Cadbury, maker of some of the most cherished Easter candies of all time, has decided to drop the word “Easter” from its Easter egg hunts in the UK in order to appeal to “people from all faiths and none.”
The Catholic Herald is reporting on the decision to rename the annual Easter egg hunts that take place at National Trust properties throughout Britain as “Cadbury’s Great British Egg Hunt.”
One of the first people to express outrage over the decision was Prime Minister Theresa May who called the decision “absolutely ridiculous.”
“I’m not just a vicar’s daughter – I’m a member of the National Trust as well. I think the stance they’ve taken is absolutely ridiculous and I don’t know what they’re thinking about,” May told ITV News.
“Easter’s very important. It’s important to me, it’s a very important festival for the Christian faith for millions across the world. So I think what the National Trust is doing is frankly just ridiculous.”
The National Trust, a conservation charity, was quick to defend itself, saying that it was “in no way downplaying the significance of Easter.”
The Trust then pointed the finger at Cadbury, which it says is responsible “for the branding and wording of our egg hunt campaign.”
Cadbury rushed to defend itself. “Each year, our Easter campaigns have a different name and this year our seasonal campaign is called the ‘Cadbury’s Great British Egg Hunt’,” the company said.
“It is clear to see that within our communications and marketing we clearly state the word Easter and include it in a number of promotional materials, including our website, where we do also promote our partnership with National Trust at this seasonal time of year. We invite people from all faiths and none to enjoy our seasonal treats, which can be found around Easter time.”
That didn’t appease a spokesman for the Church of England who weighed in by saying Cadbury and the National Trust were “airbrushing faith.”
The Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu, went so far as to say that calling the event the Cadbury Egg Hunt was like “spitting on the grave” of the company’s Christian founder, John Cadbury.
Twitter lit up with opinions about the affair, most of which dismissed it as nothing more than “fake news.”
One Catholic Labour MP named Conor McGinn tweeted that “Jesus wouldn’t care” about Cadbury’s decision.
@Baumflough had her own take on the affair. “I’m a Christian but tbh I can’t get worried over #cadburyegghunt acknowledging that for many, Easter is just about chocolate . . .”
This indifferent attitude is not surprising, given the religious makeup of the country. In 2014, the number of people in England espousing no religion reached 48.5 percent, surpassing for the first time the 43.8 percent who identify as Christian.
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