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RESULT OF OLD DISPUTES
Easter Customs Differ
From Nation To Nation
^The feast of Easter, which
Mmmemorates the Resurrection
of Jesus, is the most important
one to Christians, yet the manner
of celebrating it varies with each
country. These variatipns began
long ago with disputes as to just
when this feast should take place.
For the observance of the end
of the captivity of the Jews in
Egypt was the holiday which Jesus
and His Disciples were attending
and which ended in His death on
the Cross. Because the Jewish
festival varied in date, so did
the celebration of Easter. Not
until 325 A.D. did the Council
of Nicea cut down this varia
tion to just 35 days by decreeing
Easter must be no sooner than
March 22 nor later than April
25.
Because this date has great
business influence even the Lea
gue of Nations in 1923 sought
(yet fhiled) to set a definite
date. InAmerica, manufacturers,
clothiers, milliners, florists and
many other businesses are af
fected through their sales. In
England, there is still another
reason, for there the courts do not
open until after Easter
^This is the time when every
household gets busy coloring
eggs, a custom so very old that
history records both the Jews and
Persians had been practicing it
for centuries before Christ was
born.
Lighting bonfires, too, in Hol
land, Germany, and southern
Sweden, as well as in some other
parts of Europe, is still custo
mary. The young people congre
gate around the blaze to sing,
dance and generally “carry on
right merrily” to display their
pleasure over the end of the
Lenten season of fasting.
Should you visit Sweden on Eas
ter evening, you might be pardon
ed for believing you are “back
home celebrating Hallowe’en.”
Swedish children go about dis
guised and carrying a Pask brev
(Easter letter). Usually it is
only a folded paper with Glad
Pask (Happy Easter) written on it
and perhaps a drawing of a witch
on a broomstick. In olden days
such letters used to have verses
about witches because of the be
lief that was widely prevalent
that witches flew to Blackula at
Easter to meet the devil. (That
was the explanation made be
cause the elders lit bonfires and
fired off guns in order to scare
off such evil spirits and keep
them from returning.) Nowadays,
the youngsters push their letters
into the letter boxes of friends,
as young Americans do with their
valentines. Then they explode
fire crackers in the street as a
kind of remembrance of what
their grandparents used to do.
So old customs keep persisting,
don’t they?
In England, some very old
customs still survive. Since the
18th century, people in Devon
shire have been breaking croc
kery “so the jagged edges will
pierce the body of the traitor,
Judas.” Another remnant of this
same custom persists on the is
land of Corfu where the people
pitch dishes down a steep hill
as they call out for every dish
they throw.
The method for telling the
weather in Lincolnshire is a
survival of long ago. They place
a bucket of water in an open
space where the sun can shine
on it. If the light shines steadily,
the coming season will be good
and will result in good crops.
But when the reflection is wavery
and uncertain , a lot of fore
boding shows up in worried looks
and sorrowful head shakings, be
cause the signs indicate a wet,
cold season which will result in
poor harvests.
On Palm Sunday in some of
the villages in Derbyshire, the
children used to go to a well
and drop in new pins. On Easter
Monday they would come back
and fill bottles. They would re
peat an old saying in answer
to any questions about this prac
tice: “If we do not first offer
pins to the Lady of the Well,
she will not let us have clean
water and our Easter Monday
bottles will break.”
In remembrance of the death
of Jesus on Good Friday, they
ring what is called the “9 Tail
ors” at Ayat St. Peter in Hert
fordshire. (This is a name for
the method of tolling which is
9 times to indicate the death of
a man, 6 times for a woman and
3 times for a child. After a
pause, the bell then gives the
dead person’s age in solemn
strokes.) That is why the bell
tolls 9 times, pauses, and then
adds 33 strokes to denote the
age of Jesus.
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The parishioners in Hintland,
Sellack and Kings Cap had a 16th
century tradition at Easter that
originated when Lady Scudamore
left some money plainly ear
marked to buy beer and cake for
the people living in these places.
Her will stated that she wanted
these citizens to share “a com
mon feast, resolve their quar
rels, and receive worthily on
Easter.” At first just one big
cake was used. Later on it was
replaced by small ones stamped
with the Lamb and the Flag.
