THE ORIGIN OF EASTER by C. P. B.

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Jul 1, 1889

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 15, No. 25.

THE ORIGIN OF EASTER.

By C. P. B.

A CORRESPONDENT in Eureka, Cal., asks for some account of the origin of Easter, and inquires, "How can Easter Sunday be kept or celebrated without holding services on Sunday?" And says that by keeping the seventh day Easter cannot be observed. By referring to the SIGNS OF THE TIMES, No 16, April 22, 1889, our correspondent will find an article in reference to this matter, but, as he may not have the paper at hand, we will say briefly that Easter is a word of Saxon origin, and was applied to the goddess of the Saxons, to whom sacrifices were annually offered about the time of the passover, or about the time of year at which the festival is now celebrated. It is of purely heathen origin, and the reason for its adoption by the Christian church is the same as the reason for which many heathen practices were adopted by the early Christians. It is thus stated by Gibbon:—

"The most respectable bishops had persuaded themselves that the ignorant rustics would more cheerfully renounce the superstitions of paganism, if they found some resemblance, some compensation, in the bosom of Christianity. The religion of Constantine achieved in less than a century the final conquest of the Roman Empire; but the victors themselves were insensibly subdued by the acts of their vanquished rivals."—Decline and Fall, chap. 28.

The fact that Easter occurred about the same time of the year as the passover and the resurrection, naturally led to its association with the latter event, but there is no scriptural authority for its observance. It is true that the word occurs in Acts 12:4, but, as McClintock and Strong say ("Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastic Encyclopedia," article Easter), "it is chiefly noticeable as an example of the want of consistency in its translators." On the same subject the "Encyclopedia Britannica" says: "There is no trace of the celebration of Easter as a Christian festival in the New Testament or in the writings of the Apostolic Fathers." The same work also quotes the ecclesiastic historian, Socrates, as saying that "the apostles had no thought of appointing festival days." And this historian attributes the introduction of the festival of Easter into the church to the perpetuation of the old heathen custom of celebrating Easter in honor of one of the heathen goddesses. Much more might be given to the same import, but this must suffice.

As to the question, "How can Easter Sunday be kept without holding services on Sunday?" we would say that it is a matter of no importance whether it is observed or not; or we should say that, being a heathen festival, it would be much better if it were entirely ignored by Christians. Says the apostle (2 Cor. 6:15, 16): "What concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God." What then can Christians have to do with the celebration of heathen festivals?

C. P. B.