Easter History

Many people know that Easter is a time when you and your friends go looking for easter eggs in the forest, pumpkin patch, or any other outdoor event, but how does that relate to Jesus ‘ coming back from the dead? To understand where we are now, we’ve got to take a look at the past.

Easter was originally a fertility celebration for the upcoming farming season. The name “Easter” comes from a pagan figure called Eastre or Eostre, who was known as the goddess of spring by the Saxons of Northern Europe. 

The myth notes that the goddess of the east, whose symbol was the hare (one of the symbols of fertility), held a festival during the spring equinox by the Saxons to honor her. These ideas later on became “urban legend” like beliefs through repetition rather than proof. 

Easter, when known as Eostre, was adopted by Christians. in Christian beliefs is known as the resurrection of Jesus Christ after the third day of his crucifixion. This is known as one of the oldest holidays for Christians and is the most important day of the church due to the significance of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

In Christian traditions, Easter Sunday is celebrated during the season of Lent, which is 40 days of fasting and repentance. This is followed by a 50-day season, Eastertide, that stretches from Easter to Pentecost. 

In recent times, commercialization and the pagan origins of Easter have caused many churches to label it as “Resurrection Sunday”. 

The commercialization of Easter has transformed the religious meaning behind it into a high- profit sales event. While the animals shown in the merch do have religious meaning behind them, as the bunny represents fertility and the chick represents new life, not much religious meaning is actually shown on the merch. 

Many believe it doesn’t matter the name, and it’s an important day to honor and celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ 

In modern day, it shows that Easter does have pagan origins due to the commercialization of the holiday. Families now focus on the egg hunts, candy, and the Easter bunny.