Only Hintland now gets these.
Nor are they eaten in church as
used to be the case for now they
are not distributed until every
one is leaving.
Until after the Civil War, the
Protestants in the United States
had no special ways in which to
celebrate Easter. It is the Pres
byterians who are credited with
being first to decorate their
churches, sing special hymns
and preach sermons that featured
the miracle of the Resurrection.
Now many have the “sunrise
service” that originated in 1732
in Herrnhut, Germany, in a ceme
tery. Young men sang humns and
meditated about the great miracle
proving Jesus was truly the Son
of God for he had triumphed
over death. One of these is held
in an old Spanish fort in Ameri
ca’s oldest city, St. Augustine,
Florida, and there are many
scattered throughout the nation.
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THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST — Detail from painting by artist Raph
ael. Original hangs in Vatican Art Gallery. (N.C. Photo)
CLAD BODY OF CHRIST
Relics Venerated As
Garments Of Calvary
Linen, cotton and wool are
among the oldest materials known
to man for his clothing. The
garments of Christ were made
from these materials, according
to the relics now venerated in
three European churches, each
of which reputedly clad the Body
of Christ either before or after
His death.
These relics had a resur
rection of their own. They came
out of obscurity and achieved
fame and reverence. All three
have received the approbation of
the Church.
The cathedral in the ancient
German town of Trier, has a
cherished relic which is claim
ed to be the seamless robe of
Christ. It appears to have been
made of cotton. Another some
what similar garment, made of
wool, and believed to have been
worn by Christ, is preserved
in the parish church of Argen-
teuil, France. The third relic,
composed of linen, and apparently
the winding cloth in which the
dead Body of Christ was wrap-
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pal of St. Vincent's Academy.
She said parents can help bridge
the gap between elementary and
college level, because “it is
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ped, is safeguarded in the cathe
dral of Turin, Italy.
Tradition informs us that the
robe was immediately concealed
in Trier after its arrival. The
secret of its existence was known
only to a few Churchmen and
trusted political leaders, whose
duty it was to keep it safe dur
ing the turbulent centuries that
followed, passing it on from one
to another.
The garment at Argenteuil was
first mentioned in the sixth cen
tury by St. Gregory of Tours.
An historian named Fredegaire
wrote that the “Holy Tunic” as
it was called, was taken to Gala
tia in Asia Minor by Christians
fearing persecution in Jerusa
lem. It was later returned to
Jerusalem, then transferred to
Antioch and Constantinople.
The Empress Irene of Con
stantinople sent emissaries to
Charlemange, the first Holy
Roman Emperor. One of the trea
sures carried to the monarch
during this age that young people
need a good Christian environ
ment, both in school and at
home.”
Mrs. Rosmary Lynch gave a
parent’s view of what St. Vin
cent’s offers spiritually , edu
cationally and socially, stating
that “it takes all of these to
make a well rounded student.”
“A Sound Catholic education
is vital and necessary in the world
today,” said Father Christopher
Johann, O.S.B., principal of Bene
dictine Military School. “Catho
lic schools are needed to help
young people think for themselves
in a Christian manner. The logic
of religion carries on into other
phases of life.”
Captain Edward J. Kelly, Pro
fessor of Military Science and
Tactics, spoke on the need for
military training by young men
emphasing that it encourages
self-discipline and leadership
qualities.
Mr. William Hennessy told of
the advantages of Benedictine,
both academically, militarily and
athletically from the parent’s
viewpoint.
by the political emissaries was
the Holy Tunic.
As Charlemagne’s daughter
was a nun, the Abbess of a con
vent at Argenteuil, the king gave
it to her for safe-keeping about
the year 782 or 783. The Ab
bess Theodrade hid the relic
in her convent and there it re
mained for 350 years.
The Holy Tunic of Argenteuil
is woven of fine wool, reddish
brown in color, with massive
stains which on chemical analy
sis have proved to be blood. It
is said the marks visible on
the shoulder were made by the
cross. Some authorities claim
this relic is more of a mantle
and probably used as an under
garment. ,* * |
■■ •«. •• •->-—a* I
■ •
The Holy Robe of Trier is
made of cotton and is brown in
color. It is not reputed to be
stained so evidently it was an
outergarment.
