In this increasingly post-doctrinal age built on "do-it-yourself" spirituality, it's interesting to reflect on the Easters of my childhood. I remember Easter being filled with both fear and delight. Images of fluffy yellow chicks, mixed in with Christ on the cross, and scary witches and trolls, clearly come to mind.
Lutherans in my childhood days celebrated the Easter season much like the Catholics, but with far less ceremony and pageantry. Easter is really an entire season of the Christian church year, and not just a one day holiday. Lent, the 40-day period leading up to Easter Sunday, is a time of reflection and penance and represents the 40 days that Jesus spent alone in the wilderness before starting his ministry.
The day before Lent, known as Fat Tuesday, is a last hurrah of food and fun before the fasting begins. The week preceding Easter is called Holy Week. The days leading up to Easter in my childhood were marked by the reverent remembrance of Christ on Maundy Thursday, which commemorates Jesus' last supper with his disciples. Good Friday, which honors the day of his crucifixion, was observed as a solemn, and sacred day. Holy Saturday focused on the transition between the crucifixion and resurrection. Businesses and schools were closed on Good Friday and for the whole weekend.
The only Easter celebration I can recall from my childhood was in Rovaniemi when I was nine years old. We attended Easter mass at the beautiful Lutheran chapel there. Vivid memories linger of the altar piece with Christ surrounded by a golden halo and at his feet the resurrection is taking place, with the dead rising from their graves. The mural filled me with awe and fear.
But Easter is also a delightful time for the children and their families. For lunch/dinner on Holy Saturday, families traditionally feast on a smörgåsbord of herring, salmon, potatoes, eggs and other kinds of food. In Finland, the Lutheran majority enjoys mämmi as another traditional Easter treat. This rye-concoction, covered with sugar and cream, was not a great favorite of mine even when it had been made by my Karelian grandmother who was an outstanding cook.
In Finland, Sweden and Denmark, traditions also include egg painting and (much in the tradition of our American Halloween) small children dressed as witches collect candy door-to-door. However, in place of trick-or-treat, the children exchange decorated pussy willows for candy. This is a result of the mixing of an old Orthodox tradition (blessing houses with willow branches) and the Scandinavian Easter witch tradition. Brightly colored feathers and little decorations are also attached to birch branches in a vase.
In our modern day and age, we are much more casual about our Easter observance. Most of these solemn Easter traditions seem as antiquated as the Model-T Ford and the typewriter. Last weekend's General Conference allowed us time to reflect on the real meaning of Easter ... the life and sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ.
