The following is from Joe Kovacs book, "Shocked by the bible"
� 2010 WorldNetDaily
"Easter" is such a pretty-sounding word, isn't it?
It instantly makes many people think of a variety of joyous images such as springtime, sunshine, blooming flowers, pretty dresses and bonnets, colored eggs, cute baby chicks and adorable, little bunny rabbits.
It also brings to mind for countless millions the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave.
They say this is the holiest time of the year, because yes, the Creator of the universe, Jesus Christ, is alive on His heavenly throne after spending three days and three nights completely dead.
I could not agree more with people becoming aware of the story of Jesus' death and return to life. It shows us the path to becoming born into the actual Family of God, as the Bible indicates many sons and daughters will be brought to glory as the immortal "children of God."
But brace yourself, because there's a very dark side to this centuries-old tradition, and it has to do with the famous Ten Commandments of God.
The very first commandment of the Big Ten is perhaps one of the most overlooked in everyday life.
In just eight words, it states: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." (Exodus 20:3)
Sounds simple enough. Christians would never put another god in front of the true God who made the universe � right?
Wrong.
Most Christians, whether knowingly or unknowingly, violate this very first commandment of God each year by placing before God the actual name of a pagan goddess of fertility and the dawn.
In case you haven't figured it out by now, her name is � believe it or not � "Easter."
That's correct, folks. The word Easter is actually the name of an ancient, heathen goddess who represents fertility, springtime and the dawn.
Some of her symbols are flowers, bunnies, eggs, the sun and the moon. Who'da thunk?
In different languages and through a variety of cultures, the name of this deity � who in reality does not even exist � is spelled different ways, including Ishtar, Astarte, Ostara, Eostre and Eastre.
Even in the Bible itself, many of God's own chosen people actually followed the customs of numerous Easter goddesses, with her name spelled in the King James Bible as "Ashtaroth" and "Ashtoreth."
For those who have never seen Easter in this light before, take a look at what Scripture itself has to say. I'm adding emphasis with the modern word in parentheses so you can see what God is really telling you:
"And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth (Easter)." (Judges 2:13)
"And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and If you don't believe me, go ahead and Google it. Or simply open up an encyclopedia or a dictionary to probe the pagan origins. Feel free to ask your preacher. An honest one will have to admit it.
"And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth (Easter) from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines." (1 Samuel 7:3)
"And they cried unto the LORD, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken the LORD, and have served Baalim and Ashtaroth (Easter)" (1 Samuel 12:10)
"For Solomon went after Ashtoreth (Easter) the goddess of the Zidonians" (1 Kings 11:5)
"And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth (Easter) the abomination of the Zidonians ..." (2 Kings 23:13)
While Easter may sound like a pretty word, just look again in that list above at some of the terms God associates with Easter and her customs: "corruption," "sin," "abomination" and "evil."
And here's a Bible newsflash for you. We're not even supposed to be saying the E-word.
Crack open your own Bible and read it for yourself:
"Make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth." (Exodus 23:13)
Certainly, Christians today who celebrate Easter don't do so with the intention of worshipping another god besides the true God, and I'm not saying or even implying that. But the fact of the matter is many are bringing the name of a pagan, nonexistent goddess before Him, violating the very first commandment.
Additionally, it's more than just the name that bothers God. He specifically warned His people not to worship Him using heathen customs:
"Be careful not to be ensnared by inquiring about their gods, saying, 'How do these nations serve their gods? We will do the same.' You must not worship the Lord your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord hates." (Deuteronomy 12:30-31, NIV)
Perhaps if the springtime holiday were called "Hitler Sunday" or even "Satan Sunday" instead of Easter, people might have an easier time understanding the problem of attaching evil to God. Would people decorate swastikas instead of eggs and hold goose-stepping contests, all the while claiming such customs were now Christianized?
For those who might wonder why the King James Bible mentions Easter in Acts 12:4, keep in mind the Bible was not initially written in English. The word in its original language of Greek is "Pascha," meaning "Passover" and translated as Passover in every other instance, some 28 times. Bibles published since 1611 have corrected this glaring error.
Ladies and gentlemen, it's way past time to dump all this fertility-goddess nonsense when it comes to honoring the true Creator.
Enough with the name of Easter, the coloring of eggs, the Easter egg hunts, baby bunnies and fluffy little chicks. These are all symbols of reproduction which have been associated with the heathen fertility goddess for millennia now.
The apostles did not find a basket of eggs or a chocolate bunny rabbit in Jesus' empty tomb, and they certainly didn't go Easter-egg-hunting while spreading the good news of the kingdom of God.
The maker of all things, Jesus Christ, is offering all of us a spectacular, glorious future as an immortal child of God who will be judging angels and the citizens of the world, reigning alongside Him for eternity.
God not only wants to be worshipped in spirit and in truth, but He wants absolutely nothing to do with this phony baloney goddess.
