A True Easter: The Synod of Whitby 664 AD

Often presented as a clash between Irish and Roman missionaries representing two different kinds of Christianity, the Synod of Whitby held in 664 decided the date of Easter in the English church. Yet Benedicta Ward shows that in fact the traditions were mingled and that a common faith and a common devotion to Easter as the central feast of the Resurrection enabled participants to resolve difficulties caused by a difference between calendric calculations.