PAGANIZATION OF THE CHURCH....Easter vs Resurrection Sunday

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MarcR

MarcR

Senior Member
#1
Feb 12, 2015
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#1
Easter came into the English Language from the German Oester meaning Goddess of the East.

Commemoration of the Resurrection (which was originally called Pascah) was moved by Constantine fron the Sunday after Passover to 2 Sundays after the Equinox, to coincide with the feast of Ishtar, Astarte-Aphrodite-Venus: a fertility goddess.

I believe that Resurrection Sunday should be called Resurrection Sunday, or Firstfruits; because it should not be associated with eggs, bunnies, or public orgies to honor a fertility goddess!

Of less importance, I believe that it should be observed on the Sunday after Passover, as it will be this year.
 
T

Tintin

Guest
#2
#2
Once again, "The Two Babylons" is poor scholarship and a work of great imagination. It's not a trustworthy source.
 
C

ChristInUs

Banned
#3
Feb 5, 2015
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Easter comes from the worship of the goddess Ishtar the goddess of fertilization. That's why they rolled eggs and we transformed it to the Easter bunny that brings eggs to the children. again a lie. Which takes the focus off of what really happened and that is Christ crucified. How many will lie to their children?
 
MarcR

MarcR

Senior Member
#4
Feb 12, 2015
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I have never read "The Two Babylons" .

The derivation of Easter that I presented comes from the shorter Oxford English Dictionary; which with respect to this discussion is presumably an unbiased source and certainly represents good scholarship.

The paganization of the Church by Constantine comes from equally good historical scholarship.
 
ThomistColin

ThomistColin

Banned
#5
Nov 30, 2012
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Too bad the first iteration of Easter comes from a different source. AND its the only source. The Venerable Bede stated it came from the name Eostre, a Celtic goddess. Her name forgotten and her Celtic festival forgotten. However, once again, Easter is an English phenomenon. Everywhere else it is Resurrection Sunday...including right next door to England in France.

The Easter Triduum is not pagan, nor does it have its basis in paganism, but Judaism, Scripture, and Christian tradition dating back to the first century.
 
S

Sophia

Guest
#6
#6
Eggs and maypoles certainly ring of paganism.

Fertility gods and ashura poles are not something to take lightly.

Maybe I should take the advice of the Judges, Prophets, and good kings of Israel,
and cut down the maypoles in my neighbors yard... nah. I'll just give them a trac about the true meaning of Resurrection Sunday.
 
ThomistColin

ThomistColin

Banned
#7
Nov 30, 2012
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Sophia said:
Eggs and maypoles certainly ring of paganism.

Fertility gods and ashura poles are not something to take lightly.
Click to expand...
The maypole celebration takes place during the spring equinox, so while its around Easter, its a separate festival.
Also, Eostre was not a fertility goddess. We actually don't know why kind of goddess she is. That's it. Our only knowledge of her is based in the Venerable Bede and he's the only one who investigated at his time period, which is the earliest we see Easter used as a name for the time. So...all of this is speculation.
 
crossnote

crossnote

Senior Member
#8
Nov 24, 2012
30,706
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#8
Easter is what you make it. For me, it's the celebration of Christ's victory over death, hell and satan.
 
S

Sophia

Guest
#9
#9
ThomistColin said:
The maypole celebration takes place during the spring equinox, so while its around Easter, its a separate festival.
Also, Eostre was not a fertility goddess. We actually don't know why kind of goddess she is. That's it. Our only knowledge of her is based in the Venerable Bede and he's the only one who investigated at his time period, which is the earliest we see Easter used as a name for the time. So...all of this is speculation.
Click to expand...
eggs and bunnies... fertility.
i am not so concerned with the etymology, but with the practice.
 
MarcR

MarcR

Senior Member
#11
Feb 12, 2015
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#11
ThomistColin said:
Too bad the first iteration of Easter comes from a different source. AND its the only source. The Venerable Bede stated it came from the name Eostre, a Celtic goddess. Her name forgotten and her Celtic festival forgotten. However, once again, Easter is an English phenomenon. Everywhere else it is Resurrection Sunday...including right next door to England in France.

The Easter Triduum is not pagan, nor does it have its basis in paganism, but Judaism, Scripture, and Christian tradition dating back to the first century.
Click to expand...
The OED and its shorter form are of at least as reputable scholarship as the 'venerable' Bede whose worthiness of veneration to all but lexicographers is also questionable.

