Easter holidays, then and now

Although many Christians may not admit it, most of the Easter customs have pagan origins. After Constantine the great adopted Christianity, the fortunes of some hitherto persecuted sect took a dramatic turn. With time, early Christians started to use all manner of strategies to attract pagans to Christianity. One way of doing this was incorporating rituals and cultures that were pagan into Christianity. This way, Christianity was made more attractive to non-Christians. Easter therefore, although it is Christian in origin, has a healthy dose of pagan customs.

March 20 marks the spring Equinox and Easter Sunday is celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon, after this day. Eastern churches determine Easter differently, although it may sometimes fall on the same day as in western churches.
In many people minds, Easter Sunday is what they refer to as Easter. This day is at the end of Lent period which is counted from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday. Being based on a Lunar calendar, Easter Sunday does not have a fixed date.

Celebration of Easter actually starts at the beginning of Lent and culminates at Easter Sunday. Easter Sunday is special because it is the day Jesus resurrected after being crucified a few days earlier. The last week of Lent is the holy week and it starts with Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday, as you may already know, marks Jesus triumphant entry in Jerusalem while riding on a donkey, and crowds were laying palm branches on his path and shouting Hosanna.

Thursday during Easter week is holy because on this day Jesus shared his last supper with his disciples. On Friday, known as Good Friday, Jesus was crucified. Easter marks the day he rose, as the gospels says.

The word Easter is deeply steeped on Norse and Teutonic mythology. It is derived from Ostra, which is Scandinavian, or Ostern, Teutonic for goddess of spring and fertility. German pagans celebrated the festival of their god of fertility during vernal equinox.
For Christians, it is a period of reflection and prayer. While some are subdued by its significance, others merry and celebrate more or less like it was celebrated by northern Europeans before they became Christians.

Jews celebrate around this time as it coincides which their Passover, when they mark their miraculous deliverance from Egypt. For that reason, Easter is sometimes referred to as Pascha.

Here are some Easter traditions that seems to have pagan origins:

• Hot Cross Buns: the word bun comes from Boun, which means sacred ox. An ox would be sacrificed and the horns, in form of a cross, were the symbol of the season. The cross also represented the moon which was associated with Ostra.
• Easter Rabbit and Egg: rabbits and eggs represent fertility. Babylonians religions also used dyed eggs in their festivals. During  spring, people would paint eggs and give them out as gifts. The giver wished the receiver blessings of many children. Rabbit also symbolized springtime fertility.
• Easter Sunrise service: pagans welcomed the sun god at the vernal equinox early in the morning at sunrise. Nowadays, though, Christians go to church at this early hour for renewal of their hope for heaven.
• Easter Candles: this practice originated with bonfires (which some Christians still have, theses days) that pagans lit to welcome the rebirth of their sun god.

The significance of the original practices has however been mostly lost and they were given Christian meaning.