Easter Traditions
As the Easter Holiday approaches and Christians prepare to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we also look forward to the enjoying the familiar foods and traditions that we associate with Easter. As a child, I remember the anticipation of seeing that Easter Basket filled with goodies from the Easter Bunny and hoping that it would be filled with my favorite candy treats and maybe a surprise gift or two. I loved dying eggs and using food coloring, vinegar, and a wax crayon to create colors and designs that were new and different from years past.
Every family has their own unique celebration traditions, but there are many Christian families who practice many of the same traditions. Through the ages, some traditions have disappeared and have been replaced with new ones. But many traditions have remained and are shared by families everywhere. Did you ever wonder how those Easter traditions originated or what they represent? I was curious and decided to find out more about some of them.
Easter Bunny
The Easter Bunny is that mythical creature that we were so fond of as children because he (or she) delivered a basket of treats for us on Easter Morning. His exact origins seem to be unknown, but many believe that the mythical rabbit was brought to America in the 1700s with German immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania and spread their Easter tradition of a rabbit called “Osterhase” that would lay colored eggs in nests made by the children.
“Eventually, the custom spread across the U.S. and the fabled rabbit’s Easter morning deliveries expanded to include chocolate and other types of candy and gifts, while decorated baskets replaced nests.” (history.com).
Colored Easter Eggs
In ancient times, the egg was a symbol of new life or rebirth. “From a Christian perspective, Easter eggs are said to represent Jesus’ emergence from the tomb and resurrection” (history.com). Decorating them is said to be a custom that began because eggs were once a forbidden food when fasting during Lent. People would paint and decorate them to signify the end of penance and fasting and celebrate by eating them on Easter.
Another theory about the origination of colored eggs for Easter is the story of Mary Magdalene who traveled to Rome to share witness to Christ with the first believers there. During her visit, she attended a dinner that was also attended by Emperor Tiberius. When she shared her story about the resurrection of Christ, Tiberius laughed and said that a man rising from the dead was no more possible than these eggs turning red before our eyes. At that moment, the eggs did turn red (melkite.org). With red representing the blood of Christ, Eastern Orthodox Christians continue to bless red eggs on Pascha (Easter).
New Easter Outfits
I fondly remember shopping for new Easter outfits (including a new bonnet), getting all dressed up for church on Easter Sunday, and parading around the whole day in my new clothes. While the adult women in my family did not necessarily get a new outfit every Easter, they all purchased a new hat every Easter and they were always elaborate and beautiful. I remember sitting in church during Easter mass, totally preoccupied with and staring at every woman’s hat. They were much fancier than the age-appropriate bonnets that we could choose from and I couldn’t wait to grow up and wear one of those fancy hats.
The Christian origin of wearing new clothing for Easter evolved from “the early days of Christianity, (when) newly baptized Christians wore white linen robes at Easter to symbolize rebirth and new life” (McAllister, L.). In 300 A.D., Emperor Constantine declared that his court must wear new clothing on Easter. The tradition evolved and came to mark the end of Lent when worshipers discarded their old worn clothing for new clothing.
In the United States, the Easter traditions that we celebrate today did not occur until after the Civil War. After the devastation of the war, the churches felt the need to restore hope and began to celebrate Easter as “The Sunday of Joy,” “and women traded the dark colors of mourning for the happier colors of spring” (McAllister, L.).
Easter Candy
The Easter season makes me crave all those candy treats, that were tucked inside our Easter Baskets when I was young. The candy was sitting on top of green plastic grass and the baskets were wrapped in colorful cellophane and topped with a pretty bow. I remember finding a seam in the wrapping and inserting my hand inside to take out those wonderful candy treats one at a time.
It would have probably been easier to just remove the cellophane but leaving it on discouraged others from sneaking your candy. Although I was willing to share some candy, I wanted to choose what I shared and what I kept for myself. The baskets were filled with hollow and solid chocolate eggs and chocolate bunnies, chocolate covered marshmallow bunnies, yellow marshmallow peeps and a whole bunch of jelly beans.
Chocolate eggs date back to 19th century Europe. Advances in chocolate molding in the early 20th century led to the creation of chocolate bunnies, both hollow and solid. The hollow bunnies became popular because there was less risk of breaking a tooth when children were eating them, and since they required less chocolate in the making, they were a little more affordable. For the same reasons, solid chocolate bunnies were made thinner like a candy bar.
Jelly Beans became a part of the Easter tradition in the 1930’s because of their egg-like shape. Some report that jelly beans relate back to Biblical times and a Middle Eastern treat called a Turkish Delight. “That candy has a firm gel consistency and is often filled with nuts or fruit. It is thought that this delicacy, combined with the hard-exterior coating of Jordan Almonds are how the first jelly beans were developed.” (Larson, S.).
Marshmallow Peeps arrived in the 1950’s from the Just Born candy company. The company was first opened in Brooklyn in1923, by Sam Born, a Russian immigrant. The company moved to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in 1932. According to the usa.com website, 2 billion Peeps are produced each year, and 75% of those are made specifically for Easter,
Easter Parade
The term Easter Parade generally refers to the tradition that began in New York in 1870, when women would parade up and down Fifth Avenue after attending Easter church services to show off their new outfits and hats. This tradition was reflected in a 1948 film titled “Easter Parade” starring Fred Astaire and Judy Garland. The Easter Parade became the main event for showing off the latest trends in fashion.
“Dressmakers and milliners would line the streets producing sketches of the ensembles later copied by department stores within weeks of the holiday. Hats decorated with faux flowers, tall ostrich feathers, and taxidermy birds were at the height of fashion.” (Hazelwood, M.)
The traditional event continues to today in Manhattan and is now called “The Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival.” The women wear extravagant hats, elaborately decorated with large flower arrangements, flashy jewels, bunny rabbits and both plastic and real eggs.
Hazelwood, M. (2018, March 27). New York City Easter Parade. Retrieved March 28, 2018, from http://www.mcny.org/story/easter-parade
History.Com Staff. (2009). Easter Symbols and Traditions. Retrieved March 26, 2018, from https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/easter-symbols
Larson, S. (2014, April 19). The History of Easter Candy Traditions. Retrieved March 27, 2018, from https://www.escoffieronline.com/the-history-of-easter-candy-traditions/
McCallister, L. (2010, March 23). Why We Wear New Clothes on Easter – A History of the Tradition From a Fashion School Perspective. Retrieved March 28, 2018, from http://ezinearticles.com/?Why-¬We-¬Wear-¬New–Clothes-¬on-¬Easter
