Show COCXDCOCOCOOCXXOOCOOCOCOCOO Many Ways In Which The World Observes Easter OOOOOOOCXXJOOOOOOOOOCXXXXXX 1r HETHER the sun shines re t m forth In splendor or thor tho-r sides be leaden the spiritual m spir-itual and material seem n < < f > il to combine on Easter day tho festival of spring Tho church has other sacred days there arc other whisperings of renewed nature but Easter Sunday stands forth unique from all other religious feasts Many and strange are tho observances observ-ances of Easter Sunday whoso very name has come down to us from the Goddess of the east she who In Saxon mythology was Ostara or Easter In tho neverchanging cast and the mutable muta-ble west there are strange customs connected with this day and no mutter mut-ter how Indifferent the Christian ho cannot Ignore It Though It was not until the year 325 at tho Council of Nice that arrangements were inaugurated Inaugu-rated to determine what day in every year Easter should fall on and It was decided that Easter day should be the first Sunday after the fourteenth day of tho calendar moon which happens hap-pens on or after March 21 this did not alter tho Inner meaning of tho day As far back as the time of Pharaoh when those Egyptians were saved who had shod the blood of the first paschal lamb Easter Sunday was born and it has lived through strife and church dissensions WitH all Its purity and suggestion of now birth unimpaired In the same way Its customs have lingered until even their origin has been lost In obscurity For Instance many unlquo explanations have been made regarding Easter eggs some authorities au-thorities claiming that eggs were used long before the existence of Easter Among Egyptians Greeks and Romans Ro-mans the egg was thosign of the universe uni-verse and for centuries the church Itself has considered eggs the symbol of tho resurrection and at first they wore dyed red as symbolical of the blood of Christ Just why this Is so no ono cnn tell authoritatively though many contend that all spiritual significance signi-ficance was lost In the thought that after 40 days of fasting the early Christians were allowed to eat ggs and hence valued them as Easter remembrances re-membrances Hut those are nor tho only countries where eggs haw figured fig-ured in a spring festival 7 pea plo of Peru believe that three eggs fell from heaven thus bringing priest king and common people on earth The Japanese and Orientals look upon up-on them as a typo of the whole human hu-man Foul and Teutonic children arc told the story of the turning of Ostara Into a hare who appeared as a messenger mes-senger of spring and left eggs Italys children think that If they find an egg laid by a white hen In a new nest good luck will attend them In one place In our country Easter Is observed with peculiar ceremonies This Is In tho quaint Moravian village of Bethlehem which wag founded In 1710 Hero a Passion week anniversary anniver-sary Is hold that Is unequaled for solemnity Pilgrims lock to this little lit-tle town for from tho eve of Palm Sunday through Easter there are many services each coincident with the life of Christ Thus Palm Sunday commemorates the triumphal entry ol Christ Into Jerusalem Monday tells of the healing in the temple Tuesday suggests the giving of the parables and Thursday brings its sad associations associa-tions of tho Lords supper hon the sayings of Christ upon the cross are read and the bells toll on Good Friday Fri-day the whole passIon and death seem very real It is a relief when Easter morning comes and the tuneful trombone trom-bone choir awakens the people that they may arise and hasten to the little church and from that to the cemetery nearby Here the people stand In a hollow square and as the dawn slowly reddens the sky and the rising sun touches the tree tops the birds begin their morning anthems and seem to join In the chants of praise which go up from the devout congregation There have been few such spectacles spec-tacles since the pope gave up blessIng bless-ing the world on Easter morn from the loggia of St Peters Today Rome lacks 1 tills ceremony out Mm c 1 ilovnut caw go to the Church of tho Passion ates where are the holy stnircnqo and chapel filled with relics of the Passion among them the title of the crucifixion cruci-fixion which no one but the pope Is allowed to see In France the archbishop arch-bishop has for years given his benediction bene-diction on Easter morn from Mont mnrtre and In London there are rich parishes where there Is still a sort of perfunctory alms giving among the people relics of a time when the Paschal Pas-chal feast was celebrated in arts of grace and charity The American Indians take kindly 1 to any observance which can find expression ex-pression in forms and ceremonies and for this reason Easter and Passion week appeal forcibly to those who have embraced Christianity A remarkable re-markable Passion play has been enacted en-acted for years at Amecumeca near Mexico City which Is a sort of Ober ammergau In tho new world Shortly after the Conquest Pope AdrIan VI sent 12 missionaries to convert the Aztecs Ono of them Fra Martin was a kind man who lived In a cave on u mountain near Tenochltltlan or Mexico City After his death his body was placed In a chapel built over the cave and the mountain became n sacred spot Thousands of pilgrims come hero in Lent and on Ash Wednesday tho body of the priest Is placed In tho village church For 300 years this ceremony has been enacted and has been followed by a Passion play on Good Friday which Is witnessed wit-nessed by people from all over the country The performance which Is under the auspices of the priest begins be-gins early In the morning and ends at midnight when the peasant who Is selected to impersonate Jesus Is taken from tho cross and the peones who have been In attendance escort the body of Fra Martin back to the chapel over the grave Thousands ol Mexican peones attend these ceremonies cere-monies and It Is this class of people who take tho various parts These Passion play celebrations can of course be traced to the Influence In-fluence of Christianity but It Is a singular fact that just aa tho cross was found in Mexico long before Limo advent of Cortez when the n nary possessed tho cultivation of urnlent Thebes and Egypt so the Indians In North America have always held dances and religious rites to commemorate com-memorate tho coming of spring No ono knows whether this was natural insure that led them to rejoice over tho awakening of earth or tho survival of some religion that prevailed among them before tho coming of Christian ity Wo can only guess at the past of our North American Indians and deduct conclusions from their ceremonies cere-monies and occasional folklore Tho fact remains that heathendom as well as Christianity rejoices when Easter comes and all nature lilts up its voice at the glad acclaim that spring is here bringing with it promises of I eternal life |