"So, I can accept candy from this creepy bunny, but not strangers, is that correct? Okay."
It never fails that every year around this time, some curmudgeon “doesn’t understand what chocolate-egg-laying bunnies have to do with Easter.” Frankly, I’m OK with any reason to have fun and eat candy, but this year, I thought I’d be prepared with retorts and actually investigate a few of the Easter traditions.
Easter Eggs
The tradition of having eggs in the spring pre-dates Christianity quite a bit. Ancient history indicates that eggs have long been a symbol of rebirth or new life and, as with many fun pagan traditions, Christians decided to adopt the egg as a symbol of the resurrection. Some religions long ago forbade the consumption of eggs during Lent, so they were boiled for preservation, decorated, and celebrated at Easter (the end of the Lenten season).
The Easter Bunny (and its treats)
The Easter Bunny was originally a hare (there’s a difference!). Though the bunny rabbit and hare are both symbols of fertility, it was the hare that was linked to Easter due to an ancient theory that hares were hermaphrodites capable of virgin births. Europeans started the tradition of a hare that brings colored eggs to good boys and girls, leaving the gifts in “nests” made from their caps and bonnets. Eventually, the tradition switched to nests in baskets appropriate to use for Easter egg hunting (this is why we put plastic grass in our baskets). There’s a bit more to this, but I already wasted too much time falling down the rabbit hole (hurr hurr) of Wikipedia.
Naturally, the addition of chocolate eggs was initiated by enterprising chocolatiers and confectioners in Europe in the 1800s to encourage sales. As chocolate became easier to make and more affordable, the tradition spread. Believed to be the descendent of Turkish delight, the jelly bean became associated with Easter simply due to its ovoid nature. As for Peeps, I can’t find any documented reason the marshmallow chicks became one of the most popular Easter treats. Though they now make bunnies as well as a variety of other shapes.
