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Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

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    Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...



    A SCHOOL ditched the word Easter from its Easter Hat Parade to try to teach students about religious "tolerance".

    Bondi Public School principal Michael Jones wrote to parents about the decision, saying Easter was just one of many religious celebrations at this time of year.

    "As we are an inclusive community which celebrates our diverse range of cultures and beliefs, I have not called it an Easter Hat parade," Mr Jones wrote in the school's latest newsletter.

    "Many religious celebrations occur at this time of year but we want to include all students in any celebration at school. Teachers will talk to students about the different celebrations and the emphasis will be on tolerance and understanding."

    However the ruling on Friday's fundraising event was overturned yesterday, after parents from the school in Sydney's east expressed anger.
    What do you guys think of this? Obviously the way it's being reported is "PC police taking over" and "unAustralian" &c &c...

    I honestly don't have a problem with celebrating Easter in public school from a cultural perspective, as long as they don't bring religion into it.

    #2
    Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

    Firstly, I think it's a little dumb. Good intentions but... dumb.

    Secondly, I personally have no problem with the usage of Easter because... it doesn't hold that strong of a religious connection to me? It was another day where you get chocolate bunnies, decorate eggs, have lots of chocolate, eat marshmallow birds and all that.
    The only time I actually encountered the religious half of it was when I was visiting a friends place and her mother had palm leaves and made little crosses out of it. (Her parents are a cool, Catholic bunch, too.) That was last year. It was actually kind of interesting to see it. (Also when I went to the Easter play at a Church once. So, twice.
    I loved it as it was something me and my mother use to do nearly yearly and I kind of miss it, actually. Wouldn't mind seeing one again sometime. :C)
    Wild Witchy Dusk | TwitterMy Art Blog | My Deviantart

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      #3
      Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

      This type of thing is getting out of hand. Pretty soon all religions will be stripped of their fun traditions by removing title/names. I do not follow the christian religion but it bothers me to "relabel" any holiday because it "Might offend someone some were". We should all be able to tolerate and respect each others religious practices and beliefs. I find it particularly annoying that this seems to be applied more and more to the kids fun "and that how I tend to view it" holidays. I understand that it's not right to make children of other religions feel left out but there needs to be some other type of compromise other than sanitizing every holiday. Let's find a way to be more tolerant and inclusive in these festive occasions. If by "sharing" more of each others religious holiday practices especially among the children, then maybe this then could be a way to better understand each other and hopefully come to accept each others differences as well as similarity's.
      Last edited by Monk; 04 Apr 2011, 06:12.
      Gargoyles watch over me...I can hear them snicker in the dark.


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        #4
        Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

        Way... way out of hand. "Easter" is just a word. And it fairly accurately indicates, to anyone that wants to know, what's coming up.

        I had trouble stopping with referring to Spring Break as Easter Break, when I was in school. Nowadays, virtually nobody calls it Easter Break anymore. A couple generations later, Spring is much easier to swallow than Easter. I wonder how soon the word "Spring" will be on their hit list, for what IT represents.




        "Reason is not automatic. Those who deny it cannot be conquered by it." - Ayn Rand

        "Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth." - Marcus Aurelius

        "The very ink with which history is written is merely fluid prejudice." - Mark Twain

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          #5
          Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

          Well, in my head, if it isn't actually celebrate Easter, than using "Easter" in it's name is kind of pointless.

          They mean Spring, don't they? Unless this hat and raffle thing in some way involves Jesus' resurrection and has a Christian message?

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            #6
            Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

            Originally posted by Raphaeline View Post
            Well, in my head, if it isn't actually celebrate Easter, than using "Easter" in it's name is kind of pointless.

            They mean Spring, don't they? Unless this hat and raffle thing in some way involves Jesus' resurrection and has a Christian message?
            Given this is the southern hemisphere, no, they don't mean spring. They mean Easter, but the secular celebrations, not the religious ones. It's a weird tradition to have a hat parade at Easter over east.

