrote about this to the Bishop of Rome, Victor. He rose up and threatened to be cut off. Polycrates held a local council in which he gathered fifty bishops. He wrote to Victor after deliberation through his council confirming that they were neither adding to nor subtracting from the apostolic reception, and that in their country John, who leaned on the breast of the Lord, and Philip, one of the Twelve, and Policarius, the martyr, had fallen asleep, and that all of them had observed the fourteenth day. This angered Victor and he wanted to cut off the churches of Asia and consider them outside the true faith. A number of bishops, including Saint Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, objected to him, writing to him: The disagreement is not only about the day, but also about the type of fasting. This difference did not only occur in our days, but long before us, during the era of our ancestors. However, they were and still are peaceful, including the elders who took over the church that you take until now, and they shared, while they were not conservative, with those who came from conservative churches.” Victor, Bishop of Rome, followed Irenaeus' advice and deserved the Church's thanks for his peaceful work.

We do not know when the Asians abandoned their own tradition. However, this Easter problem is not the problem discussed by the First Ecumenical Council.