The third of the garments as
sociated with Christ on Cal
vary is known as the Shroud
of Turin. It is reputed to be the
cloth purchased by Joseph of
Arimathea in which to wrap the
Body of Christ after death.
The most unusual manifesta
tion of the shroud rests in the
fact that it is marked with the
entire figure of Christ, display
ing His Suffering Face in a simi
lar manner to the holy veil of
Veronica.
It is almost a certainty that
the shroud was in Constantinople
until the 13th century and that it
was exhibited to the faithful in
the church of Our Lady of
Blachernes every Friday.
The shroud disappeared from
Constantinople in 1204 during one
of the crusades. It turned up in
France near Troyes in 1355. Po
litical maneuverings had it re
moved from place to place until
1576 when St. Charles Borromeo,
Cardinal Archibishop of Milan,
ordered it taken to Turin, Italy,
and venerated in a mammoth
religious demonstration im
ploring God to put and end to
the devastating plaque which was
ravaging the city and its en
virons.
Scientific findings tend to con
firm the tradition concerning the
shroud as the burial garment
of Christ.
Thus apparently three gar
ments of Our Lord found their
way from Calvary into the modern
world. They are still in existence
and venerated as sacred relics
in three different cathedrals.
Easter Greetings
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The Southern Cross, April 15, 1965—PAGE 3
AT TOMB OF CHRIST
Easter Sunday
In Jerusalem
The Mass of Easter Sunday is
practically the same in Jerusa
lem as in any of the larger chur
ches in the Catholic world. There
is just one big difference: the Re
surrection took place there. As
the young man clothed in a white
robe said; “Behold the place
where they laid him” (Mark 16,
6).
Just outside of the Chapel of
the Angel, the solemn liturgies
are celebrated. He has risen as
He said, and all Jerusalem re
sounds with the message.
The highlight is the solemn
procession around the tomb of
Christ. In the course of the
procession, the four Gospels of
Easter are solemnly chanted.
The excitement of the Resur
rection is so great that one does
not pay much attention to the
thuds of the bastones. Again and
again, the entire basilica re
sounds with the grand choruses
of the organ and the ringing of
bells.
During the procession one
thinks of all that happened: the
three ladies brought spices to
anoint the body; the stone had been
rolled away; the angel spoke to
them; and the many apparitions
o f the Risen Christ (Mark 16,
1-18).
Despite the traditional length
of many services, Holy Week
quickly comes to a close. Eas
ter then is with us just as the
Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre
itself. But after all the cere
monies, bells, flowers, candles,
and palms, the Basilica of the
Holy Sepulchre returns to regu
lar routine.
There is more time now to
sit on one of the benches that
faces the tomb of Christ. There
is now more time to think about
human problems and tribulations,
rather than passing ceremonies.
The light from the small oil-
lamps of the Greek Orthodox
periodically make visible the im
age of the Risen Christ above en
trance to the tomb. A Russian
nun kneels inside the tomb and
silently ponders the wonders of
Christ and Christianity. Perhaps
she is asking Christ many ques
tions about the present status of
His Church.
The Greek Orthodox sacristan
stands motionless in the dark
ness of the Chapel of the An
gel. The Coptic priest on duty
leans leisurely against the wall
while he voices audibly but in con
trolled whisper his prayers to
Christ. An Abyssinian monk to
meditate. An Armenian greets a
Syrian; a Latin greets a Qreek
Orthodox. But some who meet do
not greet. All this time, a rather
large -type Franciscan, known to
some as Friar Tuck, sits asleep
on the other bench with rosary
dangling in the palm o f his
hand.
All of these and the many dif
ferent types and sects the world
over belong to the Risen Christ.
As one Coptic priest said: “When
will we all be one; for we all
are brothers in Christ.” The
scandal of a divided Christianity
can be repaired only by a Holy
Week in action, by changes in
attitude and feeling, without com
promise of basic principles. Only
then will the unity of the Risen
Christ be effected. For this He
prayed (John 17, 9 ff.), and His
prayer is chained by the nar
rowness and pettiness of men who
claim to follow Him.
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