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The meaning of the Easter Bunny

April 5, 2011 by Andrew Leave a Comment

The original celebration was not a Christian one. In Anglo-Saxon history, the festival was originally for the goddess Ēostre, also sometimes written as Ēastre.

Ēostre also gives her name to Eosturmonath, one of the months in the Anglo-Saxon calendar, and is believed to have been either a goddess of light or fertility. Experts who have debated the role of Ēostre in Anglo-Saxon culture include Jacob Grimm, one half of the Brothers Grimm, and co-author of Grimm’s Fairy Tales.

As pilgrims converted Anglo-Saxon cultures to Christianity they were aware that the Ēostre worship festival occurred around the same time as the resurrection of Jesus. In order to help blend Christianity into the pagan cultures, the two festivals were actively merged. The event became known as Easter and became Christian in focus.

However, some modern churches, looking to distance themselves from the pagan origins of Easter, have started to use the phrase “Resurrection Day” instead.

The origins of Easter eggs begin in the region of Alsace. References to the Easter bunny itself are included in the writings of Georg Franck von Franckenau, a German botanist, who lived from 1643 to 1704. It was German settlers who introduced the concept to the States in the 18th century.

Pagan symbology includes the rabbit as an emblem of fertility. This ties in strongly with Ēostre as a goddess of fertility. Some suggest that the Easter bunny may be the avatar of Ēostre on earth.

The Easter bunny is the product of two religions; Christianity and some forms of Anglo-Saxon paganism. It has been adopted into modern culture easily as it is also readily available for the commercialisation of Easter.

In Pure Spirit

What have you been told about the origins of the Easter bunny? What does the Easter bunny mean to you?

Or also long as tasty Easter eggs are forthcoming – does it matter at all?

Picture credit: Iain Watson, released under Creative Commons.

The Curdworth ghost – haunted St Nicholas Church

October 12, 2010 by Andrew Leave a Comment

Curdworth is an ancient place; dating back to the 6th century as an Anglian settlement if not earlier. It is about 11 miles east of Birmingham.

There is reason to believe the area was of significance to the Saxons. The very name Curdworth is believed to originate from “Creoda’s Clearing”. Creoda was an important Anglo-Saxon King who ruled Mercia between 586-593. He is notable as the first King of Mercia with ancestry that could be traced back to Woden (Odin). A significant Anglo-Saxon god.

Curdworth Hall is built on Saxon structures and the King George V Playing Fields adjacent to the church was also the site of a medieval Saxon Manor complex.

Hauntings

There are plenty of deaths associated with Curdworth and many reports of ghosts. In the English Civil War 20 parliamentarians were killed when Sir Richard Willys attached while they were trapped by boggy ground by Curdworth Bridge. They were buried by the south wall of the chancel at Curdworth Church.

One of the ghosts that are said to haunt the church is a headless spirit of a Civil War soldier. Others report a green lady roaming the grounds of the church. One of the more common sightings in the graveyard is that of a ghostly young girl who vanishes into the graves.

The Church itself if dedicated to St Nicholas and St Peter ad Vincula. The present building dates back to about 1170, Norman in origin, and is the home to the three-bell bell tower (which was added in 1460 by the Earl of Warwick).

In Pure Spirit

Have you been to Curdworth and seen any of the mysterious lights over the graveyard or the unexplained lights by the Church?

Do you believe this Curdworth church is haunted or are people just getting carried away with themselves?

Creative Commons credit: Roger Kidd.

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