As a rule, most residents of Louisiana will commemorate and celebrate the traditions of Easter this weekend. It's a bittersweet time in the life of those who consider themselves to be Christians. There is a deep melancholy and reverence associated with the passing of Jesus on Good Friday. That is followed by the joyous celebration of the resurrection and the discovery of the empty tomb on Easter Sunday.

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Staff Photo
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Almost anytime you include "divine mysteries" as part of a holiday celebration you can expect a certain amount of superstition and tradition to go along with those celebrations. Easter and Good Friday are no different.

Why Shouldn't You Work in Your Garden on Good Friday?

For example, were you aware that you were not supposed to plant flowers, food crops, or any plant for that matter on the Earth on Good Friday? There is a Creole tradition that states "if one cuts open the ground on Good Friday, then Christ’s blood will flow into the tilled soil." Yet in other cultures, such as Ireland, planting potatoes on Good Friday is considered to be "good luck" and to "inspire divine intervention" for a good crop.

Sandie Clark via Unsplash.com
Sandie Clark via Unsplash.com
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Does It Always Rain on Good Friday?

There are many that believe that rain always falls on Good Friday between Noon and 3 pm. Why that specific day and that specific time? The information comes from The Bible and specifically Matthew 27:45. That passage references what was happening when Jesus died. It is said a"darkness came upon the Earth" during those fateful hours.

In the eyes of modern man, this came to be interpreted as darkness from rain or storm clouds.  However, a quick check of meteorological data suggests that this "myth" about rain on Good Friday does not check out. But for Good Friday 2024, it will probably not be raining at all.

Norbert Toth via Unsplash.com
Norbert Toth via Unsplash.com
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If It Rains on Easter it Will Rain the Next Seven Sundays?

There is also a bit of folklore related to rain on Easter Sunday. The tradition states that if it rains on Easter Sunday it will rain for the next seven Sundays. Scientific data has once again blown this idea out of the water but it is pretty easy to see how the "myth" could have gotten started.

Easter happens in spring and scattered showers of the pop-up variety become more plentiful as the weather gets warmers, so there is at least some plausibility in the origin of this bit of folklore.

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There is also a bit of "old farmers" wisdom that states if it rains enough to wet a pocket handkerchief on Easter Sunday it will be a good crop year. Again, there is plausibility in this one too. A soaking rain as most crops are going into the ground is not a bad thing, so again it's easy to understand how this addendum to the "rain on Easter" myth go started.

As for us, at least this Easter weekend we will likely see rain and maybe some strong storms too. As long as we don't see Jim Cantore, we'll count our blessings that the weather is exactly what we need it to be.

10 Commandments of Gumbo

Gallery Credit: Jude Walker

 

 

 

 

 

 

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