New Delhi, April 5
The Christian community celebrated Easter on Sunday with prayers and sumptuous meals, with police providing protection to all major congregations.

While some Christians attended the Easter vigil a day earlier, large numbers of people took part in the morning mass in churches all across the city.

Special Commissioner of Police Deepak Mishra said the force had been told to maintain "a strict vigil" at all the churches in the city to avoid any untoward incident.

"We have deployed adequate officials and armed police personnel at every church. A PCR van has been stationed outside many churches," Mishra told IANS.

M.S. Stanislaus, secretary of the Federation of Catholic Association, said the recent attacks on some churches here made the government step up security outside Christian institutions.

"Before Easter a delegation spoke to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi. Now onward security will be deployed outside every church on every Christian festival," Stanislaus told IANS.

But Rev. Mohit Hitter of St. James Church near Kashmere Gate, one of the oldest churches in the capital, said there was no link to the police deployment on Sunday to the recent acts of vandalism.

"Every year we have such security on festivals like Christmas, Good Friday and Easter," he told IANS.

A community member of St. James Church said: "Of course the increased security at churches is in the backdrop of the recent attacks on churches and Christian schools.

"The deployment shows that the government is concerned about the safety issues of Christians."

Rev. Hitter explained the significance of Easter.

"Easter is the day when Jesus rose up from the dead. We call it his resurrection and believe that all those who die one day will be resurrected," he said.

Speaking about the festival, 27-year-old John Mathew said people celebrate it by making and distributing chocolates to children. "The egg today holds great significance as it signifies life."

Jennifer Richards, 32, said Easter holds a great message to the people. "This day, Jesus rose from the dead. It tells us that we should not be bogged down by challenges in life."

Kerala Christians celebrate Easter

Christians in Kerala visited churches on Sunday to attend the Easter mass and returned homes for the sumptuous Easter breakfast.

While some people went to churches for a pre-sunrise Easter mass, others turned up after sunrise.

The Easter service ends in most churches when the priest offers a piece of cake. At some places, a teaspoon of wine is first served.

Starting from Palm Sunday last week, Christians, who form nearly a quarter of Kerala's 33 million people, were busy with rituals and festivities associated with the Holy Week (also known as Passion Week), which ended with Sunday's morning mass.

"One of the main reasons why there was a lot of interest being generated in observing the Easter lent is when devotees used to turn pure vegetarian in yesteryears, it was symbolic and Jesus resurrection was like giving new hopes in our life.

"But today, I doubt, if it has become, more of a tool to streamline one's health and less of divinity," said 75-year-old Mariamma John, a homemaker.

After the mass, the most important event of the day is the family getting together for breakfast.

The menu is mostly traditional -- appam (rice flour mixed with toddy), chicken stew and beef roast. At some places, duck is the important non-vegetarian dish. There are also steamed bananas, egg roast and cake.

Time being a major constraint for many, hotels and resorts offer a wide variety of Easter delicacies. Some families prefer to spend time at these places after the Easter mass.