复活兔

Theres no story in the Bible about a long-eared， cotton-tailed creature known as the Easter Bunny. Neither is there a passage about young children painting eggs or hunting for baskets overflowing with scrumptious Easter goodies.And real rabbits certainly dont lay eggs.

So why are these traditions so ingrained in Easter Sunday？ And what do they have to do with the resurrection of Jesus？ Well， nothing.

Bunnies， eggs， Easter gifts and fluffy， yellow chicks in gardening hats all stem from pagan roots. They were incorporated into the celebration of Easter separately from the Christian tradition of honoring the day Jesus Christ rose from the dead.

According to University of Floridas Center for Childrens Literature and Culture， the origin of the celebration — and the Easter bunny — can be traced back to 13th century， pre-Christian Germany， when people worshiped several gods and goddesses. The Teutonic deity Eostra was the goddess of spring and fertility， and feasts were held in her honor on the Vernal Equinox. Her symbol was the rabbit because of the animals high reproduction rate.

Spring also symbolized new life and rebirth； eggs were an ancient symbol of fertility. According to History.com， Easter eggs represent Jesus resurrection. However， this association came much later when Roman Catholicism became the dominant religion in Germany in the 15th century and merged with already ingrained pagan beliefs.

The first Easter bunny legends were documented in the 1500s. By 1680， the first story about a rabbit laying eggs and hiding them in a garden was published. These legends were brought to the United States in the 1700s when German immigrants settled in Pennsylvania Dutch country， according to the University of Floridas Center for Children.

The tradition of making nests for the rabbit to lay its eggs soon followed. Eventually， nests became decorated baskets and colorful eggs were swapped for candy， treats and other small gifts.

圣经里并没有这样一个关于有着长耳朵和软软尾巴的复活节兔子的生物。也没有一篇文章是关于小朋友们画复活蛋或者寻找放满糖果的复活节篮子的故事。而且真的兔子当然也不会生蛋。

那么为什么复活节会有这样根深蒂固的传统呢？他们又为何一定会与耶稣的复活联系起来呢？其实，真的没联系。

小兔子，复活蛋，复活节礼物，草帽里嫩黄色毛茸茸的小鸡都来源于清教。它们与复活节的庆祝活动相联系起来，而与天主教徒们庆祝耶稣死后复活并没有关联。

根据弗罗里达大学儿童文学与文化中心的研究表明，复活节庆祝活动还有复活节兔子能够被追溯到13世纪的德国，当时还没有出现基督教，人们还只是信奉几个神与女神。日耳曼的Eostra之神是掌管春天以及繁殖的神，人们在春分的时候为她举办盛宴祭拜她。因为兔子的高繁殖率，便成为了Eostra之神的标志。

春天也象征着生命和新生；蛋是一个古老的生育象征。根据History.com，复活节彩蛋代表了耶稣的复活。15世纪时，天主教成为了德国主流的宗教，清教思想也根深蒂固的扎根于此，此后很久，复活节彩蛋才与耶稣复活联系起来。

佛罗里达大学儿童中心研究指出：第一个复活节兔子的传说被记录于16世纪。到1680年，第一个关于小兔子下了蛋并且藏在花园里的故事才被出版。18世纪当德国的移民在宾夕法尼亚的荷兰城定居之后，这些传说才被带到美国。

为兔子建造下蛋的巢穴这个习惯随之而来。最终，这些巢穴变成了装饰篮子，而彩蛋也被替换为糖果、点心和其它小礼物。