One could argue that next to Christmas, Easter is one of the biggest Christian holidays. However, despite it being a Christian holiday, it tends to be celebrated by many people of different religions as well, as a cultural event. This of course includes Indians.
Even if we are not Christian, we are very much familiar with the holiday: the candy eggs, the celebration and its ties to the rebirth of Jesus Christ.
But obviously, since Indians are themselves such a diverse community, it means that even though we celebrate the same holiday, we all tend to do it a little differently.
This is why Indian Weekender reached out to various members of the community to find out more about Easter and how they celebrate it.
Read on as Father Sebastian, a Roman Catholic Priest in Auckland, Syamdev Vasudevan, the secretary of the Kerala Cultural Forum (KCF), Rupal Solanki, a Kiwi Indian performing arts enthusiast and host of Indian Weekender’s Gujarati show, and Alen Tomy, the secretary for the Wellington Malayali Association, share their thoughts.
How significant is Easter among the Indian community in NZ?
Father Sebastian: ‘Easter’ is not confined to an individual group, or particular society of cultural ethnicity or integrity. Instead, it is far reaching to anyone who is ready and willing to receive the truth in the message of Easter. Easter is, "the first message of the resurrection of Jesus from the very first day of Jesus’s actual rising from death to life."
Therefore, the church’s teaching has always been very clear and concise in this regard, and that is; “Easter” is the celebration of Christ’s triumphant victory over death.
The apostles felt grief stricken and full of fear at His death. They doubted that He would return. But true to His promise Jesus, showed up, dispelling the fear and doubt, anxiety and despair in their troubled hearts, illuminating them with His presence. They were shocked, when they heard him say 'peace be with you'.
My wish and prayer for you this Easter therefore is that each of you would experience the true faith of the Holy Catholic Church. May this truth illuminate your hearts.
Rupal: Easter is more important than Christmas. Easter is the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus which means defeat of death and hope of Salvation. As a follower of Jesus, it is believed that the sins of humanity were paid for by the death of Jesus and that his resurrection represents the anticipation believers can have in their own resurrection. Once you accept Jesus as your personal saviour, you resurrect as a new individual with a covenant to lead a righteous life.
Syamdev: Easter is celebrated by Christians as a joyous holiday because it represents the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Old Testament and the revelation of God's salvific plan for all of humankind.
In commemorating the resurrection of Jesus, Easter also celebrates the defeat of death and the hope of salvation. Easter is a big celebration in our Kerala community. During this time many Christian people do their fasting for a month till Easter day (Lent). Most of them will eat only the vegetarian foods and they won't consume any alcohol. The Indian community takes lots of effort to make the Easter event enjoyable. My family celebrates Easter here with my friends and their families. We organise Easter breakfast, lunch and dinner in different houses. We have a big celebration along with lots of cultural events and food.
Alen: Our association is mixed culture with people from different castes and religions like Christians, Hindus and Muslims. We don't especially celebrate Easter, because on this week the Hindus also celebrate Vishu (a day which celebrates the astronomical year as well Lord Vishnu and his avatar Lord Krishna).
We don't give more importance to one holiday over the other, so it is more like a family meet up. It's a unification of different people, no matter what their religion. We treat the day like a family meet up.
How do you celebrate Easter here?
Syamdev: My family celebrates Easter here with my friends and their families. We organise Easter breakfast, lunch and dinner in different houses. We have a big celebration along with lots of cultural events and food.
Rupal: We go to church in the morning and celebrate by greeting each other. Churches have fresh hot cross buns and Easter eggs for everyone to enjoy after the church service. Later in the day we visit friends and family or just go for an outing.
During your time here, have you noticed any changes in the way people celebrate?
Syamdev: Yes, there have been some changes over the past two years due to Covid-19. We had a lockdown before and now there are limitations to people attending gatherings. I feel people really want to go out quite badly nowadays. I can see the difference. I hope we will have better times soon.
Rupal: Just like Christmas, Easter has also been commercialised. It is made to believe and practice that Easter is all about Easter eggs, Easter bunnies etc. The Easter bunny is marketed with Easter; however, it has no mention in the Holy Bible or has any connection with Jesus.
The faith of a follower of Jesus remains as it is with the hope of resurrection and repentance of one’s sins.
Alen: Talking about the functions, before we would have happy, good celebrations. But nowadays, because of the Covid-19 pandemic, things have changed. People are focusing more on themselves right now and less on meeting and getting together.
As with most festivals in the Indian community, Easter is a multi-cultural holiday that is celebrated by everyone in the community together. We wish you all a very happy Easter.
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