There's 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 don't lay eggs.
《圣經(jīng)》里并沒(méi)有一個(gè)關(guān)于長(zhǎng)耳朵，軟尾巴的復(fù)活節(jié)兔子的故事。也沒(méi)有一篇文章是關(guān)于小朋友們畫(huà)復(fù)活彩蛋或者尋找放滿(mǎn)糖果的復(fù)活節(jié)籃子的。而且真的兔子都不會(huì)下蛋。
So why are these traditions so ingrained in Easter Sunday? And what do they have to do with the resurrection of Jesus? Well, nothing.
那么為什么復(fù)活節(jié)會(huì)有這些根深蒂固的傳統(tǒng)呢？這些傳統(tǒng)跟耶穌復(fù)活有什么關(guān)系呢？其實(shí)，它們之間并沒(méi)有什么聯(lián)系。
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.
小兔子，復(fù)活蛋，復(fù)活節(jié)禮物，草帽里嫩黃色毛茸茸的小雞都來(lái)源于清教。它們雖然與復(fù)活節(jié)的慶祝有關(guān)，但與天主教們慶祝耶穌的復(fù)活并沒(méi)什么關(guān)聯(lián)。
According to University of Florida's Center for Children's 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 animal's high reproduction rate.
佛羅里達(dá)大學(xué)兒童文學(xué)與文化中心的研究表明，復(fù)活節(jié)的慶祝活動(dòng)和復(fù)活節(jié)兔子能夠被追溯到13世紀(jì)的德國(guó)，當(dāng)時(shí)還沒(méi)有出現(xiàn)基督教，人們還只是信奉幾個(gè)神與女神。日耳曼的Eostra之神是掌管春天以及繁殖的神，人們?cè)诖悍值臅r(shí)候?yàn)樗e辦盛宴祭拜她。因?yàn)橥米拥姆敝陈屎芨?，它便成為了Eostra之神的標(biāo)志。
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.
春天也象征著生命和新生；蛋是一個(gè)古老的生育的象征。根據(jù)History.com，15世紀(jì)時(shí)，天主教成為德國(guó)的主流宗教，天主教慢慢地與扎根于此的清教思想融合后，復(fù)活節(jié)彩蛋才與耶穌復(fù)活相聯(lián)系起來(lái)。
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 Florida's Center for Children.
佛羅里達(dá)大學(xué)兒童中心指出：第一個(gè)復(fù)活節(jié)兔子的傳說(shuō)記載于16世紀(jì)。到1608年，第一個(gè)關(guān)于小兔子下了蛋并且藏在了花園里的故事才被出版。18世紀(jì)當(dāng)?shù)聡?guó)的移民在賓夕法尼亞州定居之后，這些傳說(shuō)才被帶到美國(guó)。
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.
為兔子建造下蛋的巢穴這個(gè)習(xí)慣隨之而來(lái)。最終，這些巢穴演變成了裝飾籃子，而彩蛋也被替換為糖果、點(diǎn)心和其它小禮物。
相關(guān)閱讀
Easter bear brings candy for kids
兔年說(shuō)說(shuō)“兔”文化
復(fù)活節(jié)為什么要“扮兔子”、“滾彩蛋”？
奧巴馬主持白宮滾彩蛋活動(dòng) 慶復(fù)活節(jié)
（來(lái)源：滬江英語(yǔ) 編輯：崔旭燕）
