Days of Easter season
The date for celebrating is Easter is calculated in a complicated manner relating to the full moon, but do you know that Easter must be celebrated on a Sunday between the dates of March 22 and April 25?
There’s certainly more to this season than Easter. Can you put these the following days in order: Shove Tuesday, Good Friday, Easter, Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, and Palm Sunday?
Easter symbols
There are many symbols used at Easter and many remind Christians of the original Easter events and their meaning.
The cross
The cross is sometimes shown with Jesus on it symbolising the sacrifice that Jesus made for us. More often though, the cross is empty reminding Christians of Jesus's resurrection and the hope that this victory over death brings to others.
Chickens
I have always thought of chickens and eggs as symbols of new life, but in the Netherlands they have roosters on the top of their churches to remind them of the Peter and his denying Jesus three times before the cock crowed.
Candles
Candles are used in many church services over Easter and remind people of Jesus as the light of the world.
Eggs
Eggs are, of course, a symbol of new life, and have been a symbol of spring (Northern Hemisphere) since before Christ. Don’t ask me where chocolate fits in.
Decorating eggs has become a real art in many countries. Have you seen the beautiful eggs from the Ukraine and Poland? There are also gorgeous eggs decorated with finely cut patterns of paper, and of course some of the most beautiful eggs are those made by Faberge for the Russian czars.
If you want to try your own dyeing of eggs, there are some great natural dyes. Onion skins for yellowy orange, beetroot for pale red, spinach for pale green, red cabbage for blue and coffee for beige, are some natural substances worth trying. Put the eggs and dyestuff with a little vinegar and bring to the boil. Boil for 15 minutes. My Polish friends used to do these with lots of onion skins and then carve into the egg with a large needles forming intricate patterns. The eggs were then lightly oiled before being given away.
Many people exchange eggs for Easter, but many others enjoy games with rolling, breaking or hunting for eggs.
Lamb
Eastern Europeans almost all include lamb in their Easter dinner to remind them of Christ, the Lamb of God.
Butterfly
Its whole life cycle is meant to symbolize the life of Jesus Christ. First, the caterpillar represents His life on earth. Second, the cocoon signifies Christ's death. Third, the butterfly represent his being raised from the dead.
Pretzels
Pretzels were originally a Lenten food as their twisted shape suggests arms crossed in prayer.
Hot cross buns
Hot cross buns, with their dough or icing cross on top, are now eaten throughout the Lenten season, but were first baked in England to for Good Friday.
Passion Plays
Have you ever been to Oberammergau in Germany for the passion play? It is the most famous of the passion plays and has been presented almost every 10 years since1634. It is definitely on our list of things to do. Most of the town takes part with some children leaving the classroom to play their part and then returning to their studies at school, as the play runs from May to October, and lasts from 9.30 in the morning to 6:15 at night with almost 3 hours off for lunch. The next play is in 2010 and tickets will be on sale in 2008 if you’re interested.
