As is common with most Christians, the lamb is used for Resurrection Sunday, the day Christ was resurrected. Throughout the Old and New Testaments, the lamb was used to be a sacrifice of our sins. The lamb had to be without blemish. The anticipated Messiah was to be the ultimate and final sacrifice for our sins, and bridge the gap that divides man from God, a state of the human condition which began with the first original sin.
Non-messianic Jews do not recognize Jesus Christ as the Messiah, however Christians and Messianic Jews do.
Christ the Lamb Ssymbolism
When Christ died on the cross, he bore the sins of the world fulfilling the promise that God gave to the Jewish people saying he would send His son, as the ultimate sacrifice – like a lamb he would pay the price for our sins so we wouldn’t have to. The price being separation from God.
This is why there is incredible symbolic respect and honor given to the meal on Easter Sunday – Resurrection Sunday – by using lamb as the main meat.
How to Prepare Lamb
There are many ways to prepare lamb, and the Italians have no shortage of ideas. From basic lamb rubbed with olive oil to pieces of Romano cheese, garlic and parsley stuffed into the meat and then cooked, there are more ways than one to have lamb.
Lamb is also frequently seasoned with rosemary, and sometimes with mint.
The Italians are mostly a Catholic population and for that reason there are numerous traditions practiced starting even with Lent where you give up something you like for a short season.
From special Easter Pizzas to Italian Easter Bread, there are many ways to keep the celebration alive. And of course with the love of food the Italian possess, there is no lack of ideas from creative pastas to soups and pizzas.
I’ll be posting a few Easter recipes along with my own Easter bread recipe given by my husband’s mother. It is a simple recipe, but takes quite a while due to the slow baking and timing. I made it my first time last year and am planning on making it again this year and next.
Buona Pasqua (Happy Easter),
