EASTER

Easter - a feast that commemorates Christ's resurrection and is observed with variations of date due to different calendars on the first Sunday after the paschal full moon. In AD 325 the church council of Nicaea decided that it should be celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after the vernal equinox of March 21. Easter can come as early as March 22 or as late as April 25.

The word "easter", is derived from the name "Eastre or Eastore", an Anglo saxon goddess of dawn. 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.

The festival of Eostre was celebrated on the day of the Vernal Equinox (spring). Traditions associated with the festival of the Teutonic fertility Goddess survive in the Easter rabbit and colored eggs. As the festival of Eostre was a celebration of the renewal of life in the spring it was easy to make it a celebration of the resurrection from the dead of Jesus. There is no doubt that the Church (of Rome) in its early days adopted the old pagan customs and gave a "Christian" meaning to them.

Eggs represented rebirth of earth. After winter as the earth burst forth into new life, spring, egg brings forth new lives. So it was connected with Easter, as a rebirth to man. Even before it was connected with Easter, eggs had played a significant role even in the Pagan times. It was buried under the buildings to drive off evils. The Romans, Gauls, Chinese, Egyptians and Persians all cherished the egg as a symbol of the universe.

An old Polish legend says that Mother Mary gave eggs to the soldiers at the cross. She entreated the soldiers to be less cruel and she cried. Her tears fell on eggs and turned them into myriad of colors. Another legend tells when Mary Magdalen went to the sepulchre of Jesus, to anoint His body, she was also carrying a basket of eggs to serve as a repast. When she arrived at the sepulchre and uncovered the eggs, lo, the pure white shells had miraculously taken on a rainbow of colors.




Easter Egg Hunt

During the 4th century consuming eggs during Lent became taboo. However, spring is the peak egg-laying time for hens, so people began to cook eggs in their shells to preserve them. Eventually people began decorating and hiding them for children to find during Easter, which gave birth to the Easter Egg Hunt. Other egg-related games also evolved like egg tossing and egg rolling.




Easter Bunny

The tale of the Easter bunny originated because of rabbits' legendary fertility. In pre-Christian times, the rabbit served as a symbol of the new life during the Spring season. The bunny was first used as a symbol of Easter in 16th century Germany, where it was first mentioned in German writings.

The hare is the true Easter beast, not the rabbit. He was sacred to the Spring-Goddess, Eostre. Hares were sacrificed to her. The hare was an emblem of fertility, renewal, and return of spring to the heathen. The egg, in modern American folklore, is the production of the rabbit or the hare. The story is that this hare was once a bird whom Eostre changed into a four-footed creature.




Easter Lily


"Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow:
they toil not, neither do they spin;
and yet Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these."

- Jesus' sermon on the mount

These lilies were found growing in the garden of Gethsemane after Christ's agony. Tradition has it that the beautiful white lilies spring up where drops of Christ's sweat fell to the ground in his final hours of sorrow and distress. Christian churches continue this tradition at Easter by banking their altars and surrounding their crosses with masses of Easter lilies to commemorate the Resurrection and hope of life everlasting.

The Easter lily (latin name-Lilium longiflorum) has long since been associated with spring and the Easter season. Many regard the Easter lily as the symbol of the Virgin Mary but its association with love and marriage pre-dates the Christian era. It's also often called as the "white-robed apostles of hope".

Roman mythology links it to Juno, the queen of the Gods. The story goes that while Juno was nursing her son Hercules, excess milk fell from the sky. Although part of it remained above the earth (thus creating the group of stars now known as the Milky Way), the remainder fell to the earth, creating lilies!

An old legend says that there were many types of flowers in the garden of Gethsemane. The thursday night, when Jesus came to pray, all the flowers bowed their heads with pity and sorrow, except the proud white lily. The next day the lily discovered that Jesus was to be crucified. The lily felt so sorry and miserable because of its prideful acts and bowed its head in shame. To honor the Lord Jesus and to show its sorrow, the lily has grown with down-turned blossoms ever since.

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