Easter. I couldn’t let it go by without typing something up on it. While it is undoubtably a Christian holiday, we now know that some of the Christian feasts were established with a number of pagan traditions. This was so that the Church could better connect with the pagans of the time. With this sense of evangelism in mind, we’ll tackle Easter’s origin and primary symbols.
[Definition break: pagan: a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions; (or) an adherent of a polytheistic religion in antiquity, especially when viewed in contrast to an adherent of a monotheistic religion.]
Easter was named after a festival that celebrated Eostre, an Anglo-Saxon Goddess of Dawn and Light who represented fertility, spring, and flowers – life after the barrenness of winter. Scripture shows that Jesus came to bring life and renewal after hundreds of years of silence from God. The pagan celebration chosen to be incorporated into Easter honored the arrival of Spring. Eostre’s sacred symbols are thought to have been the hare and the egg. Although some sources say the “egg laying hare” came from Germany (1700’s) and the Easter Bunny has no Christian significance, they did state that the hare was thought to be a sign of the Pagan Goddess of Spring and Fertility (Eostre). Since rabbits are known to be prolific breeders of new life, the blending of pagan traditions with the Christian customs are clear, and the continuous theme of Easter that I kept seeing – that of new life, resurrection, renewal and rebirth – is seen.
Easter baskets also aid the new-life theme of Easter. The woven containers represent birds' nests, and when do we see those baby birds? Spring – new life after winter. Another classic symbol of Easter is white Easter Lilies, which symbolize the purity of Christ, and in the beautiful bloom coming from the dormant bulb we find rebirth and the hope of Christ’s resurrection.
Eggs are another symbol of fertility and rebirth. Something that I’m sure the Ukrainians are wishing for this year – rebirth of their lands. The plight of the Ukrainians has been in our hearts and minds for weeks. While this next comment is trivial compared to what they are going through, I think Easter is still a good time to thank them for their beautiful contribution to this special holiday. For the Ukrainians have been painting eggs for eons, originally as a plea to the Gods and Goddesses of health and fertility. Since eggs symbolize new life or rebirth, they were linked with Christianity’s Easter. The resurrection of Jesus is remembered in the egg as new life. (How exciting it must have been to see all this going on and being able to incorporate all the beautiful imagery in the celebration of Jesus' resurrection.) Thanks to the Ukrainians, we were given beautiful eggs, a fun family tradition, as well as a symbol of the Resurrection. Hopefully, Easter this year can be a marking of a change of heart, an awaking of new life and new beliefs across the globe.
When Christians incorporated some of the pagan traditions into their own celebrations, they clearly chose well as each symbol shows the important themes of the Easter celebration: resurrection, rebirth and renewal. May we all be blessed this Easter with an awakening spirit, a rebirthing, toward fellowship with each other and with our Lord.
FUN FACTS:
From lamb to ham: As Easter has its roots in the Jewish Passover, lamb would have been served at the daily celebratory meal. But many years ago, the main course for Easter in America changed to ham because hams were cured over the winter and would have been ready to eat in early spring.
We have Easter bonnets thanks to Irving Berlin’s classic 1933 song “Easter Parade”.
The Easter Parade began in the mid-1800s. It was considered good luck for the rest of the year to wear new clothes on Easter. High society folks attended Easter church services at New York City’s Fifth Avenue churches, then they strolled outside afterward to show off their new outfits and hats. Average folks started lining up to see them – thus the parade was created. When Berlin’s film came out, it settled the trend. The Easter Parade tradition lives on in Manhattan with certain streets being shut down for the day to traffic.
Out of respect for the sacred day, Berlin, becomes a dance-free zone in respect for Christians who commemorate Jesus’ death on Good Friday and Easter Sunday. These holidays are observed as silent holidays in Germany.
Cadbury’s makes so many Creme Eggs every year, the pile would be 10 times higher than Mount Everest. That’s over 500 million crème eggs. Their first egg was produced in 1875. The Fry family of Bristol created the very first chocolate egg in 1873.
The largest Easter Bunny produced was 12 feet tall and weighed 6,635 pounds.
Did you ever ask yourself why Easter comes on a different Sunday every year? It’s because it’s celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after March 21st. March 21st marks the beginning of spring. (At least somewhere besides Michigan…)
In 2007, the world’s most expensive enameled egg sold for £9 million (sold by Christie’s in London).
Italy produced the world’s largest chocolate Easter egg in 2011. It was 34 feet and 1.05 inches in length and weighed about 15,873 pounds.
A Roman Catholic crucifix has Christ still hanging on the cross in part to remind them of Jesus' sacrifice and in part to remind us that Christians have a cross to bear as well. The Protestant or Latin cross is an empty cross, reminding them that Jesus is not dead, but alive.
I have one more for you. Remember that blog I wrote on the history of pretzels? Pretzels were hidden on Easter morning just as eggs are hidden today because they resemble crossed arms in prayer. Germans, who gave us pretzels, have been eating a pretzel for dinner on Good Friday since the 1950s.
Interesting stuff. Happy Easter, everyone!!
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