Week 14-Foreign Newsaper Article

http://www.cphpost.dk/get/95042.html

As the nation closes up shop for the five-day Easter holiday, people are getting ready to celebrate with customs that are both universal and uniquely Danish

Danes share many of their Easter traditions with the rest of the Christian world, but certain customs - such as eating cabbage and celebrating with willow branches are unique to the country.
Easter eggs, bunny rabbits, legs of lamb, daffodils and lilies are among traditions Denmark shares with other countries celebrating the resurrection of Jesus.
But before kids and families get to dive into the goodies on Sunday, they have to dine on a meal of cabbage tomorrow evening and suffer through two days of being unable to do much but spend time with the family.
Tradition has it that eating vegetables on Holy Thursday was extra healthy. In days gone by, good housewives prepared a dish that called for seven types of cabbage. Whether the legend it true is unproven, but as winter drew to an end - and food stocks with it - cabbage may have been all that was left.
Holy Thursday in Denmark is called 'Clean Thursday' a reference to Jesus' washing of his disciples' feet. In the past people took the name more literally: hanging your clothes out to dry on that day was reputed to keep them free of moths and lice for the rest of the year.
Christians celebrate Jesus return to Jerusalem as the beginning of the Easter week. Palm Sunday takes its name from the cheering crowds who laid palm branches down before him as he rode into the city on a donkey.
Palm branches blessed during Palm Sunday masses were kept in houses to ward against evil. Denmark, however, lying far from the nearest palm tree, used willow branches instead.
Also unique to Denmark is the number of days off associated with the holiday. Despite having all but abandoned its active practice of the Christian faith, the nation nearly closes down during the week before Easter.
Schools hold a week-long Easter holiday, and many parents choose to use the last of their own annual holidays to spend some time with the children, travel south or do the season's first gardening - weather permitting.
Expect long queues at the supermarket Wednesday evening, as people load up on essentials. Shops are closed Thursday and Friday. They do reopen on Saturday, only to close down again on Sunday and Monday.
For those with a dire need to shop, Sweden is open.

The Danes 'celebrate' Easter with 5 days off. Hmm, so far so good I thought. I read on and learned that the Danes eat cabbage during Holy Week ( probably as a penance, LOL), that stores are closed 4 of those 5 days, and that Danes are expected to spend time with their families. Nothing too bad there, but why do they do this? The sad part is when one reads that"despite having all but abandoned its active practice of the Christian faith, the nation nearly closes down the week before Easter". Before you feel too superior, here we have done the same thing, at Christmas it is all Santa and little or no Baby Jesus, and we've reduced the "celebration" of Easter to baskets and colored eggs, Jesus is only given lip service, if that. Why bother celebrating Christmas or Easter, if you have no Christian belief? Call it winter break, spring break, party days, Saturnalia, whatever, but why call it Christmas or Easter if it has no meaning? It's like going to a birthday party when you have no interest in the guest of honor. No wonder Africa has started sending missionaries to the 'civilized West".