The fertility rites associated with Easter are what I find objectionable. Also English is fundamentally a Germanic language; so the Saxon derivation IMO supercedes the Celtic.
 
ThomistColin

ThomistColin

Banned
#12
Nov 30, 2012
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#12
MarcR said:
The OED and its shorter form are of at least as reputable scholarship as the 'venerable' Bede whose worthiness of veneration to all but lexicographers is also questionable.

The fertility rites associated with Easter are what I find objectionable. Also English is fundamentally a Germanic language; so the Saxon derivation IMO supercedes the Celtic.
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The point is the OED cannot source anything earlier than Bede. So even if he just made up Eostre and its total fiction, then it means the source and etymology is entirely lost.

And the fertility rites associated with Easter aren't part of Easter. They are additional too, since Easter predates those rites involvement. Thus it is easy to ignore and remove simply by acknowledging they are falsely applied by either ignorant people or ignorant pagans.
 
MarcR

MarcR

Senior Member
#14
Feb 12, 2015
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#14
MarcR said:
Easter came into the English Language from the German Oester meaning Goddess of the East.

Commemoration of the Resurrection (which was originally called Pascah) was moved by Constantine fron the Sunday after Passover to 2 Sundays after the Equinox, to coincide with the feast of Ishtar, Astarte-Aphrodite-Venus: a fertility goddess.

I believe that Resurrection Sunday should be called Resurrection Sunday, or Firstfruits; because it should not be associated with eggs, bunnies, or public orgies to honor a fertility goddess!

Of less importance, I believe that it should be observed on the Sunday after Passover, as it will be this year.
Click to expand...
Correction: 2 Sundays after the Equinox, should read the Sunday following the First full moon after the Equinox.

please excuse my sloppiness at least I caught my own mistake.
 
MarcR

MarcR

Senior Member
#15
Feb 12, 2015
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#15
The fact remains that Constantine, in moving the observance to coincide with the feast of Astarte introduced the fertility rites;
and regardless how localized to an English connection they might be now they are still pagan.
 
S

Sophia

Guest
#16
#16
As for the date,
I am not a stickler for moons and sabbaths,
but would like to see the Resurrection being celebrated on more than one Sunday per year :)
 
S

Sophia

Guest
#17
#17
I think there is some validity in "redeeming" things that were once pagan, by turning them to the purpose of Christ.
Perhaps we could view Easter in this way... so long as we actually turn the purpose to Christ, rather than just leave it as another holiday for marketing and giving candy to children.
 
S

Sophia

Guest
#18
#18
The tradition of eating an "Easter Ham" is a bit rebellious too.
Passover Lamb... Easter Ham? seriously?
I know we will not be judged if done in clear conscience... but my conscience is no longer clear on that issue.
 
ThomistColin

ThomistColin

Banned
#19
Nov 30, 2012
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#19
MarcR said:
The fact remains that Constantine, in moving the observance to coincide with the feast of Astarte introduced the fertility rites;
and regardless how localized to an English connection they might be now they are still pagan.
Click to expand...
Actually Constantine didn't move the observance at all. The observance was "slightly moved" many hundreds of years after Constantine, when the Jewish calendar and the Roman calendar were literally a month off from each other. That's when we moved to the Gregorian calendar, and Easter moved by a week. Which is why Easter/Resurrection Sunday is usually a week after Reformed and Conservative and Liberal Jews celebrate Passover (and also why the Orthodox Churches celebrate Christmas in January). (Interestingly, many Orthodox and ultra-Orthodox Jews agree with the Christian dates for Passover. It has to do with whether or not to move a New Moon festival or not).

The Christians use an extremely strict interpretation of the Jewish calendar to acknowledge when Pesach falls, thus celebrating the Easter Triduum. The modern Jewish Rabbinical authorities did not follow this strict observance, and instead will move and shift New Moon festivals and add and subtract days from months to try to make things fit.
 
ThomistColin

ThomistColin

Banned
#20
Nov 30, 2012
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0
#20
Sophia said:
The tradition of eating an "Easter Ham" is a bit rebellious too.
Passover Lamb... Easter Ham? seriously?
I know we will not be judged if done in clear conscience... but my conscience is no longer clear on that issue.
Click to expand...
"Easter Ham" is actually not rebellion against God but a joyous reminder that Christ has made all things clean.
 
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