The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1920-04-01
EASTER UNIVERSALLY OBSERVED
Ancient Ceremonies Observed Throughout the Entire
World. The Egg is Still Symbol

,cted
Hichens' description of the scene is in part
this:
1T came at last With fierce gesture
as of savage exultation the long-haired priest
withdrew his arm from the hole and held up
great bunch of flaming candles. And then
delirium seized the close-packed thousands
All the mouths opened to let out yells
shrieks and the wild titterings of women.
All the arms gesticulated with frenzy toward
the smoky yellow flames. All the bodies
struggled desperately, cruelty to get to them
And the priest dipped his torch, and sudden
church. The patriarch tore out of the holy
sepulcher and fell in the Greek cathedral
with the fire in his hands. From the bal
comics near the blue star-spangled dome
masses of candles were let down and were
drawn up flaming. Fire encircled the rotun-
da, three tiers of fire. Through the
glare, the smoke, the roaring, the process
sion bishops and priests, accompanied
by soldiers, by acolytes, by banner bearers,
by canvasses beating the floor with their
slaves Down the avenue of banners
and muskets and torches came bearded and
long-haired men in magnificent vestments,
:. and the gorgeous Armenians in
magenta, with partly shaved heads and great
tufts of coarse hair, like the gaudy puppets
that people a nightmare"
From time immemorial the Christians
of Jerusalem have observed the events of
Christs's passion, death and resurrection in
complete and dramatic fashion, and it was
from Jerusalem that Easter customs spread
to other parts of the world. The earliest
record of these observances is in 385. AT
that time the Christians strove to realize by
appropriate ceremony and ritual the events
of the last acts in the life Of Jesus. Each
event was commemorated, as far as possible,
on the spot of its occurrence. The proper
passages from the Gospel were read and ap-
propriate prayers were said as the clergy and
people went in procession from place to place
Bethany Gethsemane, Golgotha, the
sepulcher and Olivet. 1t was during the
middle ages that the character of the cere-
monies changed greatly, taking on spectacu-
lar features which have persisted to the
present day.
Tradition with more or less accuracy
has fixed the course of the Via Dolorosa
and the II stations at which the chief events
on the way to the cross occurred. 1t is fol-
lowed by thousands of visitors on Easter
week.
Easter is the principal festival of the
Christian year for the reason that it COM
memorates the resurrection of Jesus. In the
words of Paul, eff Christ be not risen, then
is our preaching vain and your faith is also
vain" 'But," he says, "now is Christ risen
from the dead and become the first fruits of
them that Sleep" Which is to say that the
Christian religion stands on the resurrection
of Jesus.
But the Easter season is observed by
millions who are not even nominally Chris
tians. They do not celebrate the ressurrec-
ton of Christ, but rather the end of winter,
the approach of spring, the beginning of life
in nature after the long sleep of winter.
Celebrations of this kind antedate recorded
history. When Christianity came into the
world the Christian church adopted and
modified such of these pagan rites of celebra-
; ton as it could not abolish. This accounts
. for the many queer rites of the Christian OBJ
. servance of Easter in various parts of the
, world. They are pagan rites that had their
origin in the remotest past, and have been
modified by time and custom and changed
meaning.
Thus the parade of fashion to Easter
morning church services in the large Ameri-
, can cities had its origin ages ago in the SUI
E perstition that failure to wear at least one
; new piece of clothing would bring bad luck
$ during the year. The use of the egg as
: symbol of new life is far older than Chris
> tianity. The Easter rabbit is a survival Of
: an old, old superstition. The use of flowers
' as an expression of rejoicing is probably al.
a most as old as man himself. The paschal
t candles are in another form the bonfire.