Kerala Christians celebrate Easter

Thiruvananthapuram, April 5 (IANS) Christians in Kerala visited churches on Sunday to attend the Easter mass and returned homes for the sumptuous Easter breakfast.

While some people went to churches for a pre-sunrise Easter mass, others turned up after sunrise.

The Easter service ends in most churches when the priest offers a piece of cake. At some places, a teaspoon of wine is first served.

Starting from Palm Sunday last week, Christians, who form nearly a quarter of Kerala’s 33 million people, were busy with rituals and festivities associated with the Holy Week (also known as Passion Week), which ended with Sunday’s morning mass.

"One of the main reasons why there was a lot of interest being generated in observing the Easter lent is when devotees used to turn pure vegetarian in yesteryears, it was symbolic and Jesus resurrection was like giving new hopes in our life.

"But today, I doubt, if it has become, more of a tool to streamline one’s health and less of divinity," said 75-year-old Mariamma John, a homemaker.

After the mass, the most important event of the day is the family getting together for breakfast.

The menu is mostly traditional — appam (rice flour mixed with toddy), chicken stew and beef roast. At some places, duck is the important non-vegetarian dish. There are also steamed bananas, egg roast and cake.

Time being a major constraint for many, hotels and resorts offer a wide variety of Easter delicacies. Some families prefer to spend time at these places after the Easter mass.