Now I'm not what you would call a religious person, by any stretch of the imagination. Apart from weddings, christenings and a funeral, the last time I went to church was probably nearly twenty years ago. Although I see no scientific or rational basis for believing in an all-powerful, omnipotent being I'm not going to rule the existence of one out, so I guess that makes me agnostic. Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that I have no religious axe to grind.
I do have a slight problem with the modern Western take on Easter though (didn't you just know I would?). Whatever your religious beliefs, the accepted (and celebrated) raison d'être for Easter concerns the son of God giving his life for mankind, and being resurrected. New life, new beginnings, new faith.... all of the above. So I can see the symbolism of flowering daffodils, even of eggs... but where does the Easter bunny fit into this picture? Likewise Easter bonnets? And yes, eggs might well symbolise new beginnings, but nothing ever hatched from a chocolate egg, so I'm guessing the only symbol Cadbury's, Nestlé, Mars and the rest are interested in is the "£" sign...
As an aside, I wrote last month about how song lyrics from your youth stick in the mind better and longer than any others. Curiously, Alex James of Blur writes about exactly the same thing in his column in Uncut magazine this month... perhaps I should sue him for plagiarism...?
I do have a slight problem with the modern Western take on Easter though (didn't you just know I would?). Whatever your religious beliefs, the accepted (and celebrated) raison d'être for Easter concerns the son of God giving his life for mankind, and being resurrected. New life, new beginnings, new faith.... all of the above. So I can see the symbolism of flowering daffodils, even of eggs... but where does the Easter bunny fit into this picture? Likewise Easter bonnets? And yes, eggs might well symbolise new beginnings, but nothing ever hatched from a chocolate egg, so I'm guessing the only symbol Cadbury's, Nestlé, Mars and the rest are interested in is the "£" sign...
As an aside, I wrote last month about how song lyrics from your youth stick in the mind better and longer than any others. Curiously, Alex James of Blur writes about exactly the same thing in his column in Uncut magazine this month... perhaps I should sue him for plagiarism...?
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