FROschTOsch

by Eileen Ott, Sarah Arns and G. Arnold (BvA)

Our article deals with the typically German Easter customs in our vicinity.Many house doors are decorated with flowers, eggs and wreaths.

In Germany we have got many different Easter traditions. However, the Easter Bunny is the primary symbol. On Easter Sunday, we hide sweets, coloured eggs and little presents in our gardens. In the Easter morning the smaller children go into the gardens and walk along in search of the Easter presents. Of course, Easter Lamb is part of the  Christian Easter celebration, too.

Furthermore, the Easter bonfires complete the nightly celebration. In Germany the Easter celebration is still marked by Christian associations. So we also eat the Easter lamb, because in the Christian faith it is one of the most important symbols. For Easter breakfast there is a plaited yeast bun, sweet bread, chocolate eggs and boiled chicken eggs. Besides, sometimes the whole family comes together and celebrates at an Easter brunch.

A purely Christian sign for the party is the Easter bell which is rung in the Easter morning. For Catholics Easter fair is an essential element of the activities.

by Marco Kluin (BvA)

After Jesus had been crucified and passed away, and everybody thought he was gone forever, so he was taken to a big stone grave, where his followers meant him to last for all times. The entrance to the grave was sealed by a big stone, so nobody could enter or leave the grave. The day after his death Mary of Magdala, among other women,  came to Jesus’s tomb to pray for him. But, to their surprise, they noticed that the big stone, which had been blocking the entrance, had been moved by someone.They went into the grave and noticed that Jesus’s body was gone. They were shocked. Suddenly, a light appeared outside the grave and two men, who  looked unfamiliar to them, were standing in the graveyard. The woman was stunned. She asked, “Who are you?”, and the men said, “Why are you looking for the living among the dead? Go to Jerusalem, and tell everybody that He has been resurrected by the power of His  father. Everybody shall know that.” Stunned, the woman replied, “Oh, uhm….yes, yes! We’ll go!” The women went to Jerusalem and let everybody know, that Jesus has been resurrected.

That’s why we go to church at Eastern every year, to think about Jesus’s resurrection and to remind the people of it.

But we’re not only celebrating Easter to think about Jesus, we often paint, either real chicken eggs or plastic eggs, in our favourite colours or in a fantasyful way  and decorate our houses with them. And on Easter Sunday, hidden presents and candy are being searched by little children, who are thinking that “Easter  Bunny” has hidden those treats at several places in the house. After finding everything, the children are allowed to eat everything they have found.

At the end, we may have a big Easter meal in the evening of Easter Sunday with the family.

That’s how we celebrate Easter in my German family.

by Evangeline Gill

In England feiern wir Ostern, indem man sich gegenseitig Ostereier schenkt. Einige Familien verstecken Ostereier, dann müssen die kleinen Kinder nach ihnen suchen.
In Grundschulen können die Kinder  Ostereier schmücken und dann mit nach Hause nehmen, um sie dort den Eltern zu schenken. Die ältere Generation gibt sich in der Regel  untereinander nur Osterkarten, statt Schokolade. Ostern ist die Feier von Jesus Christus als er wieder zum Leben erweckt wurde.