| As a child I remember sitting through service on | | | | Christ's resurrection it was first a pagan celebration |
| Easter Sunday. The longest sermon of the year, | | | | known as Eastre and celebrated in central and |
| although for some reason I was intrigued. Maybe it | | | | northern Europe. It was, and still is for some, the |
| was because I knew that when I got home a big | | | | celebration of the Vernal (Spring) Equinox and the |
| Easter basket, a few new toys and so much | | | | Fertility Goddess, Eastre. |
| chocolate candy that half of it would see the | | | | The Christian church converted many pagans by |
| following Easter was waiting for me at home. | | | | infusing the Christian God and customs with already |
| In all of my gluttony on Easter Sunday I never failed | | | | existing pagan tradition and celebration rituals. Easter |
| to question where my chocolate Jesus was. Where | | | | is one of many examples. Some may say it was an |
| were my chocolate burrow, or palm tree and | | | | evil trick while others may say it was genius |
| crucifix? This is what Pastor Bob talked about in his | | | | marketing. In order to convert the pagans, Christians |
| sermon every year. He never mentioned an Easter | | | | chose to celebrate on or around the dates of pagan |
| bunny, or an Easter basket. He never alluded to a | | | | celebrations, keeping most of the rituals and |
| biblical Easter egg hunt. | | | | traditions intact and only substituting their God, their |
| As I would come down from my sugar high and smile | | | | names and their religion. |
| proudly at my bounty of found plastic Easter Eggs | | | | It is no coincidence that Easter and Eastre are nearly |
| filled with money and chocolate I no longer cared | | | | identical in spelling. Nor is it a coincidence that Easter |
| why, I was just happy it was all mine. | | | | takes place around the same time as the spring |
| Now I'm thirty years old, with two little boys of my | | | | equinox. Easter celebrates the resurrection of Christ |
| own running around the yard searching for their share | | | | while Eastre celebrates the resurrection of spring. |
| of the Easter bounty, and I have to ask myself why | | | | I know what you're thinking. None of this answers |
| all over again. | | | | the original question of 'Why the celebration of Jesus |
| Have you ever wondered why the celebration of | | | | Christ's crucifixion and resurrection is celebrated with |
| Jesus Christ's crucifixion and resurrection is celebrated | | | | an Easter bunny and colored Easter eggs?' |
| with an Easter bunny and colored Easter eggs? Well, | | | | It's easy to believe that the Easter bunny is a |
| the answers may surprise you. They surprised me. | | | | creation of commercial America. Well, that's wrong. |
| Like many holidays, including Christmas, Halloween and | | | | At the celebration of the pagan festival of Eastre, |
| Mayday, Easter's roots lie deep in the pagan religion, | | | | pagan's worshiped a rabbit, the earthly symbol of the |
| dating back centuries before Christianity. | | | | Goddess, Eastre. Thus, Peter Cotton Tail. Eastre was |
| Paganism is the earliest known religion. Although there | | | | also symbolized with an egg. The egg symbolized |
| are many facades of worship encompassed in the | | | | fertility in nature and the season's rebirth from the |
| pagan religion the most relevant description of pagan | | | | long winter months. Eggs were used in these |
| belief is the worship of the Goddess, otherwise | | | | celebrations as well. The eggs were painted with |
| known as Mother Nature. Despite popular belief | | | | bright colors and, again they represented the |
| pagans do not worship Satan, practice human | | | | resurrection of spring. |
| sacrifice or conjure up black magic. | | | | They were then given as gifts to fellow pagans. |
| While most of us know Easter as the celebration of | | | | |