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              #7
              Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

              Given that the word Easter (according the the Venerable Bede anyway) comes from the heathen goddess Eostre, I can't really see what all the fuss is about. Most of the traditions that have survived.... the Easter hare for example, are echoes of a much earlier pre-Christian tradition (probably Anglo-Saxon/.Germanic - since the English Easter and the German Oster don't have many parallels in Europe where the word for Easter is based upon 'paschal' or 'pasque').

              As for an Easter hat parade....count me in.
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                #8
                Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

                Here's another thought: Just a few miles west of town, here, is this dirt road with the name of Easter Ave. It's not a Christian road. It certainly doesn't have anything to do with the resurrection of Christ. It's just a name. Right?

                What's the difference?




                "Reason is not automatic. Those who deny it cannot be conquered by it." - Ayn Rand

                "Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth." - Marcus Aurelius

                "The very ink with which history is written is merely fluid prejudice." - Mark Twain

                "The only gossip I'm interested in is things from the Weekly World News - 'Woman's bra bursts, 11 injured'. That kind of thing." - Johnny Depp


                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

                  Originally posted by PharaohKatt View Post
                  Given this is the southern hemisphere, no, they don't mean spring.
                  Oh, right! *facepalm*

                  Originally posted by ChainLightning View Post
                  Here's another thought: Just a few miles west of town, here, is this dirt road with the name of Easter Ave. It's not a Christian road. It certainly doesn't have anything to do with the resurrection of Christ. It's just a name. Right?

                  What's the difference?
                  Well, words mean things.

                  Why call it Easter if it has nothing to do with Easter? In the case of naming something like a road, a person, a pet, etc. there's often a reason the name was chosen. I have no idea why Easter Ave. is named that, but take for instance Main St. - it's the main street. Roads, to use your example, are often named after people, or they have a theme - my grandparents lived in a suburb with tree names (Maple, Oak, etc.) and I recently visited a place where all the street names are named after Native American tribes. Maybe they had a sister named Easter, maybe whoever named it just liked Easter, or maybe it was the first word that came to mind when they threw up a sign. ... But now I'm way off track ^_^

                  Why name an event something that doesn't have anything to do with what actually happens? I might be wrong, especially considering I don't live there and don't know in what ways it differs from my community, but unless it has something to do with Easter, why call it an Easter event?

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                    #10
                    Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

                    I believe this is silly. In my school they called Christmas Christmas. It helped me grow up understanding that there are Christians in this world who have their own holidays and their own religion. And that they are human beings just like everyone else. Now that is something that we need to teach our children.
                    [4:82]

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                      #11
                      Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

                      I'm down with that! But from what I understand, it's not even a religious event. I suppose I just don't see what's Easter about it if they aren't actually celebrating Easter.

                      *shrug* Why fight to keep the name if it doesn't even apply?

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                        #12
                        Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

                        That logic is still flawed, though, Rafe. Seriously. If "Easter" is just a Christian religious observation, not only is this local(ish) road misnamed, so is the Easter holiday. What with Easter Baskets, Easter Eggs, Easter Bunnies, Easter Candy, etc, they shouldn't be having Easter Egg Hunts or Easter Hat Parades ANYWHERE because Easter is about Christ, not kids and candy, an equinox, fertility or even family get-togethers.

                        Easter is just a word. Etymology aside, it simply indicates to those that want to know the differentiation required for time off from school, a reason for dinner, an address, an excuse to sell (and buy) tons more candy (not unlike Hallowe'en). It's a secular holiday, regardless of how much people try and say it's Christian or how deeply they explain the origination of the observances, symbolism or timing. For those that don't follow a secular observation, they apply something else, often religious, to the DAY. Not the events, addresses or dress codes.




                        "Reason is not automatic. Those who deny it cannot be conquered by it." - Ayn Rand

                        "Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth." - Marcus Aurelius

                        "The very ink with which history is written is merely fluid prejudice." - Mark Twain

                        "The only gossip I'm interested in is things from the Weekly World News - 'Woman's bra bursts, 11 injured'. That kind of thing." - Johnny Depp


                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: Bondi Public School's ban on word Easter at Easter Hat Parade...

                          Thing is, even if they don't call it Easter, Easter is still what they're celebrating. It seems dishonest to have a celebration traditionally held for Easter to not be called such.
                          And the raffle is most likely a basket of Easter eggs.

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