The Surprising History and Pagan Origins of Easter

Easter is a holiday of pagan origin that was later adopted and re-christened by the church, and it is not found as a commanded or observed festival in the Holy ScripturesSBBS 147.1+2. While the resurrection of Jesus Christ is a foundational historical fact, the specific festival of Easter was introduced through a process of compromise with nature-worship and was eventually enforced by human decrees rather than divine preceptEW 149.3+2.

Pagan Origins and Etymology

• Name and Roots: The word "Easter" is derived from the Anglo-Saxon goddess Eostre (or Ostara), the Teutonic goddess of spring and the dawnSBBS 147.1+2.

• Chaldean Connection: Further research identifies this name with the ancient deities Ishtar, Astarte, and Ashtaroth, who was the "queen of heaven" and a central figure in Babylonian and Phoenician sun-worshipHBS 160.4+1.

• Nature Symbols: Traditional Easter customs, such as the presentation of eggs, trace back to Eastern mythology and "Mundane Egg" symbols representing the revival of nature in the springPTUK May 3, 1894, page 288.8+1.

• Sun Worship: The timing of the festival was originally fixed by sun-worship, celebrating the sun's victory over darkness at the spring equinoxPTUK April 22, 1897, page 245.15+1.

Biblical Standing

• Absence in Scripture: There is no trace of an Easter celebration in the New Testament, and the apostles had no thought of appointing such festival daysSBBS 147.1+1.

• ** Acts 12:4:** Although the King James Version uses the word "Easter" in Acts 12:4 it is a translation of the Greek word pascha, which correctly refers to the Jewish Passover Acts 12:4SBBS 147.1.

• The Passover Transition: Early Jewish Christians continued to celebrate the Passover, regarding Christ as the true Paschal Lamb, but they did not observe the modern Sunday-centric Easter festival 1 Corinthians 5:7SBBS 147.1.

• Commandments: The Bible provides no precept for the sanctification of the resurrection day; rather, it identifies the seventh day as the Sabbath of the LordSOSL 123.1+1 Exo 20:10.

The Historical Shift to Sunday

• The Quartodeciman Controversy: In the second century, a great dispute arose because the Eastern churches followed the biblical timing of the 14th of Nisan (the Passover), while Rome insisted the celebration must always fall on a SundayGC88 686.1+2.

• Papal Usurpation: Bishop Victor of Rome (A.D. 192-202) attempted to excommunicate those who refused to follow the Roman Sunday custom, an act described as the first essay of papal usurpationGC88 686.1+2.

• Council of Nice (A.D. 325): The Roman custom was finally mandated across the empire by the Council of Nice, which decreed that Easter should be observed on the same Sunday everywhere to avoid any "communion with the customs" of the JewsTTR 319.2+2.

• Imperial Enforcement: This decree was backed by the authority of Emperor Constantine, who desired to unify the empire under a single religious practice that conformed to the "venerable day of the sun"TTR 319.2+2.

The Church's Reasoning

• Ecclesiastical Authority: Many churches openly admit that Easter is a tradition appointed by the church rather than a requirement of the BibleBHB 83.6+2.

• Compromise: The festival was retained to facilitate the conversion of pagans by giving a "Christian" meaning to their existing spring rites, making Christianity appear as an adaptation of paganismPTUK May 3, 1894, page 288.8+2.

• Religious Law: Over centuries, various councils and popes added Easter to a list of mandatory holy days, often threatening ecclesiastical censures against those who worked on these daysHSFD 433.1+1.

In summary, while the resurrection of Christ is the "full blaze of light" that gives meaning to the gospel, the festival known as Easter was developed by merging pagan spring celebrations with church tradition, eventually superseding the biblical Passover through human legislationBHOTV7 42.3+2.