The Ministry of National Education clarified on its website: “Classes will go on Friday May 27, 2022 and Saturday May 28, 2022.” From kindergarten to high school, all French students will therefore benefit from a long week -end of four days.

But why do we make the bridge after Ascension Thursday, a public holiday?

What is the origin of the Ascension?

The Ascension is a Christian holiday.

According to the website Eglise.catholique.fr, it marks the last day of the visible presence of Jesus after his resurrection and before his elevation to heaven.

In other words, this feast symbolizes the presence of Christ no longer on Earth but in the faith of Christians and the sacred texts.

As a reminder, the Ascension is celebrated each year between April 30 and June 3 for Catholics and Protestants, that is forty days after Easter.

This year it is celebrated on May 26.

In 2023, it will take place on May 18.

Why is Ascension a public holiday?

In France, the Ascension became a day off during the Ancien Régime.

At the time, France was a predominantly rural country where the countryside lived to the rhythm of Christian festivals.

On the eve of the French Revolution, there were about twenty religious days off.

During the French Revolution, secular celebrations replaced the Christian holidays of Christmas, the Ascension of Christ, the Assumption of Mary and All Saints.

These were reinstated in the calendar by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1801, under the Concordat signed with Pope Pius VII.

Who makes the Ascension Bridge?

So much for Ascension Thursday.

But what about Friday and the famous bridge?

In schools in France, this Friday bridge was established in 2015 by the Minister of Education at the time, Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, the Ascension bridge concerns all students from kindergarten to high school, as well than teachers.

Before this date, this bridge was decided directly by the rectorates according to the school zones or more informally by the families, as specified by

Sud Ouest

.

At the time, this government decision was intended to fight against absenteeism in class, considered too high every Friday following Ascension Thursday.

In 2018, an exception to the rule was however decided.

Indeed, Ascension Thursday fell two days after May 8, which celebrates the German capitulation of 1945. That year, the pupils had gone to class on Friday to avoid having a week too lightly loaded.

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