In Saxony-Anhalt, Easter is once again being celebrated together. “People are happy to be able to meet up again with relatives, friends, acquaintances or in the local community without restrictions after the corona pandemic,” said Annette Schneider-Reinhardt from the Bund Heimat und Umwelt. Many places are again planning big Easter fires with the volunteer fire brigades.
Easter singing is still practiced in Ziemendorf (Altmarkkreis Salzwedel). “The local children meet on Easter Sunday and go from house to house asking for gifts in the form of sweets and money,” said Schneider-Reinhardt. “It’s comparable to the children’s custom at Halloween. In GDR times, a GDR flag was carried along.”
Excursions at Easter are also an old tradition. “In Christian families there is a reference to the gospel proclaimed in the churches on Easter Monday about the exit of the two disciples who did not recognize the risen Jesus at their side,” said the expert. “Most of the excursion restaurants are fully booked two weeks before Easter.”
Overall, as with Christmas, it can be observed that the planning and preparations for Easter are being brought forward. “The bushes in front of the houses or on the windowsills are often decorated with painted or decorated eggs three to four weeks before Easter,” said Schneider-Reinhardt.
With regard to the holidays, the Easter play in the collegiate church in Gernrode (Harz district) on Easter Sunday at 6 a.m. is a special feature. The performers play based on instructions from the 11th century. A copy of the text from 1502 was discovered in 1972 in an archive in Berlin-Dahlem. Because of the pandemic, there was no performance last year.
Federal Association for Culture, Nature and Home e.V. (BHU)
