Easter - Christian or Pagan in Origin? What is Easter really about?
By reading on, you will discover the truths about these practices that most people celebrate every Easter, without knowing what they are really celebrating or taking part of. Please note that we do not endorse all the information or the links relating to the information found below. Just 'eat the hay but spit out the sticks'. We would encourage you to form your own opinions. What Does The Word Easter Mean? Excerpt from: Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia The name Easter comes from Eostre, an ancient Anglo-Saxon goddess, originally of the dawn. In pagan times an annual spring festival was held in her honor. Some Easter customs have come from this and other pre-Christian spring festivals. Others come from the Passover feast of the Jews, observed in memory of their deliverance from Egypt." Excerpt from: Easton's Bible Dictionary Originally a Saxon word (Eostre), denoting a goddess of the Saxons, in honour of whom sacrifices were offered about the time of the Passover. Hence the name came to be given to the festival of the Resurrection of Christ, which occurred at the time of the Passover. In the early English versions this word was frequently used as the translation of the Greek pascha (the Passover). When the Authorized Version (1611) was formed, the word "passover" was used in all passages in which this word pascha occurred, except in Acts 12:4. In the Revised Version the proper word, "passover," is always used. According to the Venerable Bede, Christian historian and theologian, writing in the 8th century, the name is from the festival of Oestre (sometimes spelled "Estre"), pronounced "Eestruh", the Anglo-Saxon Goddess of Spring, Fertility and New Life. It is easy to see how "Eastre time" became "Easter time". Excerpt from: http://members.iinet.net.au/~gregga/ishtar.html The word "Easter" was derived from "Ishtar" the ancient pagan goddess of the Babylonian and Assyrian cultures, also known to the Phoenicians as "Astarte" - one of the titles of Beltis the queen of heaven - the wife of the sungod Baal. Both "Ishtar" and "Astarte" are pronounced the same as "Easter" today. The Easter Bunny
RABBITS are associated with the fertility of spring because of their ability to produce many young. Some parents tell their children that the Easter Rabbit, or Easter Bunny, brings Easter eggs. Interestingly rabbits don't even lay eggs! Excerpt from: http://www.got.net/~seasons/easter.html The
Egg-laying Rabbit. Since ancient
times, pagans have worshipped rabbits as sex and fertility gods, and have
looked upon them as symbols of lust, sexual vigor and reproduction. In the
traditions of Egypt and Persia there are such rabbit gods, and they were
particularly honored in the Springtime. Easter Eggs
EGGS, which represent new
life, have been a symbol of spring since ancient times. Christians adopted
the egg as an Easter symbol because of the relationship between Easter and
the renewal of life. But the Pagan connection here should not be
dismissed. Ishtar was the goddess of fertility and reproduction. Excerpt from: http://www.got.net/~seasons/easter.html Likewise, eggs have always been an important feature of pagan Springtime celebrations of new life, fertility, etc. The Orphic legend of the origin of the Universe has the Earth being hatched out of an enormous egg (similarity to the current evolutionary (pagan) theory of the "cosmic egg" origin of the Universe). In a broad range of pagan societies, from Egypt and Mesopotamia to the British Isles, brightly-decorated eggs were (and still are) presented as gifts and charms to bring (supernaturally) fertility and sexual success each Spring. Excerpt from: http://members.iinet.net.au/~gregga/eggs.html Dyed eggs figured in the rites of the ancient Babylonian mystery religions. Eggs were sacred to many ancient civilisations and formed an integral part of religious ceremonies in Egypt and the Orient. Dyed eggs were hung in Egyptian temples, and the egg was regarded as the emblem of regenerative life proceeding from the mouth of the great Egyptian god. Babylonian legends tell of an egg which fell from heaven to the Euphrates and hatching the Venus goddess Ishtar. Easter Lilies
Excerpt from: http://www.information-entertainment.com/easter.html EASTER LILIES- Without getting too graphic, the shape of an Easter lily is almost the shape of a male organ, another sign of fertility for the season when these flowers would bloom. Has no real merit in the Christian holy days. Hot Cross Buns
Excerpt from: http://www.information-entertainment.com/easter.html HOT CROSS BUNS- The pagan festival had the Saxon fertility Goddess sacrifice an ox and the horns in the form of a cross became a symbol of the season, carved into the breads. The cross represented the moon, the heavenly body associated with the Goddess, and its four quarters. The word boun, from which the word bun came, means sacred ox. As Christianity spread throughout Europe, buns were made in the traditional method, but the cross now symbolized the cruxifix of Jesus. Stories abound about the origins of the Hot Cross Bun. Yet, the common thread throughout is the symbolism of the "cross" of icing which adorns the bun itself. The symbol of the cross has been used by many cultures since before the birth of Christ. Some say the sign of the cross represented the four phases of the moon. When the early Christian church was converting the pagans, they adopted this pagan symbol and re-interpreted it as the sign of the Christian cross. Other say the sign represented the horns of a sacred ox. The word bun comes from the ancient word "boun," which was the word used to describe this sacred creature. Some say that the origin of Hot Cross Buns dates back to the 12th century, when an Angelican monk was said to have placed the sign of the cross on the buns, to honor Good Friday, a Christian holiday also known as the Day of the Cross. Supposedly, this pastry was the only thing permitted to enter the mouths of the faithful on this holy day. Easter Sunrise Services Excerpt from: http://members.iinet.net.au/~gregga/sunrise.html THE EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE was derived from the ancient Pagan rite where sun worshippers gathered at dawn with their faces facing the rising sun to worship the sun god Baal and his consort the Easter goddess. Excerpt from: http://www.information-entertainment.com/easter.html It was a pagan custom to welcome the sun God at the vernal equinox at sunrise. Christians use this early hour to attend church to greet the promise of the day for a hope of life in heaven. Chicks
Exerpt from: http://www.commonconnections.com/holidaycelebrations/easterfolklore.htm THE CHICK is another Easter symbol representing new life or rebirth. The Chick breaking out it's shell is also a symbol for Jesus' breaking free of his tomb! Cross
THE CRUCIFIX AND THE CROSS are present in churches and many homes throughout the year. A crucifix is a cross with an image of Jesus' body hanging from it. It symbolizes the sacrifice Jesus made by allowing Himself to be killed. An empty cross--that is, without the figure of Christ crucified--reminds Christians of Jesus' victory over death and the new life and hope this victory brings to believers. Lamb
THE LAMB is a particularly important Easter symbol in central and eastern European countries. It represents Jesus and relates His death to that of the lamb sacrificed on the first Passover. Christians traditionally refer to Jesus as "the Lamb of God." Many people serve lamb as part of the Easter feast. In many homes, a lamb-shaped cake decorates the table. Many Eastern Orthodox Christians hang pictures of the Easter lamb in their homes.
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