Easter Traditions?

[Tcg]

Are there any Easter Traditions that are related specifically to Jesus' resurrection? The Easter eggs hunts, bunnies and pastel-colored candies seem to be a celebration of spring. Certainly, sermons will be preached on Jesus' resurrection, but are there any Easter Traditions that Christians practice with their families that are focused on Jesus?


Tcg

[JoeyKnothead]

How it relates to jesus? The rising sun I suspect. Maybe the cinnamon rolls?

Seems like it shoulda been donuts.

Because the jesus story is full of holes?

Exactly.

[rstrats]

Since a large number of churches place a major emphasis on Easter observances, it just seems odd that scripture is silent about anyone celebrating the resurrection on the first day of the week much less on a regular yearly basis.

[pjharrison57]

[Replying to Tcg in post #1]

No, Easter has nothing to do with Jesus. It's another day that the devil has tricked people into celebrating him. Bunnies and eggs, have nothing to do with Jesus.

[Tcg]

[Replying to Tcg in post #1]

No, Easter has nothing to do with Jesus. It's another day that the devil has tricked people into celebrating him. Bunnies and eggs, have nothing to do with Jesus.

What do bunnies and eggs have to do with the devil?


Tcg

[pjharrison57]

[Replying to Tcg in post #34]
The devil twist everything that has to do with God. The Christians say that easter is in remembrance of the resurrection, and the devil goes on to add a rabbit and some eggs to the mix. Really distort it good.

[Tcg]

[Replying to Tcg in post #34]
The devil twist everything that has to do with God. The Christians say that easter is in remembrance of the resurrection, and the devil goes on to add a rabbit and some eggs to the mix. Really distort it good.

We have evidence of bunnies and eggs. None of the devil so of course none that it uses bunnies and eggs. They may have nothing to do with Christianity, but there is no rational reason to assume they have anything to do with the devil either.


Tcg

[TRANSPONDER]

[Replying to Tcg in post #34]
The devil twist everything that has to do with God. The Christians say that easter is in remembrance of the resurrection, and the devil goes on to add a rabbit and some eggs to the mix. Really distort it good.

Christmas isn't easter, but the analogy applies, and it is this: on the former forum, some time ago when the 'Grinch' came out, Christians lost little time in accusing atheists of being the Grinch, wanting to destroy Christmas. In fact (aside from reservations about the fun and good cheer being exploited by commerce) Atheists are fine with people having a festival, so long as none of it is taken too seriously. In fact it was some elements of Christianity (by no means all) who damned and swore about the pagan and satanic elements creeping in and Christmas ought to be about Jesus, and only about Jesus. If anything, it was they who were more Grinchlike in wanting to take all the fun and good cheer out and make it all about religion.

The same here with Easter, illustrated perfectly with your posts. Atheists don't mind Easter, not leaster for a seasonal opportunity to debunk the whole resurrection story. It is the Grinches of religion who want to take the fun and festivity out of it and insist that it all be about misery, sin, doom, church and boredom.

[Difflugia]

The devil twist everything that has to do with God. The Christians say that easter is in remembrance of the resurrection, and the devil goes on to add a rabbit and some eggs to the mix. Really distort it good.

You've put the cart before the horse. The devil didn't add bunnies and eggs to a Christian festival. Instead, the Christians wrote their story about a demigod coming back to life so that it (purely by coincidence, I'm sure) happened at the same time as festivals celebrating the return of agricultural life in Spring.

Passover itself has the appearance of a repurposed fertility festival. The whole unleavened bread thing make sense in the context of the first harvest of the season because a bread starter culture won't last the whole winter without grain. Amusingly, if we assume there's some historical value to the Exodus story, even the Bible implies that Passover started out as a different festival:

Exodus 5:1-3

Afterward Moses and Aaron came, and said to Pharaoh, “This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’ ”

Pharaoh said, “Who is Yahweh, that I should listen to his voice to let Israel go? I don’t know Yahweh, and moreover I will not let Israel go.”

They said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go three days’ journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to Yahweh, our God, lest he fall on us with pestilence, or with the sword.”

What festival of sacrificial offerings were they going to hold?

I also find the imagery of 2 Samuel 21:8-9 thought-provoking in terms of crucifixion imagery. The context as described is a famine in Saul's hometown, which David solves by offering potential rivals to his newly usurped throne as agricultural sacrifices:

But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite. He delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites; and they hanged them on the mountain before Yahweh, and all seven of them fell together. They were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, at the beginning of barley harvest.

Coincidence? Maybe an immediate one in the sense that Christianity isn't directly based on David's sacrifice of Saul's heirs, but human sacrifice to ensure agricultural fertility has quite a rich history. It's fertility festivals all the way down.

[Athetotheist]

[Replying to 2ndpillar2 in post #11

On the other hand, the last supper was eaten at the beginning of Passover, before the lamb for Passover was sacrificed.

On the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrifice the Passover lamb, His disciples asked Him, “Where do You want us to go and prepare the Passover so You may eat it?” (Mark 14:12)

How could Jesus eat the last supper before the sacrificing of the passover lamb if the disciples didn't go out to prepare for the meal until the day the lambs were sacrificed?

[JehovahsWitness]

... the Bible implies that Passover started out as a different festival:

Exodus 5:1-3

Afterward Moses and Aaron came, and said to Pharaoh, “This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’ ”

What festival of sacrificial offerings were they going to hold?

The text doesnt say they had previously been celebrating any festival, only at the time they requested permission to obey Jehovah's (Yahweh's) order they do so.

To learn more please go to other posts related to ...

THE PASSOVER, THE MOSAIC LAW COVENANT and ... SABBATH KEEPING