Easter is the most important religious feast in the Christian liturgical year, says Wikipedia. Forgive me, Father, for I've sinned. And since it is none of the cardinal sins, perhaps I might be forgiven? It's the sin of doubt I have to confess. I find it puzzling to believe surfing my way through the supermarket shelves stuffed with "Cadbury" eggs. Firstly, I'm disappointed it is almost exclusively "Cadbury" (have a look at the chocolate counter next time you go to your local newsagent's). Well, there's "Nestle" also, but you have to consider that 80 percent of the world chocolate market is accounted for by six transnational companies anyway and they do not produce the best of chocolate. Two years ago an average of €1.6 million worth of confectionery sales were passing through Irish retailers’ tills every single day. The other day I spotted an Easter basket in the local Spar for 60 Euro. I can bet it will be gone by tomorrow. I've mentioned before the fact that Irish spend more during Christmas season than anybody else.
Farther, it is hard for me to believe when I see that as the seasons change the only thing that sets them apart is our shopping trends - turkey and port for Christmas, chocolate and lamb for Easter. I thought you were saying we should contemplate on some higher matters. Farther, have you got your Easter egg? Is it "Cadbury"? Or perhaps, Father, I'm taking life too seriously? Again...
The phrase... "So what" comes to mind...
It seems slightly lazy, intellectually, when you stick shopping trends, Irish people and Catholicism altogether in one post... It's stereotyped to be frank.
This country has very little to do with religion anymore, aside from a very bad hangover with monotheism and ideas like what it means to be intrinsically Irish are very much up for debate just like in any Western society, a situation which the majority of our Eastern brethren seemingly are also moving towards...
Not feeling particularly Irish, being atheistic and also anti-consumerist... This post is a bit like the Sophie's World equivalent of blogging...
It's navel gazing...
Anonymous, I was not even attempting to post an opus magnum with in-depth explanation of where Ireland came from and where it is going to. Neither was I trying to juxtapose Eastern brethren as the one and only stronghold of spirituality or anything along those lines. Just a few random musings on an Easter morning. Since in my home country Easter mostly comes with spring and it is always spring in Ireland (I mean always green), somewhere along those shelves with "Cadbury" I lost the meaning of Easter (if there is one). I used to be religious, now I'm spiritual :)
BTW, in my opinion, much of blogging consists of navel-gazing :)
Ah, just good old fashioned catholic guilt then...
Might want to check this out then...
http://www.overcompensating.com/posts/20080324.html