Is Easter a pagan holiday?

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TL;DR:

Easter as the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is not a pagan holiday. Because of the cultural integration of Easter with other spring rituals and traditions, some have mistaken it for ancient pagan practices.

from the old testament

  • The Bible includes strong warnings against participating in pagan religious practices, especially when they involve idolatry, false worship, or mixing with the ways of the nations (Deuteronomy 12:30-31; Jeremiah 10:2-3). Easter does not encourage believers to worship false gods

from the new testament

  • Easter was always meant to be a marker on the Christian calendar of the day that Jesus defeated the power of death by coming back to life (Acts 2:24).
  • Belief in Jesus and His resurrection leads us to eternal life, which is what we celebrate at Easter (Ephesians 1:11-14; 2:1-10).
  • At some churches, a tradition is for one believer to say to another, “He is risen,” and for the other believer to reply, “He is risen indeed!” This commemorates what an angel of the Lord revealed about Jesus to the women who came to the empty tomb the Sunday after Jesus was crucified (Matthew 28:1-7).
  • The Israelites celebrated the Passover each year, sacrificing an unblemished lamb. Jesus is “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Each year at Easter, we commemorate Christ’s sacrifice for our sins and His resurrection defeat of death.
  • The Passover supper is paralleled in Jesus’ last supper with His disciples in which He shared the bread and wine representing His body and blood (Matthew 26:26-29).

implications for today

One of the main reasons people ask about the origins of Easter is the name itself. The word Easter has similarities to an ancient Saxon goddess by the name Eostre. However, besides the similarity in spelling, there is no historical connection between the two.

Many springtime pagan celebrations have been or are marked by cultures around the world. The spring equinox has been connected to many events such as the Day of Bau (Babylonian), Dark Mother Day (Indian), the Day of Fortuna (Roman), the Feast of Blajini (Romanian), the Feast of Artemis/Diana (Greek/Roman), the Feast of Tellus Mater (Roman), the Festival of Ba'ast (Egyptian), the Festival of Ishtar (Babylonian), the Feast of Elaphebolia (Athenian), and Odin's Day (Norse). One of the more famous still occurs at Stonehenge, where Druids and other pagans gather on the spring equinox to watch the sunrise.

Some of the modern cultural practices associated with Easter—such as the Easter bunny, colored eggs, and egg hunts—have also led people to question whether Easter has pagan roots. The rabbit, a symbol of fertility in many ancient cultures, and eggs, which symbolize new life, were used in various springtime fertility rites. These symbols were later incorporated into folk traditions in Europe and eventually became part of secular Easter customs, especially in Western cultures.

However, it is important to distinguish between cultural traditions and the core of the Christian celebration. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the central focus of Easter for believers. The inclusion of eggs or rabbits in modern festivities does not change the historical and theological foundation of the holiday. Christians are not celebrating fertility or the changing of seasons—they are celebrating the victory of Jesus over sin and death. Believing that Jesus, fully God and fully man, died on the cross for our sins and resurrected results in our forgiveness and redemption, resulting in eternal life (Ephesians 1:3-14). This salvation is for all who believe, not just those of Jewish descent (John 1:12; 3:16-18; Galatians 3:25-29), and it is why we celebrate Easter.

understand

  • Easter is not a pagan holiday but a Christian celebration of Jesus Christ’s resurrection.
  • While some Easter customs like eggs and rabbits have pagan origins related to fertility symbols, these cultural practices do not define or change the core meaning of Easter.
  • The name "Easter" may sound similar to an ancient goddess’s name, but there is no historical or theological connection between the two.

reflect

  • How does knowing the true biblical meaning of Easter affect the way you personally celebrate it?
  • When you encounter Easter customs with pagan origins, how can you keep your focus on Christ’s resurrection and its significance for your faith?
  • How can you share the message of Jesus’ victory over sin and death with others during the Easter season?

engage

  • How can we respectfully explain the difference between cultural Easter traditions and the biblical foundation of the resurrection to those who misunderstand the holiday?
  • What practical steps can we take as believers to keep the focus of Easter centered on Christ rather than on secular or cultural customs?
  • How does understanding the biblical warnings against pagan worship help us discern which traditions to embrace or avoid in our celebration of Easter?