Easter is a widely celebrated holiday
worldwide with many different traditions and meanings. While it is a symbolic Christian holiday,
Easter has also in recent years become a more culture-based event in many
countries. In fact, it is becoming
increasingly common for non-practicing Christians and even individuals of other
religious beliefs to celebrate Easter as a fun holiday due to its commercial
nature, partaking in festivities such as egg hunts, Easter dinners and gift
card exchanges. At the same time, it is
also still very well known as a religious holiday amongst Christians and it
continues to have a prominent religious foundation for many that celebrate it.
In North America and the English speaking
world, Easter is both a religious and a cultural celebration that focuses
mainly on activities for children in the family. On the Friday and Saturday of Easter weekend,
Hot Cross Buns are eaten and eggs are decorated using dyes and paints by
children and their parents in preparation for the holiday. Children are told that there is an “Easter
Bunny” who hides chocolate eggs and other goodies around their home while they
are sleeping on the night before Easter Sunday.
On Sunday morning, they wake up to go hunting around their home for
treats that include Easter themed sweets, chocolate eggs and rabbits, colorful
wicker baskets and occasionally small toys.
There is also an Easter dinner on the Sunday evening where roasted lamb,
ham and turkey are all commonly served meals. For individuals who do practice the religious
aspect of the holiday, there is also a Sunday Mass to attend and numerous
religious traditions that are followed.
In contrast, in Latin America the Easter
holiday continues to be a traditional and primarily religious event. In many Latin American countries, the entire
week leading up to the Easter weekend (Holy Week or Semana Santa) is given as
time off of work. To follow Catholic
tradition, individuals take the week to reflect spiritually and connect with
their religion by going to church regularly, spending time with family and
loved ones, fasting from Good Friday to Holy Saturday and avoiding red meat in
their diet. There are also many typical
dishes consumed during Holy Week, however they vary quite a bit from country to
country. In many cases, alcohol is not
permitted to be sold in stores during this time or stores will opt not to sell
it.
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