Peeps, Bunnies and Eggs. Go through an average Easter section in a store at this time of year and these are what you will see. Okay, so Easter has to do with Spring, was originally a celebration of the Vernal Equinox, and predates the life of Christ. Eggs and little chicks give evidence of new life, and the Easter Bunny came to the American colonies in the eighteenth century from Germany. Migrants brought their tradition of an egg-laying hare known as the Osterhase. But they have all distracted us from the significance of the most important events in history?
The name Easter appears only once in an English translation of the Bible, and then it is a mistranslation. In the King James version of the book of Acts we read that after Herod had the Apostle James killed he arrested Peter and when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.[i] The early English translators mistakenly took the Greek word pascha which was properly translated elsewhere as Passover and called it Easter.
There are varied theories regarding the origins of the English word. Some say it is derived from Astarte, the Chaldean goddess of heaven. Writing of its emergence into the English language Vine writes The term ‘Easter’ is not of Christian origin. It is another form of Astarte, one of the titles of the Chaldean goddess, the queen of heaven. The festival of Pasch held by Christians in post-apostolic times was a continuation of the Jewish feast . . . From this Pasch the pagan festival of ‘Easter’ was quite distinct and was introduced into the apostate Western religion, as part of the attempt to adapt pagan festivals to Christianity.[ii]
The 8th century Anglo-Saxon monk known as the Venerable Bede considered that Easter came from Eostre the Saxon goddess of fertility, however modern consensus has landed on Eostarum the old high German word for the dawning of the day as the truer origin of the English word.
It should not however surprise us that, regardless of the origin of the word, its multiple associations with pagan practices ensure Easter is celebrated in many different ways around the world. Even though the death and resurrection of Jesus may play a part, many rituals and festivals contain multiple elements that distract from truth.
In Norway, the tradition of Påskekrims or Easter Crime is unique. No other nation celebrates the sacred holiday by obsessing about murders and violence. A visitor would likely see more crime novels in shop windows than chocolate bunnies or Easter story books.
Meanwhile, across the Atlantic in Guatemala, the Antigua Easter festival is the largest in the world. In common with many nations of the Roman Catholic tradition Christian statuary is paraded solemnly through the streets, and in this case across intricate colored patterns in sand and sawdust.
Nonetheless, there are many who celebrate the death and resurrection of our Lord as a reminder of what God in Christ has done for us. Through these profound events He offers forgiveness for our sins and the opportunity for a new life for all who believe in Him.
But more than that, hidden behind all the commercial trappings, and religious ceremony, is found the desire expressed by Paul to the church in Philippi, when he said: For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ … that I may know Him and the power of his resurrection.[iii]
How this broken world needs to know that power in this day and age. Only the resurrection power of Jesus Christ can bring reconciliation to the peoples of Russia and Ukraine, and of Israel and Palestine. Only the power of a new life in Christ can offer real hope to the millions on the refugee trails of the displaced around the world. Only the victory of the Cross and an empty tomb, offers renewal to lives shattered by both the economic mills of the modern world, and the depredations of extreme violence that so frequently cover our media.
How we all need to know His resurrection power in our lives, in our ministries and in our churches. That His Kingdom may come to all!
[i] Acts 12:4 KJV
[ii] W.E.Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (1985), Pub. Thomas Nelson Inc. Entry for “Easter”
[iii] Phil 3:8,10 ESV
THE FULLER REPORT 