So Whats With The Rabbit And Eggs

[Guest roosters lil' dove]

Dear Father,

Ok so whats the deal with the easter bunny and all the eggs and candy, and what could it possibly have to do with the ressurrection of Our Lord Christ?
I cant possibly imagine that the church started this one. My sister says it was originally a pagan ritual that "went mainstream" (her words).

Why does it have to fall on the same day as a religious holiday?

Your turn father.......

thanks




Jesus lives!

[Pio Nono]

JMJ
4/10 - Holy Saturday

roosters lil' dove,

Personally, I am unsure as to the beginning of the eggs and bunnies thing, but I don't think it's entirely pagan. At this point, I'm sure that the beginning of these things is debatable (which is why I have confidence to reply to this message - or, at least, that's what I'm going to the bank on .

Bunnies, chicks, eggs, green grass, we tend to see all of this stuff [i]ad nauseam[/i] around Easter time. Easter, though, is a feast celebrating the Resurrection of Christ Our Lord - His new life and ours. These things are all symbols of new life in the world.

Now, it seems that these things are not for our benefit, but for the benefit of children. There are certain things which we must teach children from day one that they are unable to comprehend; therefore, we bring it down to their level. If we tried to explain to a five year old that "man only finds himself through a sincere gift of himself" (Gaudium et Spes), he's going to stare at us like he'd stare at a ceiling fan. However, if we tell him that a fat Swedish man in a red suit gives his stuff away for free, and that the child should do the same, we've taught him the lesson he needs to learn. Similarly, we cannot speak of the Resurrection of Our Lord in terms that he will understand with ease - we use images of the things in the world to point to the Creator of the world.

The problem seems to come in when these things do not give way to the Truth of Christ - where adults begin to embrace these things.

I hope this helps.

Yours,
Pio Nono