What am I to do with secular Easter?  Maybe it is not so secular…

Easter is the celebration of an empty tomb.  Jesus, was killed, laid in a tomb, and came out of the earth-Alleluia! He was dead and came back to life!  Let’s look with the eyes of faith!

 

Easter Bunnies~ Bunnies, in the wild, like Jesus come out of the earth.  Jesus’s resurrection with Him coming out of the earth and brining new life!   Did you know that Cottontail rabbits create nests in shallow depressions on the ground, covered with soft grasses and lined with the mother rabbit's fur.  Many other breeds of rabbits actually live underground.  Rabits are also a sign of life and fertility, did you know that a female rabbit, or "doe," can potentially have 3-5 litters of 6-12 babies- that is 35 bunnies annually.  Rabbits have a short gestation period of about 28-31 days, meaning they can become pregnant again soon after giving birth. 

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Easter Eggs~ An egg, round, can symbolize the Earth.  What comes out of an egg- a new life, a chick.  Just as Jesus came out of the earth in His Resurrection, so chicks come out of eggs.  The Egg is also a sign of fertility and life!  The egg is also a symbol of a the Trinity- In one egg you have a shell, yoke and white…but one egg!

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Butterflies~ the butterfly represents resurrection, spiritual transformation, and new life.  The beautiful butterfly comes out of the cocoon or chrysalis, just as the risen Lord comes out of the tomb.  We who are baptized, die to our old-self and become a new creation in Baptism and every-day in our spiritual lives!

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Flowers~ Tiny seeds are sown, they grow, and become beautiful flowers, each one is unique.  Eventually they wilt and die.  But hidden inside each flower is a seed.  When planted it will rise again!  This cycle of new life from a wilted and dead flower is a symbol of Christ dying and rising to new life, which we are invited to partake in!

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Lambs~ The lamb, calls to mind the Lambs of the Old Testament: Abel’s perfect sacrifice, Abraham’s replacement sacrifice, the Passover Lam, and the countless Lambs sacrificed in the temple.  All these lambs find their fulfillment in Jesus, whom John the Baptists calls “The Lamb of God.”  Jesus death on the cross is the ultimate sacrifice replacing all others.  In the 5th book of Revelation, Jesus, the Lamb, is slain, but living and at the center of heavenly worship! 

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Jellybeans~ A bagful of jellybeans colorful and sweet is a prayer, is a promise, is an Easter Treat!  White is for the bread He changed at that Last Supper Meal, Black is for the garden dark where Jesus went to kneel.  Orange is for the fires they lit to see to His arrest, Purple, for the robe he wore– a “king” they hailed in jest.  Red is for the blood He shed out of love for me and you, Pink is for His mother’s heart, which was hurt and torn in two.  Green is for the grassy tomb when the faithful women arrived, Yellow is for their JOY to find that Jesus, God’s SON, was truly alive!!!