Wishing a Happy Easter to those who celebrate on Sunday, March 31.
Hear from some of our Interfaith America staff as they share their Easter and Holy Week traditions, memories, and interfaith inspiration, capturing themes of community, renewal, hope, and joy that span religious traditions:
Easter is a reminder that in the face of death, hope can bring new life. At Interfaith America, we are relentlessly hopeful, seeing life instead of death through relationships and communities across the country. Interfaith cooperation, the ways our religiously diverse beliefs and values shape a shared society, gives us life each day.
—Katie Bringman Baxter, Chief Impact Officer
Easter Sunday is my favorite holiday in the church year! After 6 weeks of reflection on the last days of Jesus’ ministry and life, “burying the Alleluia” from use in all liturgy for solemn worship services, and the heartbreak of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, we get to celebrate Christ’s resurrection – eternal life as a result of his victory over death. Hymns during the Easter season have powerful lyrics that I look forward to every year, and traditions surrounding a meal, egg hunts with the kids at church, and time with family are all part of this meaningful holiday weekend for me.
—Vanessa Young, Office Manager
Ever since I was a kid, my parents would hide our Easter baskets and Easter eggs for us to search for. To this day, even though my siblings and I are all adults, my parents still hide our Easter baskets and eggs throughout their house!
—Lizzy Sullivan, Program Assistant
I love the reflective and emotional services of Holy Week, which make me feel especially connected to past generations, traditions, and stories. This year, I’m going to a tenebrae service at a Benedictine Monastery – this is a service in which the lights in the chapel are gradually extinguished, and the service ends with a harsh, loud noise to symbolize the shock and loss of the death of Jesus. On a lighter note, my family loves to reminisce about the Easter when my father ate all of the candy meant for my sister and me the night before Easter!
—Anne Coyne, Program Coordinator
This is one of my favorite photos of me and my younger brothers from Easter 2011. My family always came with a bit of chaos, but if anything, it prepared me well to embrace imperfection and focus more on fun than having a picture perfect holiday.
—Jess Smoot, Program Assistant
We hope you’ll join in commemorating the spring season’s religious holidays by reflecting on your own practices, memories, and experiences or capturing and sharing them with us.
