Knowing about Easter is a key to understanding Western culture

Influence of Christianity strong, says Nicholas Read.

I have a good friend, a man with a master's degree, who once asked me why we celebrate Easter. He knew it had something to do with Christ's Crucifixion, but not much else. I also should say his origins are European. You'll understand why that matters presently.

At the time, he was in his late 30s, which made his question even more startling. How could a man with a postgraduate degree who had lived almost 40 years in Canada not know why we celebrate Easter? When I asked, he said religion played no part in his upbringing so, needless to say, he never went to church.

When I asked another friend, about five years older, if he knew why we celebrate Easter, he said yes. “How?” I asked, since he never went to church either. From watching 1950s movie epics like King of Kings and The Robe on TV, he said.

Despite my atheism, I learned the old-fashioned way. I went to Sunday school until I was age 12, so I knew all about Pontius Pilate and Mary Magdalene and King Herod and Judas Iscariot. I knew when and why Christ said, “Forgive them Father for they know not what they do.” And I knew about the miracle of his resurrection and Thomas' doubts.

I no longer believe any of that, but billions of people do. More and more of them live in Africa, but originally Christianity, despite its Middle Eastern origins, was primarily a European belief, which is why I mentioned my friend's background. If he were a Hindu or Muslim, his question wouldn't have surprised me.

According to a 2021 Statistics Canada census, 19.3 million people, or 53.3 per cent of Canadians, identify as Christian, down from 77.1 per cent in 2001. Muslims represent 4.9 per cent of the population, Hindus 2.3 per cent, Sikhs 2.1 per cent and Jews 1.4 per cent.

All of us should know why people celebrate ... regardless of if and how we do.

But about 12.6 million people, or just over 33 per cent, reported no religious affiliation at all. That doesn't mean they're atheists like me, only that organized religion doesn't figure in their lives. Thus they may or may not know the story of Easter, but if they celebrate it, it's probably with chocolate eggs, not hymns of praise.

I'm the first person to say whether one believes in God is entirely their own business. Never mind that one of the tenets of Christianity is to “spread the word." If people want to know, they'll ask. Otherwise, lay off.

But I do believe, articles of faith aside, that a basic knowledge of the story of Christianity is essential to being an educated person in a western nation like Canada. In other words, all of us should know why people celebrate Easter — and Christmas — regardless of if and how we do.

Because without that basic knowledge, how are we to understand so much of Western literature, art, music, history and even politics? The religious right is a potent force in our neighbour to the south. It can help decide many of that country's elections. Vladimir Putin relies heavily on the Russian Orthodox Church to give his war on Ukraine legitimacy. At the same time, Christianity can move other people to acts of tremendous sacrifice and compassion. Martin Luther King was a preacher. So the least we can do is have some understanding of what Christianity says and teaches.

Or, on a much lighter but still pertinent note, if you go on a tour of Europe, what are you going to get out of all those magnificent churches, art galleries, concert halls and museums if you've never heard of Mary, John and Peter?

But in an increasingly secular Western world, how do we make that happen? I admit I don't know. In Canada, schools are required to teach some form of religious education, but there is no national curriculum for it. It's left to local authorities to decide how much and what kind of religious education pupils receive.

Again, this isn't about the merits of Christianity — a subject far beyond the scope of this column. Nor is it about Easter per se. It's about recognizing Christianity as one of the most important and influential forces in all Western history, and therefore something worth knowing about.

But how many people do?