April 12, 2019
T he C olumbia P ress
Senior Moments
with Emma Edwards
Eggs, baskets and other trivia
I’d promised to talk about
the puzzle of when Easter
arrives and, since Sunday is
Palm Sunday, I’d better get
with it.
But first, why do we call
the Sunday before Easter
Palm Sunday?
Be ready grandmas and
grandpas; you will be asked
that question.
The simplest explanation
is from the Bible, Matthew
21:1-9 and Revelation 7:9.
“At the end of the Bible,
people from every nation
raise palm branches to hon-
or Jesus,” according to Wiki-
pedia. “Palm Sunday com-
memorates the entrance of
Jesus into Jerusalem, when
palm branches were placed
in his path, before his arrest
on Holy Thursday and his
crucifixion on Good Friday.”
When we were in a church
in Red Bluff, Calif., I remem-
ber with awe that when we
got to church on Palm Sun-
day there were no flowers.
There were palm branches
everywhere, along with oth-
er greenery.
We knew that on Easter
Sunday the church would be
bursting with blooms, flow-
ers everywhere! Thinking
about the meanings of both
days, I understood!
Easter can fall anywhere
between March 22 and April
25 (in 2008, Easter was on
March 23 and won’t be on
that date again until 2160).
This year, it’s on April 21.
Last year, Easter was on
April 1. Some of us had fun
with that one as it gave us
an opportunity to share that
Good Friday (the death of
Jesus) and Easter (the res-
urrection of Jesus) was no
April Fool’s joke and that it
really, really happened so
that we could enjoy eternal
life.
The official, more simple
definition of Western Easter
is that it takes place on the
first Sunday after the first
full moon on or after the ver-
nal equinox.
I went to a children’s site
and gleaned some interest-
ing facts about Easter.
It is a Christian holiday
and its name is derived from
a “goddess” named Eastre.
She was the symbol of the
rabbit and the egg.
From this site, used pri-
marily by school teachers,
I learned that many of the
early Christians used to ex-
change red eggs to symbol-
ize the death and resurrec-
tion of Jesus.
Facts, such as the myth of
the Easter Bunny, date to
an old German tale about a
woman who used to deco-
rate eggs and leave them for
her children to find.
The story was based in a
time when famine plagued
the land; the eggs were con-
sidered a valuable and sur-
prising gift.
As her children found the
eggs, according to the leg-
end, they saw a bunny hop-
ping away and thought the
bunny had left the eggs for
them.
Easter baskets were de-
signed to look like a bird’s
nest with eggs in them. From
very early times, the egg has
been considered a symbol of
rebirth.
As we close, I simply can-
not resist sharing this lit-
tle riddle with you: Where
does the Easter Bunny get
his eggs? From eggplants, of
course!
7
Easter: Churches, groups plan events this week
Continued from Page 1
Violinist Kim
Angelis, left, and
soprano Bereniece
Jones-Centeno,
below, will partic-
ipate in Pioneer
Presbyterian’s
Palm Sunday ser-
vice. Special music
also will be featured
there on Easter
Sunday.
ty Center, 170 S.W. Third St.
Breakfast includes all-you-can-
eat pancakes, plus sausage, eggs
and beverages. Cost is $5 for
those 12 and older, $3 for ages
6 to 11, and $1 for those 5 and
younger. All proceeds benefit
Warrenton Community Center.
s unday , a Pril 14
• Palm Sunday service, 10 a.m.,
Pioneer Presbyterian Church,
3332 Patriot Way, Warrenton.
The service will celebrate the
humble, yet triumphant final en-
try of Jesus into Jerusalem with
music by violinist and composer
Kim Angelis, soprano Bereniece
Jones-Centeno and pianist Jane
McGeehan. The service includes
Angelis’ composition, “My Soul
Magnifies the Lord,” based on
the Magnificat, which premiered
at her “Music at Pioneer” con-
cert last December.
• Communion lunch, 12:30 p.m.,
Calvary Assembly of God, 1365
S. Main Ave., Warrenton. Par-
ticipants should bring a favorite
side dish or dessert.
• The clay-animation movie
“Miracle Maker,” which tells
the story of Jesus, will be shown
at 6 p.m. at Bethany Lutheran
Church, 451 34th St., Astoria.
The public is invited to be-
gin Holy Week watching this
reminder of what Jesus came to
do.
t hursday , a Pril 18
• Simple soup supper, followed
by a traditional service of scrip-
ture, prayer and foot-washing,
5 p.m., Pioneer Presbyterian
Church, 3332 Patriot Way, War-
renton. The service concludes
by stripping the chapel of all
decoration in anticipation of the
passion and crucifixion of Jesus.
• Maundy Thursday communion
service, 7 p.m., Bethany Luther-
an Church, 451 34th St., Astoria.
• Good Friday Service with
worship, scripture reading and
communion, 7 p.m. Thursday
(yes, Thursday), Coastline Chris-
tian Fellowship, 89386 Highway
202, Astoria.
f riday , a Pril 19
• Good Friday service, 7 p.m.,
Courtesy Pioneer
Presbyterian Church
Christian Church of Warrenton,
1376 S.E. Anchor Ave.
s aturday , a Pril 20
• Barbecue with children’s Eas-
ter egg hunt, noon, First Baptist
Church of Warrenton, 30 N.E.
First St.
• Community egg hunt and
visit with Easter Bunny, 10 a.m.,
Broadway Park, 1300 Broadway
St., Seaside.
s unday , a Pril 21
• Easter sunrise service, 6:30
a.m., and Easter celebration
with special music, 11 a.m., First
Baptist Church of Warrenton, 30
N.E. First St.
• Community sunrise service, 7
a.m., Astoria Column.
• Easter breakfast, 9:15 a.m.,
followed by an Easter service at
10 a.m., Lighthouse Christian,
88786 Dellmoor Loop. An Easter
egg hunt follows the service.
• Easter celebration service, 9
a.m. and 10:30 a.m., Christian
Church of Warrenton, 1376 S.E.
Anchor Ave.
• Easter celebration with special
music by pianists Jane Mc-
Geehan and Kaisa Liljenwall,
vocalists Cheryl Capellen, Terry
Arnall and Wedgie Winchester,
10 a.m., Pioneer Presbyterian
Church, 3332 Patriot Way.
• Easter at the Liberty Theatre
sponsored by New Life Christian
Church, 10 a.m., 1203 Commer-
cial St., Astoria. Child care for
infants through age 5.
• Resurrection celebration with
special musical guests “The
Morning Tide,” 10 a.m., Coast-
line Christian Fellowship, 89386
Highway 202, Astoria. Baptisms
will follow the service.
• Easter services, 9 a.m. and
10:45 a.m., North Coast Family
Fellowship, 2245 N. Wahanna
Road, Seaside.
Senior lunch menu
Monday, April 15: Parmesan chicken, mashed potatoes and
gravy, green beans, mixed greens, berry trifle.
Thursday, April 18: Ham, sweet potatoes, asparagus, tomato
soup, cherry pie.
The Warrenton senior lunch program is at noon (doors
open at 10:30 a.m.) Mondays and Thursdays at Warrenton
Community Center, 170 SW Third St. Suggested donation is
$6 for ages 55 and older; $7 for those younger. For more
information, call 503-861-3502.