Hoppy Easter
As a child I wouldn’t think twice about a holiday that celebrates a bunny rabbit and Christ. Baskets filled with candy, images of rabbits, decorated chicken eggs and going to Mass to learn about and worship a human rising from the dead were all a normal part of the first Sunday after the first full moon occurring on or after the vernal equinox. I didn’t question the logic as a child, but I egg-spect some logic as an adult.
I planned to color this post with sarcasm until I hopped down the Google trail. It turns out the Easter rabbit tradition dates back to Roman Catholics in Germany in the 1500s. The rabbit has a high reproductive rate, eggs are a symbol of fertility, Spring symbolizes new life, therefore Easter eggs represent Jesus’ resurrection.
Ok, maybe there is a bit of logic there after all.
Except rabbits don’t lay eggs. But they do build nests for their babies (kind of like Easter baskets?)
So what about the Christ/Claus connection? An obese bearded man in a red suit driving a eight-reindeer powered flying sleigh delivers toys to boys and girls around the entire planet in one night on the eve of Jesus’ birthday. Mind-boggling logic, isn’t it?
Ok Google, how did Santa start?
The short answer: Sinter Klass (Dutch for Saint Nicholas) ... born in what is now Turkey in 280 ... travelled a lot helping the poor and sick and giving away his inherited wealth ... celebrated on December 6th, the anniversary of his death ... popularized in New York in the late 1700s by Dutch immigrant families ... commercialized and morphed into Santa Claus in the 1800s ... a poem turns into a cartoon character into a magazine article ... parallel traditions and stories in England, France and Russia ... Kris Kringle (Christ kind in Switzerland) was an early connection ... modern advertising connected to Coca Cola and Macy’s department stores ... and that’s the short version.
Side note: in one culture the big guy’s vehicle was pulled by goats.
Logic?
The commercialism of religious holidays doesn’t bother me too much - hey, I make commercials for a living - but visions of logic and irony dance in my head around these celebrations. At least giving gifts to good little boys and girls for Christmas is consistent with Christian values. Celebrating a renewal of life at Easter shows a similar logical consistency.
I’m not convinced that Memorial Day sales and Martin Luther King Day sales make much sense. They border in disrespect, in my opinion. Digging deeper into my basket of questions: why aren’t there Passover Sales? Ramadan sales? And if there are, why aren’t they as ‘mainstream’ as Easter and Christmas?
The true meaning of all of these celebrations seems to get lost in commercialism. Or do the constant reminders of these holidays help give us points in the year to stop and reflect on and refine on our beliefs?
Maybe they just give us extra reasons to celebrate family and community. Maybe that’s the logic I seek as I hop down the bunny trail of life.
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