ALT-2 Assessing the Traditions of Easter
I've been a Christian as long as I can remember, and have always celebrated Easter the same as anyone else. I was blind to the origin of the holiday. When my Sunday school teachers explained to me that it was all about Jesus' death and resurrection, I took that as fact, and never thought twice about it. Until recently...
Over the last year or so, I have delved deeper into the subject, and discovered its pagan heritage. So I began asking myself, "Why do I celebrate this holiday?" My kids have always known that the easter bunny was just the worldly symbol of the holiday, and the "true" meaning that we celebrate. But we still did all the stuff: coloring and hiding eggs, easter baskets, the ham dinner. This year, it has been really hard to even think about the holiday. I feel like I am betraying my Lord and Saviour by worshiping him in the name of a pagan god. So I made the decision to ween the kids off of the traditions, and teach them the truth that I have just discovered for myself.
I talked to the kids(well girls really) this morning about how I feel about the whole Easter thing. I explained why we celebrate it, and the original passover feast and all that, and then how Jesus told his disciples the meaning would change. Then I explained how the church somehow changed over the years, and men were more concerned with butts in the seats rather than changed lives. So they used pagan ideas to attract more people. I also explained the commandment God gave us, to not worship other gods, and to not even use their names. Then I told them how the pagans worshiped two gods, more than that but two in particular, one ruled the winter(I don't remember the name) and its name represented rest, or recuperation, the other's name was easter(its spelled differently but pronounced the same)And that god ruled spring, its name means new life or rebirth.
The pagans would hold a celebration in the beginning of spring, to help the god of new life take control over the god of rest so they could plant their harvests. The church used this idea to attract people of pagan tradition, explaining it that the old covenant was like the god of rest and the new the god of new life, hence they called the celebration Easter and celebrated it after passover. Originally it was meant to be purely religious. But because the church was disobeying God, it opened a door for Satan, and over the years he has tarnished the holiday.
Now when people hear the word Easter they think of baby chicks, and bunnies, fresh flowers, and the beginning of spring...this was exactly what the pagan celebration was all about. Satan now is being worshiped every year by Christians all over the world...and they don't even know it. I think this is part of what Jesus was warning us about, when he said many will come to me but few will I know...or something like that. He also said many will say Lord Lord, but I will not hear them. Huh..?!All over the world, people praise and glorify God's name, but because they do it in the name of a pagan god, he doesn't hear it.
I asked the girls what they thought God thinks every year when this happens. They weren't sure what I meant. So I asked them how they think I feel when I've told them over and over about the same thing, then I catch them doing it again...I think, "Man I give them all this love and encouragement, and I spend so much time trying to teach them the right way...but they just don't get it, they just don't get it." I think that's similar to what God thinks every Easter, when Christians gather together, and have a feast of ham and potatoes, and hunt for eggs(which represent new life) and give their kids baskets filled with grass...new life, peeps...new life, and candy.
My kids were all bummed that they wouldn't be getting baskets. So, I asked them, "What's more important, candy and sweets and cheep little toys that never last more than a couple weeks, or Pleasing God, and storing up treasures in heaven?" They both said treasures in heaven. Now Alexa is telling her sibs, and even other adults, that "easter" is a bad word, and she doesn't want to hear it. I asked her what she will say, when people say happy easter to her, she wasn't sure, she said, "probably nothing." I suggested she say blessed resurrection, that's what I will say.
Now that Easter has come and gone,I can share the new traditions my family has begun. We still colored eggs, because it is such a fun art project. We also used it as a bit of a science experiment, using different temperatures of water, and different additives (vinegar, lemon juice, and water). We decided we would try out several ways of coloring eggs throughout the year, instead of just on Easter. My girls are really excited to try to blow eggs, and then paint them. We were invited to a friend's house for dinner. While we were there, we shared our recent discovery. We also shared the sacrifice Jesus made for us, by sharing some sacrifices we have made throughout the past year. My friend gave up smoking to better her, and her kids' health. I gave up my personal time to go back to school to better my family's future. One of the older children there, shared a story about embarrassing herself publicly, in order to take the heat off of a friend.
This is the response, I believe my Lord and Savior is happy to receive. I know that the Christians who have read this, have probably been offended by my accusations. I urge you to dive into the scriptures, and the world's history, to learn for yourself; before you pass judgment on me. Satan is a tricky liar, and he loves to receive worship, especially from Christians. The longer you put off educating yourselves, the more of that worship he will receive.
Best wishes, and Yahweh bless you all.
