What the bible wouldn’t tell you about the easter bunny!
If you scroll through your Bible pages, you might still have some unanswered questions about how today’s society celebrates Easter. Do not expect to find stories of the Easter bunny inside the holy book. Well, here are some details that will keep you in the know.
How it all began
Do you know how the name Easter was born? Long before the birth of Jesus, it is said that there existed a goddess of spring by the name Eostre. Eostre was believed to have been responsible for bringing back the sun after winter in which spring was born and the days were much longer than the nights. Ever since that day, Easter which came from Eostre was celebrated as the Sunday succeeding the first full moon just a day after the beginning offspring.
Why is Easter regarded as the movable feast?
Easter is one Christian holiday of a kind. For one,there is never a fixed date to celebrate Easter. The date Easter is celebrated is dependent on when the first full moon appears during the spring season. However, this has to be between 22nd March and 25th April every year.
Do Christians all over the world celebrate Easter at the same time?
Not all Christians from all over the world celebrate Easter together. The Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates Easter on a different day compared to most Western churches. The type of calendar used by these two groups is the main reason for this difference. The East and West use the Julian and Gregorian calendar respectively.
Objects and events that symbolize Easter
Whenever you hear Christmas carols being sung, it is an obvious indication that Christmas is around the corner. Easter too has its own symbolic characters and activities these include:
– The Easter bunny which includes the Easter eggs and Easter candy
– The Easter parades
– The Easter bunny
If during Easter you have received a card with the picture of a long eared creature with a really small tail then you know what the Easter bunny is. People believed that the Easter rabbit visited homes during that period rewarding children with colored eggs, chocolates and the Easter candy.
Q. What do you get when you pour hot water down a rabbit hole?
A. A hot cross bunny
However some legends believed that the Eostre as mentioned earlier used the hare as a sacred animal. Overtime, Christians came to replace the hare with a rabbit. This is due to the fact that rabbits are more common and quite similar to the hare. Rabbits are also considered to signify antiquity. They both symbolize fertility.
The Bunny rabbit is not a common Easter symbol in other parts of the globe as it is here in America. You will often find children locally making nests using caps during Easter waiting for a reward of colored eggs the next day if indeed they had been good. As a way of promoting good behavior, parents sneaked the colored eggs into the nests or hid them in the garden waiting for the children to find them.
Paper Plate Easter Bunny
Paper plates are another handy everyday item that can be used for simple Easter craft projects. Let’s make a cute little Easter bunny.
Take one paper plate and fold it in half then release. Along the fold, cut about 1/3 in toward the centre from each side, leaving 1/3 in the middle uncut. Now you can fold about a ¼ of the paper plate down on each side, so the craft will stand up on its own. Paint a pink nose and black eyes onto the centre of this portion.
Glue the rim to another paper plate lying flat on the table. Use a new plate to cut out some bunny rabbit ear shapes. Colour the interiors pink with crayon, coloured marker or hobby paint. Leave the border white, like real rabbit’s ears. Attach the ears to the standing section made earlier by sliding them into the slits made by your cuts and glue them into place.
Now you have an Easter bunny rabbit who is sticking his head up out of his little rabbit warren hole to take a look around!
Whichever way you choose to celebrate Easter, make sure you have the time of your life. Do not forget the Easter Bunny. It is believed to bring good fortune during this special time.