The
only Christian holiday with a date based on Earth's seasons
Easter -
Its origins and relationship to Pagans and Passover
by Arthur
Levin
I'm confused
about Easter, how about you? There seems to be much scholarly
discourse that links the Christian tradition of Easter to the Jewish
tradition of Passover and to certain Pagan rituals and beliefs that
came before them. There is even some dispute over the actual date of
Christ's death and resurrection, but the faith that each of us hold
in our hearts cannot be in dispute. This I believe.
The name
Easter may have first been associated with an ancient Goddess, The
Venerable Bede, (672-735). She was the mother Goddess of the Saxon
people in Northern Europe who was known as Eastra.
Many Pagan
religions in the Mediterranean area had a major seasonal day of
religious celebration following the Spring Equinox. Cybele, the
Phrygian fertility goddess had a fictional consort named Attis who
was believed to have been born in a virgin birth and to have died
and been resurrected each year during the March 22 to March 25th
period around 200 B.C. Wherever Christian worship of Jesus and Pagan
worship of Attis were active in the same area at around the same
time, Christians and Pagans used to quarrel about which of their
gods was the true one.
Some religious
historians believe that the death and resurrection legends were
first associated with Attis many centuries before the birth of
Christ. One theory is that they were simply grafted onto stories of
Jesus' in order to make Christian theology more acceptable to
Pagans.
My own opinion
is that we shouldn't worry too much about what the experts say. I
think its what you feel in your heart and soul that counts at this
holy time of year. I think it's your family traditions, your
personal beliefs, and the religious rituals you have grown up with
that really matter.
Easter has
Judeo-Christian origins. The life of Jesus Christ as recorded in the
gospels includes the Christian version of this theme. Good Friday is
observed in remembrance of Jesus' execution by an occupying Roman
army, and his burial in a cave. Easter Sunday is the date when a
group of his female followers first noticed that the tomb was empty,
and concluded that he had been resurrected. The timing of the
Christian celebration of Easter is linked to the Jewish celebration
of Passover. The name Passover was derived from the angel of death
passing over homes of Jews, which were marked, with the blood of a
lamb thus sparing the first born of such homes. Liberal Theologians
link Passover to ancient pre-Israelite Pagan rituals practiced by
wandering Semitic shepherds in celebration of an agricultural
harvest using unleavened bread.
Passover was
the most important feast of the Jewish calendar, celebrated around
the 22nd of March. The Synoptic gospels of Mark, Mathew, and Luke
stated that Jesus' last supper was a Seder or Passover celebration.
Most
Christians believe that Jesus Christ was executed and buried just
before the beginning of Passover on Friday evening. A minority
believes that the execution occurred on a Wednesday or Thursday.
Some liberal Christians have suggested that the early Christian
Church arbitrarily selected Passover as the time thus allowing them
to link the most important religious days in Judaism and
Christianity.
Whatever your
personal beliefs are, whatever the actual dates are, don't let the
skeptics amongst us deter you from celebrating your religious
beliefs and traditions. Don't let those of little faith keep you
from believing.
Easter is a
Christian Festival, which celebrates Christ's Resurrection. Today
eggs are decorated and exchanged with friends and family to
commemorate the unification of all God's children. In ancient times
eggs were exchanged to symbolize the continuance of life after
death. Early Christianity is thought to have adopted the idea and
incorporated it into their Easter celebration. Let the celebration
continue.
Credits and
References: Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance Author: B.A.
Robinson The Pagan Origins of Easter The Christian Origins of Easter
Updated 2006 - Mar - 29
© Copyright Arthur Levine. About
the author: Arthur Levine is the author of the Search For God
Stories and The Magic of Faith. To read some of the stories that
will enable you to discover new evidence of God's existence and how
we got here for yourself, access
http://www.faith123.com. To see more of his articles or to
become a writer yourself, check out
http://www.xomba.com/referral/77778458
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