Do you know the origins of the Easter Bunny???
The Easter Bunny actually started in pagan tradition...
worshipping the rabbit as a symbol of the goddess Eostre...
she was the goddess of fertility and springtime.
An interesting twist to this is that the hare was popular in medieval church art...
the belief at this time was that the hare was a hermaphrodite and
could reproduce without losing it's virginity,
which led to an association with the Virgin Mary.
Additionally, there is a loose association to the Holy Trinity
in that often you'll find a three hares motif,
which represents the interlocking triangle of the Trinity.
In England, this motif is often in a prominent place adding to
the significance of the hare...
The Easter Egg....
was also a symbolic representation of fertility and birth...
it is thought that the decoration of Easter Eggs comes from
boiling eggs with flowers, which changes the color...
The Eastern Orthodox church traditionally colors
Easter Eggs bright red, in recognition of the blood
sacrificed by Jesus the Christ.
For some, green was used to symbolize new foliage
following the end of Winter...and the birth of Spring...
Eggs were also forbidden to Catholics during Lent,
which is why there is an abundance of eggs at Easter.
German immigrants brought the tradition of the egg-laying bunny to the US
in the 18th Century.
In this tradition, only good children received colored eggs in the baskets~~~
Were you a good boy or girl this Easter???
Now...as to the more important tradition of Easter....
the chocolate Easter Egg....
As far as I'm concerned that tradition
begins and ends with Mary See's
chocolate Easter egg!!!
Happy Easter!!!
sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easter_Bunny
http://www.allaboutjesuschrist.org/origin-of-the-easter-bunny-faq.htm
The pagans too often get a bad rap; just think of all that they have contributed to modern-day culture, traditions. and religion. Three cheers for pagans . . .if we pray to them, do you think that spring will eventually arrive?!
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter!
ReplyDeleteI agree about the bad rap Kate!!! Maybe honoring Eostre just might bring Spring a little sooner!!! (we had snow again last night!!!)
ReplyDeleteThanks Mama Zen!!! Happy Easter to you too!!!
Easter bunnies & Santa Claus are for children. But I love the chocolate & food.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Chieftess!! This was really interesting, and your photos are gorgeous! The Easter bunny came to our house today, and I enjoyed having him there, every bit as much as the children did. :-) (...and that Mary - a culinary genius!!)
ReplyDeleteOhhh Cafe...you're getting to be an old dog!!! I must still be a kid, cause I love Easter Bunnies and Santa Claus!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Adele!!! I hope the Easter bunny brought you lot's of chocolate goodies...and maybe a few Easter eggs too!!!
Interesting bit of history. Charlemagne became a Christian and wanted a Christian empire, so he combined Christian and pagan holidays so he could say that everybody celebrated on Christian days. Theoretically, he got his 'Christian' world.
ReplyDeleteCharlemagne's methods of conversion were a bit heavy handed...but I liked that he combined the old traditions with the "new thought"! Thanks Bettyl!
ReplyDeleteFor the first year EVER my husband did not get his beloved See's Egg. I FORGOT! I feel so bad.
ReplyDeleteOMG!!!! Major fopaw!!!! I'll bet he'll forgive you if you run right over to See's and pick one up!!!
ReplyDeleteThat's a really nice run-through of Easter traditions. You asked about the egg-rolling on my blog. It's traditional in the UK for children to roll decorated hard-boiled eggs down a hill to symbolise the stone being rolled away from Christ's tomb. Then, if they're not too bashed and impacted with mud and grass, they eat the eggs.
ReplyDelete