The guy who lives across the hall from me is some sort of religious minister. Every year we exchange Easter eggs and Christmas cards and occasionally he will try and 'save my soul' by trying to get me to pop along to his church. Of course we have got into many debate's about God and Christ and all that jazz and it is always pointed out that i do not believe in God but i partake in religious festivals such as Christmas and Easter. He tends to believe that i have deep psychological struggles with the whole religion thing and also believes that at some point in the future i will succumb to God. Pretty unlikely as i have managed to get along the past 38 years poo pooing religion as a load of pants.
That said, i am driving halfway across the country today to visit my family and deliver Easter Eggs to another group of people who totally dismiss religion. So the point is, should Atheists partake in religious holidays with all it's chocolate egg giving or has Easter become just a long weekend with chocolate with any religious undertones long forgotten?
I am sure i will ponder on it for a while during the journey down the motorway, or alternatively i will slam in my new OI!! Punk CD and belt out The Sound of The Suburbs.
Enjoy your choccy everyone.
10 comments:
I like chocolate bunnies, but I am Jewish. Is that OK?
"should Atheists partake in religious holidays with all it's chocolate egg giving"
Sure, considering that the original celebration of Easter started as Spring rites long before Christianity existed and eggs represent fertility, not Christ, why the hell not?
Happy Whatever-the-f***!
I was uncomfortable with Easter for many years - not as an atheist, but cuz I married a Jewish guy and have been bringing our kids up Jewish (they wouldn't be considered Jewish by the strictly-strictlies, of course). Easter used to be a time when some Christians were especially awful to Jews (in the U.S. anyway). But all the Christians we know are nice, and now I don't really care. Bring on the Cadbury creme eggs!
I was at dinner with friends tonight and I asked them about the easter bunny and they looked at me quizzically before saying 'Oh right, yeah...' and changing the subject. In my circle, Easter is well and truly dead. It is just a bank holiday.
I, on the other hand, would love the easter bunny to come because I love chocolate. But I have failed so far to get any easter eggs... boo hoo!
I'm sure i've said this before, but i usually hate most chocolates associated with Xtian holidays, just because they're so cheap tasting...
However, there are always exceptions to every rule.
Droooooooooool....
Fine by me Rhea, just don't eat too much and that goes for Jews, Muslims, Christians or anyone of every religious flavour.
I also reached the same conclusion as Little Cheese that Easter, as a religious Festival is dead. It is just a long weekend with chocolate and Paulas favourites, Cadbury Creme Eggs.
"Easter, as a religious Festival is dead."
Nah, not even close. For certain families/societies/cultures, maybe more than others, but it's still a religious celebration among the majority of those in this country -- particularly when you consider the large Catholic Latino population here. The reality is, Christianity is not as visible today as it was 20years ago. Christian-based holidays and celebrations used to be a mainstay in public schools and the workplace. When I was growing up, there wasn't a single business that was open on Easter Sunday. Times have changed, and religion has withdrawn from the public eye (yes, there are far-right exceptions, but generally speaking this is a fact), but there are still lots of Christians out there worshipping and celebrating.
Of course, by "this country," I mean Freedonia.
I love Easter. It's the only Christian holiday that means anything. I'm no longer a Christian, so I see it dovetail with Spring rites nicely. I love the flowers and the fertility symbols (recognized as such or not) and the cotton dresses on young women at church (speaking of fertility, yeah, I'm a letch, deal) and the warm fragrant air and the relatively secular Episcopal sermon and family getting together, everyone believing their own version and fraction of whatever matters to them. I have an Easter post in my head but no time to quiet down and write it, wah, it might explicate atheist prayer or something, who knows (but not cotton dresses).
I'm not a Christian either but I think it's a bit 'Scrooge McDuck' of certain people to make a pointed show of not celebrating Christian festivals just because they're not believers themselves. I say relax, enjoy the chocolate, and the giving and receiving of prezzies (not to mention the time off work), and let the day play itself out, either in a religious way, or in a secular way, just as you see fit.
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