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Easter

Hymn: Christ the Lord is Risen today
Christ the Lord
is risen today

The first Holy Day celebrated by the Christian church was Easter.  Easter commemorates the Resurrection of Christ.  The word comes from the Old English "easter" or "eastre", a festival of spring.  Jesus had been crucified, then buried.  But he was gone -- he had arisen from the tomb and death.  He was resurrected.  He was alive!

For many Christians, the Easter celebration continues for 50 days, up to and including Pentecost. In fact, that period is called "Eastertide".

Some churches pass out palm-frond crosses on Easter.

The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus

Related songs

Selecting the official day

When Christians first started meeting together, every Sunday was like Easter to them. They were very excited about the idea of Jesus coming back from the dead.  Eventually they picked one day to celebrate Easter in a joyous fashion.

But Christians who came from a Jewish background continued to celebrate Easter around the Passover, on a Thursday evening, while Gentile Christians, whose background did not include Passover, insisted that Easter should be celebrated on a Sunday.

Also, as more and more pagans became Christians, they wanted to do something on March 21, the first day of spring.  That was when they had been used to going to celebrations for various fertility gods. So they thought it was reasonable to adopt March 21 as the day to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.

The early Christians were very emotional about their views of the Easter celebrations.  Attempts to work out a compromise ended in fights. This concerned the Roman Emperor Constantine. So he summoned religious leaders for a meeting, the Council of Nicea, to settle this dispute. The council of Nicea decided that Easter would henceforth be celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the first day of spring (the vernal equinox).  Some sources, though, say that the council couldn't decide and that shortly after the council, Constantine sent a letter to all Christian leaders not present at council.  The letter encouraged a uniform celebration of Easter that ignored the Jewish calendar (and its relation to Passover), on the basis that Jews had largely rejected Christ.

Eastern and Western churches today use different calendars.  Eastern churches follow the Julian calendar, the Western churches its correction by Pope Gregory XIII. Some years there may be as much as a month's difference in the time of celebration.

Starting in the 1970s, the United Nations, the Vatican Council, and the World Council of Churches have all discussed setting one international date for Easter as one part of creating a common international calendar.  Among those preferring a fixed date for the observance of Easter, the second Sunday in April has wide support.

Symbols of Easter

Easter lamb

The Easter lamp (Passover Lamb or Paschal lamb), comes from the Jewish Passover. Also, Christ was called "the Lamb of God", since he died for our sins... as a sacrifice... in place of ourselves, the offending sinners.  John the Baptist described Jesus as the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29).  Some families have a tradition of serving lamb at their Easter dinner.

Baby chicks

Baby chicks are another Easter Symbol that represents new life or being reborn. The little chick breaking out it's shell is a symbol for Jesus' resurrection -- the rock was rolled away and Jesus came out of the tomb.

Butterflies

Butterfly - symbol of the resurrection and rebirthButterflies are another symbol often used to signify Easter and rebirth. Its life cycle symbolizes the life of Christ. The caterpillar stands for His life on Earth. The cocoon stage represents Jesus' crucifixion and burial. Then finally, there is the beautiful butterfly, representing Christ being raised from the dead.

The dogwood tree blossom

DogwoodThe white "blossom" of the Dogwood tree is shaped like a Maltese cross, with each point indented and tinged with red.

 The center of the dogwood flower resembles a crown of thorns.  Some consider the red tinge to be an emblem of Jesus' crucifixion wounds.  There are even greeting cards containing the "Legend of the Dogwood ", which links the tree with the wood used for the cross.

The redbud

The redbud, also known as "the Judas tree", reminds us of Jesus' blood shed on the cross after betrayal by Judas.

The Lion

In ancient times, people believed that lion cubs were born dead. Then, after they were three days old, it was thought that the lioness breathed on them and brought them to life - a parallel to Jesus' three days in the tomb before his resurrection.  Jesus is described as the Lion of the tribe of Judah (Revelation 5:5).  C. S. Lewis used the lion Aslan to represent Christ in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.  Aslan was slain yet rose again.

The Rooster

The rooster is well-known as the bird of the morning.  It symbolizes vigilance and resurrection.  The rooster also reminds Christians of when Peter three times denied knowing Jesus on the morning of his crucifixion before the rooster crowed -- just as Jesus had predicted at the Last Supper (John 13:31-38).

Robin

robinTradition has it that the robin got its red breast during Jesus' walk to his crucifixion. The bird saw that a hawthorn had pricked Christ's forehead, making it bleed. So the robin flew down and plucked out the thorn. As it did this, a drop of Christ's blood fell on the bird's breast, staining it red forever.

The Cross

Perhaps the best known symbol of both Easter and Christianity is the cross.  In the Dictionary of Symbolism, Hans Biedermann says that early Christians were reluctant to use the cross as a symbol because crucifixion was such a cruel punishment.  After the Roman emperor Constantine banned crucifixion in the fourth century, the cross become a more and more popular symbol of Christianity -- a symbol representing victory over death.

