The resurrection was such an amazing event and my faith is continually strengthened every time I think about it...but this year Easter didn't feel the same. And here comes the whine:
This year Easter Sunday was March 23rd...yeah, me no likey.
I know sometimes Easter falls on March, but this year it really threw me off.
Way too early...is this date historically accurate? Can we stay on schedule, just a bit?
Living in Seattle again doesn't really help either. It's still so cold here! Had I participated in an Easter egg hunt, those eggs would have tasted a little sketchy. Getting used to Seattle weather is going to take longer than I thought.
I really had to push myself to focus on the "reason for the season". My froomie (friend + roommate) and I read all the versions of the resurrection in the Bible, then we watched the closest movie I owned that mentions Easter.
That movie was 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding'...it was the best I could do on such short notice.
My Sunday was pretty normal: prayer, laundry, lunch, cleaned up my room, got ready for church, attended church, left church, went to grocery store, came back home.
Now that Easter is over, I find myself still wanting to celebrate in April...why? Because it didn't feel like Easter!!
Maybe during the 2nd week of April I'll put on a bright colored dress, hide an egg, and watch 'Passion of the Christ'.
Vote! Easter in April 2009!!
Thanks for enduring my 1st superficial complaint of the year :) !
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4 comments:
hmmm...
well, everybody has been saying "didn't easter come early this year?" To be honest, I never even really realized it. To me, it it all just blends in - Easter in Spring time - sometime...March...April - I never notice. I'm sorry it feels out of place for you (and obviously for many others that also agree with your complaint).
I do miss sunny days with sunny dresses and pastel eggs and baskets though. It's something I wish my daughter (to remain nameless or my "anonymous" label would be uncovered) could have experienced this year.
Alrighty then, one comment down, two to go.
i finally realized you have a blog . JOY. now tis my turn to comment. :P i understand your pain girl, even though i wasn't there in cold, cloudy seattle. guess what though? i miss ya. :D loves - from me.
Easter does have a history, and it has nothing to do with Christ. It's a pagan holiday the church twisted as it took over other pagan religions. Looks like it agrees with you = that it should be in April!!! Here's a little history lesson for ya:
Easter, a Christian festival, embodies many pre-Christian traditions. The origin of its name is unknown. Scholars, however, accepting the derivation proposed by the 8th-century English scholar St. Bede, believe it probably comes from Eastre, the Anglo-Saxon name of a Teutonic goddess of spring and fertility, to whom was dedicated a month corresponding to April. Her festival was celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox; traditions associated with the festival survive in the Easter rabbit, a symbol of fertility, and in colored easter eggs, originally painted with bright colors to represent the sunlight of spring, and used in Easter-egg rolling contests or given as gifts.
Such festivals, and the stories and legends that explain their origin, were common in ancient religions. A Greek legend tells of the return of Persephone, daughter of Demeter, goddess of the earth, from the underworld to the light of day; her return symbolized to the ancient Greeks the resurrection of life in the spring after the desolation of winter. Many ancient peoples shared similar legends. The Phrygians believed that their omnipotent deity went to sleep at the time of the winter solstice, and they performed ceremonies with music and dancing at the spring equinox to awaken him.
The Christian festival of Easter probably embodies a number of converging traditions; most scholars emphasize the original relation of Easter to the Jewish festival of Passover, or Pesach, from which is derived Pasch, another name for Easter. The early Christians, many of whom were of Jewish origin, were brought up in the Hebrew tradition and regarded Easter as a new feature of the Passover festival, a commemoration of the advent of the Messiah as foretold by the prophets.
An article from Funk & Wagnalls® New Encyclopedia. © 2005 World Almanac Education Group, A WRC Media Company
Maybe if you practiced Lent you would find that Easter came in just the right space. I often feel that if there is no Lent then you really can't celebrate Easter. You need that time to prepare your heart, mind and body for the Easter. Not to mention that sharing in Holy Week is also a definite herald for Easter. When you go through Holy Thursday and Good Friday, you can't help but be ready for Easter. And it doesn't sound much like your Easter celebration left much to be desired. While I do not necessarily say that everyone should become a Catholic, there is something to be said fro Easter Vigil service. The fact that it lasted four hours (could have been more if we had included all the readings)is rather tiring but the stuff that happens is really quite extraordinary.
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