The Star. SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 1908. EASTER.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 9214, 18 April 1908, Page 4

The Star. SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 1908. EASTER.

Once again Christendom celebrates the death and resurrection of the Saviour, of mankind, and it is satisfactory to know that in this keen business age a large proportion of the population from a purely religious feeling devotes the time of release from labour to bhe commemoration which is the ostensible object of the holiday. It is pleasing to note that the social life of New Zealand is largely leavened with men and women who do not forget the significance of Easter and Christmas, and loyally discharge, in connection with these anniversaries, the duties required by the church. But, on the other hand, it is to be feared that there is [mother leaven only ibo ready to forget that Easter has any religious significance at all. If that leaven had its own way the whole season would be spent in pleasure seeking. As it is, Easter Monday is a day of racing, spotting and general outing for pleasure, and the evening is filled in with routs and jollification. These people partly draw the line, though with a irery^Bad grace, at Good Friday, which, Jhough observed by" good churchmen with prayer and thanksgiving, is devoted by those who are not in that category to other than religious observances. Still, it is pleasing that the season is a public holiday time, and legitimately affords a reason, for toilers obtaining a respite from their labour for a while. There are sections of the Christian Church which make no special point of observing either Christmas or Easter, and whose members seem to be no worse Christians in consequence. In Presbyterian Scotland, for instance, work goes on on Good Friday, the same as on any ordinary day, and so it does on Christmas Day, the people attaching no pious significance at all to these days. They claim that God's commandment was to remember the Sabbath Day., and "six days shalt thou labour and do all thy work," but the seventh, being the Sabbath of the Lord, no work was to be done by man nor beast nor the " stranger within thy gates." The Presbyterian is content with his fifty-two Sabbaths, and such other days as from time to time his charch authorities may appoint for special service, but of saints' day and other "holy days," instituted by alien authority than his " only rule of faith," he will have none. Yet he still lives, and gets along well enough apparently without them. He contends that the New Testament giveß no indication of any celebration of Easter asla Christian festival, nor is any such indication Jotind in the writings of the apostolicfathers. The sanctity of special times or places was an idea quite' foreign to the early Christian mind, which was too profoundly absorbed in the events themselves to think of their external accidents. And then 'the incidence of Easter is a weariness of the flesh to many people. Why the moon should be called upon to fix the holiday is incomprehensible, and they would like to see the date fixed as Christmas is fixed. This could hardly be done, because Friday does not always fall on the eanie day of the month, but it would be an easy matter to get over that ,difiiculty by choosing say the first Friday in April. Still, there is Easter. One class makes it a time for special worship of the Deity, another class makes it anything but a holy day holiday. The spirit of tolerance of the age suggests that healthy recreation is in itself ft religion, and in a compromise of this character finds its extenuatidn for spending the day in backing horses and the night at versatile vaudeville.