We may be wondering about the price of eggs. Perhaps this year it will be more economical to fill plastic eggs with dollar bills. But I’m not talking here about the price of eggs. The customs of Lent vary greatly depending upon the century. Even the length of Lent has seen differences in the number of days, beginning in the most ancient times of not being called “Lent” and occurring only a day or so of intense fasting before the Easter Vigil. Then there was a time when Lent began right after the Christmas Season. Eventually it became what we’re used to—40 days.

The custom of Easter eggs grew out of the fact that eggs could not be eaten during Lent. But nobody told the hens, and eggs piled up. As soon as Lent ended, those eggs had to be gobbled up in a hurry.

A similar thing happened prior to Lent when Lenten regulations forbade meat and anything containing fat. To get rid of the fat, households made doughnut-like baked goods. This was the start of paczki, Polish doughnuts filled with fruit or cream and covered with powdered sugar or icing.

We stick to our customs, don’t we? I doubt that any of us will eat rabbit on Easter Sunday. But how did we ever get an Easter Bunny to deliver chicken eggs?