The Easter lily

The Easter Lily has been adopted as a symbol of Easter because it blooms at Easter and also reminds us of the renewal that occurs at spring.  This flowering plant was brought to the United States in the 1880s from Bermuda. At first, these plants were not associated with Easter, but since they bloom near Easter time and the Bible mentions lilies as symbols of beauty (Luke 12:27), a connection grew.  The large, pure white blossoms of the Easter Lilies remind Christians of the pure new life that comes to us through the Resurrection of our Savior. This lily was also called  Pash-flower, Pasque flower, and Passion flower. Christians understood this last to refer to the passion of Christ.

Sand dollar

Sand dollarThe distinctive markings of this sea animal, also known as the Holy Ghost shell, are said to represent aspects of Christ's birth and death. The five-point outline on the front of the sand dollar represents the star of Bethlehem. The five holes in the sand dollar represent the pierced hands, feet, and side of Christ. And when one opens the sand dollar, five small objects that look like doves in flight appear.  These represent the Holy Spirit.

The Pretzel

Prezels are an Lenten innovation. Early Christians in the Roman Empire made pretzels with flour, salt, and water. No eggs, milk, or other forbidden ingredients were used. Then they folded the dough into the shape of two arms crossed in prayer. They called the bread "bracellae," or "little arms." Later, German Christians called it "brezel" or "prezel," which is where we got our word for it.

New Easter clothes, parade

The new clothes many wear on Easter Sunday are another symbol of new life. Early Christians being baptized on Easter Sunday were led into church wearing new robes of white linen. The Easter parade of the twentieth century had its parallel in the Middle Ages, when people walked about the countryside on Easter, stopping along the way to pray. In the early twentieth century, many people walked in Easter parades to show off and see others' new spring clothes, especially hats.

The Pagan connection

Easter sunrise services

Sunrisr services come from ancient spring festivals that celebrated the rising sun. This custom expanded in the Middle Ages, when celebrations at sunrise became popular. People gathered to pray as the sun appeared and then went in procession to their churches.

Easter ham

The pig has always been a symbol of good luck and prosperity among Indo-Europeans (which is where we get the practice of saving money in a piggy bank).  The long-time custom of eating pig or boar meat at Easter was probably brought to America by the English, Scandinavians, Germans, and Slavs.

The pig has always been a symbol of good luck and prosperity among Indo-Europeans, which is where the practice of saving money in a piggy bank comes from. In Hungary, the highest card (ace) in card games is called "pig."

The age-old custom of eating pig or boar meat was probably brought to America by the English, Scandinavians, Germans, and Slavs, who eat pork at Easter. Transylvanians wrap ham in bread dough before baking it. In Hungary, a meatloaf made of chopped pork, ham, eggs, bread, and spices is the highlight of the Easter feast. 

Easter eggs

Easter eggs - a pagan tradition now connected with EasterEaster eggs and the Easter bunny are both connected with ancient spring fertility rites. The egg is considered a symbol of life because in many living creatures life begins in the egg. Long a symbol of fertility and immortality, the egg also reminds Christians of the rock tomb from which Christ broke out of (arose).  

The Persians and Egyptians of ages past also colored eggs and ate them during their new year's celebration, which came in the spring.  In medieval times, eggs were traditionally given to all servants at Easter. It is said that King Edward I of England (1307) distributed 450 boiled Easter eggs, dyed or covered with gold leaf, to members of the royal household.  Syrian and Greek faithful present each other with crimson eggs in honor of the blood of Christ. Ukrainians create intricate designs with checkerboard and rhombi patterns, dots, wavy lines, and intersecting ribbons. Blessed by the priest at Easter, the artistically-rendered eggs become symbolic heirlooms.

Easter baskets

Easter baskets harken back to the Easter eggs. The basket, often lined with green strands, represents the grass nest where the eggs are laid.

Easter Bunny

The Easter Bunny has its origin in the pagan festival of Eastre, according to most accounts. The goddess Eastre was worshipped by Anglo-Saxons through her earthly symbol, the rabbit.  Eighteenth-century German settlers brought the tradition of "Oschter Haws" (the Easter bunny's name) to America.  Pennsylvania Dutch settlers built nests for the bunny in their gardens or barns. On the night before Easter, the bunny laid its colored eggs in the nests in payment. That's where the tradition of coloring the eggs comes from.  In Germany, the bunny is said to lay red eggs on Maundy Thursday.  The Easter bunny was widely ignored by other Christians in the U.S. until shortly after the Civil War.  Easter bunnies made of pastry and sugar first became popular in southern Germany at the beginning of the 1800s.  Rabbits have been a symbol of spring for a long time, but chocolate bunnies are a relatively recent tradition.

The Whole Earth Holiday Book gives a different account of the origin of the Easter bunny.  It's version says that a poor woman who could not afford any candies for her children on Easter. So she colored some eggs and hid them in a nest for her children to find. During the hunt, the children spotted a large rabbit in the bushes. They told their friends the bunny had left the eggs, and so, this version alleges, the Easter bunny story began.

Many European Easter traditions include the Easter bunny. It's not the only animal believed to bring coloredeggs, though. Swiss children believe a cuckoo bird brings the eggs.  Czech children expect a lark. And German children have a lot of options, including hoping that a rooster, stork, bunny, or fox will bring their sweet surprises.

Other Easter links

Food recipes

Other Easter references

Appearances by Jesus after his Resurrection