FROM THE ARCHIVES: SO IT'S NOT ALL A BIG CADBURY SCAM? :

How the egg came to symbolize Easter (Patricia Zacharias, Detroit News)

The joy and hope of Easter Resurrection has been symbolized for centuries by lambs, rabbits, lilies and crosses. The simple egg,
however is perhaps the oldest and most universal symbol of rebirth and new life. The custom of offering Easter eggs, either chocolate or hard boiled
and colored, dates back well beyond the early years of Christianity to the most ancient pagan traditions.

Egyptians and Persians used to dye eggs in spring colors and give them to friends as a symbol of renewed life long before Christ was born. The myths
of several Eastern and middle Eastern cultures maintain that the earth itself was hatched from a giant egg.

Scholars believe the name Easter is derived from Oestar, a goddess of Spring and renewal. The rabbit or hare was the symbol of fertility, new life and
of the moon in ancient Egypt. It may have become an Easter symbol because the date for Easter is determined by the moon. Also the ancient
Egyptians called the hare Wenu, an insignia of the rising of the sun, Ra, and of the resurrective powers of Osiris.

Guess what at least one set of Judd kids are doing tonight? [Originally posted: March 28, 2002]
Posted by oj at April 19, 2014 11:00 PM
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