EASTER. . os 
The early Christians continued this practice 
and colored the eggs red to symbolize the blood 
of their redemption. 
St. Augustine recognized the egg as a type of 
hope. Marble eggs have been found in the 
tombs of saints and martyrs. 
The contrast between the cold, lifeless egg 
and the warm downy chicken full of life and 
motion, may well have made the former an 
emblem of the endless life of the soul. 
A German writer says : 
“The ego as a symbol of the resurrection of 
Jesus, who broke forth from the grave as a 
chicken from the shell, has been from very 
ancient date an Easter gift with Christians.” 
After the fourth century the Church prohibited 
the use of eggs as well as of other animal food 
during Lent, but the hens were heretical enough 
to keep on laying and the accumulated eggs 
were dyed for children at Easter. 
The Greek Church still forbids the use of 
egos during Lent, but other churches allow their 
use during the Lenten fast. 
