Is Easter a Pagan Holiday, and Should Christians Celebrate It?
Edited 10 April 2022, added a video at the end that addresses some of these issues and more.
It is interesting that some mockers will ridicule Christians by saying, "You celebrate Easter! That's a pagan holiday!" The joke is on them because they are simply parroting bad information that conflicts with scholarly research.
Unfortunately, some Christians also believe this pagan origins stuff; there are even modern Christian sources (such as Got Question.org) that pass along erroneous information. It is sad when some Christians will use the same bad sources as misotheists in their efforts to scold other Christians for celebrating Easter. Ignorance of actual history is bad enough, but looking down on brethren in Christ out of pride and out of disdain for the Bible that they claim to believe is far worse. Even if the claims that the origin of the word "Easter" and the celebration time were of pagan origins were true, that does not excuse their trampling of Scriptures and having judgmental attitudes (see Romans 14.5-13).
As we shall see, saying "Happy Easter" is not evil, nor is it promoting a mostly-forgotten Mesopotamian goddess. Substituting the phrase "Resurrection Sunday" because you detest the word Easter is a wrong motive. However, I am not happy with the word Easter because of the connotations involving pastel eggs, Peter Cottontail and sickly-sweet marshmallow candies. I prefer using the word "Resurrection" so people can know where I stand. But I won't tell others that they must use that term or forbid them from referring to Easter.
"But we're not commanded to celebrate Easter. Or Christmas!"
So? We do a lot of things we're not commanded to do. Nor are we commanded not to celebrate. Again, see Romans 14.5-13. Also, Jesus celebrated Hanukkah, the Feast of Dedication, see John 10:22-23. This kind of "logic" of forbidding what is not commanded not only violates our liberty according to Scripture, but tells us that God in the flesh was sinning!
Thanks for hearing me out. Now, for some articles that I think are fascinating as well as useful.
It is interesting that some mockers will ridicule Christians by saying, "You celebrate Easter! That's a pagan holiday!" The joke is on them because they are simply parroting bad information that conflicts with scholarly research.
Unfortunately, some Christians also believe this pagan origins stuff; there are even modern Christian sources (such as Got Question.org) that pass along erroneous information. It is sad when some Christians will use the same bad sources as misotheists in their efforts to scold other Christians for celebrating Easter. Ignorance of actual history is bad enough, but looking down on brethren in Christ out of pride and out of disdain for the Bible that they claim to believe is far worse. Even if the claims that the origin of the word "Easter" and the celebration time were of pagan origins were true, that does not excuse their trampling of Scriptures and having judgmental attitudes (see Romans 14.5-13).
As we shall see, saying "Happy Easter" is not evil, nor is it promoting a mostly-forgotten Mesopotamian goddess. Substituting the phrase "Resurrection Sunday" because you detest the word Easter is a wrong motive. However, I am not happy with the word Easter because of the connotations involving pastel eggs, Peter Cottontail and sickly-sweet marshmallow candies. I prefer using the word "Resurrection" so people can know where I stand. But I won't tell others that they must use that term or forbid them from referring to Easter.
"But we're not commanded to celebrate Easter. Or Christmas!"
So? We do a lot of things we're not commanded to do. Nor are we commanded not to celebrate. Again, see Romans 14.5-13. Also, Jesus celebrated Hanukkah, the Feast of Dedication, see John 10:22-23. This kind of "logic" of forbidding what is not commanded not only violates our liberty according to Scripture, but tells us that God in the flesh was sinning!
Thanks for hearing me out. Now, for some articles that I think are fascinating as well as useful.
- Easter and Good Friday: questions and answers — Does Easter have a pagan derivation? Was Jesus really crucified on a Friday?
- Easter: Of Pagan Origins?
- Are the Symbols and Customs of Easter of Pagan Origin?
- Is the Name “Easter” of Pagan Origin?
- Is the Date of Easter of Pagan Origin?
- To Celebrate or Not to Celebrate Easter: That Wasn’t the Question
- And from an atheist's perspective where he takes on his feral fellow travelers: "Easter, Ishtar, Eostre and Eggs".