With coronavirus impacting people the world over, there couldn’t be a better time for Easter – with its message of hope, rebirth and new beginnings.
Even for communities who don’t observe the religious parts of Easter, there are aspects we can all enjoy, including chocolate, a bank holiday and hot cross buns.
What is the significance of eating a hot cross bun during Easter?
When should you eat hot cross buns?
A hot cross bun is a sweet bun made with spices and currants or raisins, marked with a cross on the top.
They are traditionally eaten on Good Friday, but the reason why can differ depending on school of thought.
Some believe the eating of hot cross buns on Good Friday marks the end of Lent.
Because they are made with dairy products – traditionally forbidden during Lent – the hot cross bun is a welcome treat for those who have passed the 40 days of sacrifice and fasting.
However, some Christians will eat hot cross buns on Good Friday, the day of Jesus’ crucifixion, as a reminder of the sacrifices he made for them.
The cross on the bun represents the crucifix, and the spices in ingredients represent the spices that would’ve been used in his embalming.
What is the history of the hot cross bun?
For such a small bun, it has a lot of history baked in.
Around 1592, during the reign of Elizabeth I, she made it forbidden to sell hot cross buns and other spiced breads, except at burials, on Good Friday, or at Christmas.
If you broke her decree, then you were forced to give all of your buns to the poor.
The first written record of hot cross buns comes from Poor Robin’s Almanack – an annual publication listing events and other data for the year – in 1733.
The passage had it that a street crier said ‘Good Friday comes this month, the old woman runs. With one or two a penny hot cross buns.’
The hot cross bun is also thought to have Pagan traditions, as it was used as a representation of the sun wheel used during the spring equinox to honour Goddess Oster.
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/04/10/eat-hot-cross-buns-easter-12537634/?ITO=squid
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