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Health & Fitness

Blessing of Food Baskets for Easter

Area churches offered a blessing of Easter foods on Holy Saturday.

At St. Hedwig Catholc Church, the parish offered two sessions of the Blessing of Easter Food on Holy Saturday to accommodate as many of the faithful as possible. The Polish-Americans appreciate this blessing more than most, and they have plenty of traditions to go along with it. The first time I attended, I discovered that the blessing is done completely in Polish (although the priest did translate one portion for those who spoke "only English"), and I realized that my usual collection of foods was not quite right. So last year I did some research on www.polishtraditions.net. 

This blessing is a tradition dear to the hearts of many Polish families. As a token of their gratitude to God for all his gifts, they have the food of their table sanctified with the hope that spring will also be blessed by God's goodness and mercy. Baskets containing a sampling of Easter foods are brought to church in a basket lined with white linen or a lace napkin and decorated with sprigs of boxwood, the typical Easter evergreen. The blessed foods include eggs, sausage (kielbasa) or ham, paschal lamb (made of butter, cake or even plaster), horseradish or pepper, salt, bread, vinegar and wine.

Strictly speaking, pisanki refers only to Easter eggs decorated with the molten-wax technique. Various regions of Poland have developed designs of their own, which include floral and geometric patterns, typical Easter motifs like the Lamb, Cross and pussy willows, the greeting "Wesolego Allelujah," or simply "Allelujah" and the current year.

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Many American Poles design eggs with the names of their friends written on them and exchange them during Easter visits.

After Mass on Easter Sunday, families head home to feast on foods that they have not eaten much of during Lent. Cold dishes predominate like ham, kielbasa, roast meats, pasztat (pate), hard-boiled eggs in various sauces, salads, beet and horseradish relish, followed by holiday cakes like babka.

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Before Easter breakfast begins, members of the family share wedges of blessed Easter eggs and exchange best wishes in much the same way as oplatek is shared on Christmas Eve.

This year I headed to St. Hedwig with a slightly Americanized basket of the traditional food. I brought my contributions to my parents' Easter dinner as well as some of the foods mentioned above. My basket one of the largest because I didn't exactly bring a "sampling" of my items. Nor was it anywhere near as lovely as those of the ones prepared by the Polish-speaking people in the crowd of parishoners that gathered for the ceremony at 10:00am.

Fr. Rev. Eugene Kotlinski, C.M., pastor of St. Mary and St. Hedwig Roman Catholic Churches in Naugatuck, came in and everyone went to the back of the church to stand near their basket on one of the four tables set up. Many of the young children were dressed in their Easter outfits. 

The pastor welcomed us all in Polish and recited the blessing in his native tongue, but assured the English speakers that their basket would indeed by blessed as well. This was especially appreciated by me, since my Polish is limited to the word for grandmother "babcia," taught to me by former Mayor Joan Taf. I wasn't the only one who took photos during the blessing. Fr. Eugene ended by wishing everyone a Blessed Easter.

Later in the morning at St. Vincent Ferrer, Fr. Kevin Forsyth blessed the baskets of a few families in the sanctuary of the already decorated church. Afterwards he headed outside to enjoy the Easter egg hunt on the front lawn of the church for the youngest members of the parish.



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