Okay, this is truly wierd:



"Christian churches throughout the nation have tried in a variety of ways to put our focus back on Jesus, especially around Christmas and Easter. . . But somehow, secular images for those seasons -- Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny -- still thrive. . . The Assembly of God Church in Glassport, Pa., a community of 5,000 people 8 miles south of Pittsburgh, tried a new tactic last year that wasn't noticed until it was tried again last weekend. The youth minister, Patty Bickerton, and church members produced and performed in a play that was open to the public. It was to be followed by a chance for young children to break open 4,000 plastic eggs that contained not only candy, but also certificates for dinners and even bicycles. . . Both sides agree that various performers explained to the Easter Bunny the death of Jesus and what he endured, using streamers to portray how Jesus was whipped, and either plastic eggs or something else to depict stoning. From there, the stories differ a bit. Non-church members called the performance disturbing to smaller children, who cried when they saw the bunny being "whipped" and eggs trampled or thrown at him. Then, they said, performers shouted that there is no Easter Bunny. . . Church members, however, said the whole thing was overblown. They said the bunny was not whipped or chased. The performance simply showed how Jesus was crucified. Only about a dozen children were upset, they said. The rest understood it to be a play."



They whipped the freaking Easter Bunny? Or did they crucify him? Either way, way to sell the story of the redemptive love of Christ to toddlers. I'm sure that's one lesson that will stick with them through years of therapy.