My first memory of Easter was when I lived with my mom. I heard a knock at the door, and she told me to see who it was, which was weird, I thought because I’m a little kid and we aren’t supposed to open the door, but I went. I found an easter basket with eggs to paint and candy. I spent the afternoon painting the eggs.
Growing up, we didn’t have Easter traditions, although I remember going to church on Easter Sunday after my dad married my stepmom. We attended Catholic mass, and it was always packed, but on Easter Sunday, it was out the door packed. We would dress up more formally than our usual Sunday Church wear, and then afterward, we would get together with the family. Well, I guess in a sense, that was our Easter tradition.
One year, my grandma hosted an Easter egg hunt, but it was with real eggs. LOL, that got messy. However, it was only for that one year. I low-key wished we would have done it again because I had fun.
I never believed in the Easter bunny, nor did I ever care for Easter baskets because that’s not what Easter was about for us. Easter is about celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
To write this blog post, I wanted to learn about the history of “Easter,” like where the name came from, etc., so I googled and found an article on History.com. They wrote, “Easter is a Christian holiday that celebrates the belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” I already knew, but I also wanted to find out why the Passover was no longer celebrated, but Easter is, and here is what they said. It states that Easter is associated with the Jewish holiday of Passover, and the links are seen in the Last Supper. The last supper happened the night before Jesus was arrested, and it was essentially a Passover feast. But during the last supper, Jesus broke bread with his 12 apostles and said the bread represented His body, and the wine they drank was His blood.
“While they were eating Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” “I tell you; I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
Matthew 26:26-29 (NIV)
With this being done, this became a basis for the Christian ritual of Holy Communion and gave a new significance by Jesus. All of this occurred during the Passover celebration, even Jesus’s execution.
Now, where does the name Easter come from? The article states, “St. Bede the Venerable, the 6-century author of Ecclesiastical History of the English People,” informed that the word Easter comes from Eostre or the Anglo-Saxon goodness of spring and fertility. And many of the non-Christian traditions of Easter, like the bunny and Easter eggs, can be traced from pagan celebrations. Eggs supposedly represent fertility and birth. The bunny may also associate birth and renewal (like Jesus’ resurrection or re-birth).
We usually take my daughter to the Easter celebration our church hosts every year for Easter. We attend church on Easter Sunday and then go out for lunch or get together with the family to celebrate.
It was fun learning about Easter and its association with the Passover. It’s crazy how you can read the Bible many times, and many things can go over one’s head before someone else points it out, and you have a revelation. Sometimes it’s God himself.
Do you celebrate Easter? Do you have any Easter traditions? Do you celebrate Passover? Let me know!
With Love, Heidy
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