: Re: [MR] new vs. old

[e.georges at att.net]

To further expound on Eogan's point about easter eggs -- 
interesting lore from the Eastern Orthodox church has 
since grown up around the eggs, giving them a religious 
significance. (You gotta love a religion that hasn't 
significantly changed its liturgy since the 6th 
century....)

The Eastern Orthodox church's lenten fast prohibits all 
animal products, including eggs.  SO, the return of eggs 
at easter is something of a celebration.  But the red 
color is actually symbollic of the blood of Christ.  

The Eastern Orthodox church tells the fable this way:  
when Mary Magdalene went back to the grave to visit 
Jesus, she found the stone rolled away, met the angel 
who said  Jesus had risen from the dead, and then went 
back to tell the others.  She left her basket, which had 
eggs in it.  When they came back, they found the eggs 
had changed color, symbollically bathed in Christ's 
blood.  In the Greek tradition, families still dye the 
eggs red on easter and each person takes and egg and 
taps it against others' eggs at the table.  The person 
whose egg goes the longest without breaking in this 
tapping contest is supposed to have good fortune during 
the year.

Probably not helpful, but it is interesting....

In Service, 

Lucia Antony de Venise