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Easter
Easter
is the most important religious event for Christians. They
celebrate their belief that Jesus rose from the dead three days after
his crucifixion. Many non-Christians also
celebrate this holiday as well and focus on ancient customs
and traditions.
Easter,
like Christmas, is a blend of paganism and
Christianity. The word Easter is derived from Eostre (also known as Ostara
an ancient Anglo-Saxon goddess. She symbolized the rebirth of the day
at dawn and the rebirth of life in the spring. The arrival of spring
was celebrated all over the world long before the religious meaning
became associated with Easter. Now, Easter celebrates the rebirth of
Christ.
 Easter is one of the most
important Christian holidays. It is the culmination of events during
Holy Week beginning with Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday reflects
the return of Jesus to Jerusalem. Maundy
Thursday commemorates the Last Supper of Christ, and Good Friday
remembers the crucifixion of Jesus. Easter Sunday celebrates his
resurrection after his death.
Easter falls on the first Sunday on or following the spring Equinox
after the full moon. The date has been calculated in this way since 325
AD.
Customs and
Traditions
This is the time of year animals give birth to
their offspring. Naturally lambs, chicks, and baby creatures
of all kinds are all associated with spring.
Since ancient times many cultures have associated eggs with the
universe. They were used in ancient spring festivals to represent the
rebirth of life. As Christianity took hold the egg began to symbolize
the rebirth of man rather than nature.
Eggs have been been dyed, decorated, and painted by the Romans, Gaul's,
Persians, and the Chinese. A Polish folktale tells of the
Virgin Mary giving eggs to soldiers at the cross while she pleaded with
them to be merciful. As her tears dropped they spattered droplets on
the eggs mottling them with a myriad of colors.
The Faberge egg is the best known of all the decorated eggs. Peter
Faberge made intricate, delicately decorated eggs. In 1883, the Russian
Czar commissioned Faberge to make a special egg for his wife.
 The
Easter Bunny
is a cute little rabbit that hides eggs for children to find on Easter.
But where did he come from? The origin is not certain. The rabbit
symbolized fertility in the rites of spring. In a German book
published in 1682, a tale is told of a bunny laying eggs and hiding
them in the garden for good little children to find. The
Germans also created the first consumable bunnies in the 1800s primary
made of sugar and pastry.
The Easter bonnet and new clothes on Easter symbolizes the end of the
dreary winter and the beginning of the fresh, new spring. At the turn
of the century it was 
popular for families to stroll to church and home again to show off
their "Sunday best".
The Easter basket shows roots in a Catholic custom. Baskets filled with
breads, cheeses, hams, and other foods for Easter dinner were taken to
mass Easter morning to be blessed. This evolved in time to baskets
filled with chocolate eggs, jellybeans, toys, and stuffed bunnies for
children left behind by the Easter Bunny.
Today, children wake up to find that the Easter Bunny has hidden a
basket filled with candy and toys. Children color and
decorate hard-boiled eggs. They hunt for
these eggs or plastic eggs filled with treats that Easter Bunny has
hidden. Easter dinner is a feast with lamb, ham, or fish and
spring vegetables, potatoes, and special breads. Christians
attend special services throughout Holly Week and mass on Sunday.
by
W.Holidays
modified:
April 16, 2008
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