(Wikipedia: Viktor Vasnetsov, 1899)When growing up, our family often visited my grandparents on the farm at Easter time. I have fond memories of coloring eggs in Grandma's kitchen at her big round oak table. I wanted my eggs to turn out perfectly. Carefully lowering the plain white egg into a cup of color, I couldn't wait for the miracle. Recently, I was surprised to hear about a biblical testimony concerning Mary Magdalene and the tradition of coloring Easter eggs:
Mary was a woman of wealth and great status, and after Jesus' resurrection, she used her position to gain an invitation to a banquet given by Emperor Tiberius Caesar. Upon meeting him, she held a plain white egg, exclaiming, "Christ is risen!"
Caesar laughed, saying, Christ rising from the dead was as likely as the egg in her hand turning red. But before he could finish speaking, the egg had turned bright red.
"Christ is risen, for Jesus has burst forth from the tomb," she cried and then continued to proclaim the Gospel to the emperor's guests. The miracle of the egg turned many to Christ that day.
Some eastern Orthodox Christians end their Easter service by sharing bright red eggs and declaring, "Christ is risen."
The egg symbolizes new life. Christ bursting forth from the tomb. Angels are part of the resurrection story. They are part of our story as well, as we rise in consciousness like the Christ, shedding the ego's burial shrouds, we burst forth into our true Identity, as God's holy Child.
Happy Easter!
Joyful Blessings,
Karen