Is it really worth offending your Maker for the pretty-sounding, colorful lie of the nonexistent, evil chick called Easter?
dear cakes, thats a post that will make ya think some..
now if its all true then maybe we should change the name to CHRISTS RESSURECTION DAY... or something a little more proper..
with that said i surely dont even think about a fertility goddess when im celebrating easter.. that thought never entered my mind.. and i dont spect it enters any christians mind on that day.. my only thoughts are that JESUS rose again and thats what im thinkin bout .
and i dont think that the innocent little children are out there thinkin bout her and worshiping her either whenst they are huntin eggs and eating their little chocalate bunnies they may get.. or real rabbits if they recieve them too..
now it may very well be true that thats what some folks did at some point and time was to worship that goddess in that way.. maybe even some do it today as well.. i really dont know for sure myself..
so lets just say for instance that a certain day that we as christians choose to celebrate something for or about JESUS CHRIST .. lets say some other group at some point and time happened to use the same day to pray and worship some certain god or goddess they chose to worship..
does that really mean that we are prayin to and worshiping their gods or goddesses? or does that mean that we are praying to and worshiping JESUS CHRIST our LORD AND SAVIOR on that day?
i mean any day i may choose to worship and pray to THE ONE and only TRUE GOD.. and HIS SON JESUS CHRIST.. someone else sometime and place may of happened to chose the same day to worship their gods or goddesses .. does that really make me or you worshiping their gods or goddesses or does that make me or you just worshipin our GOD the FATHER and SON, JESUS CHRIST?
and f the children that day play games to entertain themselves or even have candy given to em or pets does that really make them worshipin them other gods as well .. are their minds on them other gods or goddesses ..? i dont think they are .. they prolly like me ,didnt even know bout em..
so even though i agree that the name should be changed for that day as not to associate a god or godesses name with JESUS CHRIST ..
i dont think the day needs to be changed cause i believe that no matter the day its who you are worshipinh in your hearts.. and if thats JESUS CHRIST then any days is alright to worship HIM.. cause anyone could of been worshipin something they shouldnt of been on any day out there at some point and time in history. ya know..
be kinda silly to say GOD, JESUS cant have any day for HIM when HE owns all the days .. the world and everyone and everything in it.. amen
the guy uses this verse
exodus 23:13 "And in all that I have said to you, be circumspect and make no mention of the name of other gods, nor let it be heard from your mouth.
now lets see where that verse come from under the heading
The Law of Sabbaths
exodus 23:10-1310 "Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce, 11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave, the beasts of the field may eat. In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove. 12 Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female servant and the stranger may be refreshed.
13 "And in all that I have said to you, be circumspect and make no mention of the name of other gods, nor let it be heard from your mouth.
isnt this pertaining to the sabbath day? and if so then it would be wrong to say easters name on that day...
maybe it was ok to preach against other gods names on the sabbath or maybe were not to be made mention of at all.. not real sure on that yet..
but i do believe we should change the name of easter if it is a goddesses name..
though im a little worried about the original writer as he states this
And here's a Bible newsflash for you. We're not even supposed to be saying the E-word.
yet uses the word or its original 28 times in his post .. hehe
im a believer of dont preach to me not to do and then turn right around in your sermon and do said thing.. definitely makes me a little leery.. hehe
but all in all i appreciated your post from this other sourse cakes.. gave food for thought..
Perhaps if Christians celebrated Passover as Jesus commanded us to do at "the Last Supper" we would be celebrating His death and resurrection as He intended. We would also be celebrating our redemption in His blood and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Even the children would be hunting for a piece of bread representing the resurrection rather than eggs that represent unholy sexual licentiousness.
I find it interesting that nearly every Christian in leadership in this country is aware of the origins of Easter and yet they will not stop the tradition. I wonder if it is because they do not want to rock the boat and lose their congregations or they are simply too weak to take a stand against it.
Beefcakes, you are correct, Easter is nothing more than a pagan day resurrected by Rome from Babylon and has attached some of the scriptures to it.
If the Lord wanted anyone to observe such a day it would have been written in his word and it is not. Here is what the word does say concerning Easter and about other so called holy days invented by Rome and the giving of new life to ancient practices.
Galatians 4:9 �But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?
10 �Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.
11 �I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.
In addition to that; God has already stated he has given all of his instructions for a believer to honor Christ with.
2 Timothy 3:16 �All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
17 �That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
There is the proof and if it is not in God's word, it doesn't come from Him.
Easter and other such so called holy days come from man's philosophies and traditions, rather from the word of God. Even the history found in encyclopedias tell the same thing that Easter is based on tradition and originates from Rome.
Colossians 2:8 �Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
Interesting. I'd have to say I agree with Ole Cattle on this one. Scriptures make it pretty clear that God knows our hearts. In fact... when He looks at a person, I don't believe He sees "us", or our flesh. He sees our TRUE selves... our inner beings... our spirits. And what does God see during Easter? He sees me worshiping Him in "Spirit" and in His Truth. While I am not disagreeing with the author about the origins of this holiday, I am disagreeing with his accusations. Most Christians today aren't worshiping some ancient fertility god. We are worshiping OUR God. The God of Jacob, Isaac, Abraham, etc. I am not accountable for every other Christian. Just myself. Very interesting to see the history behind it, though.
The Church chose those dates specifically because they were pagan days of worship. Pagan sites were torn down and a Church was erected on that site. Pagan dates were made into Christian dates of worship. What better way to combat paganism then to attack it head on? The name Easter is not the point! It is the Death and Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior...Jesus Christ. The name Easter was the name of the Goddess being worshipped on that date. The name remained, but it has lost all meaning and reference to it's original porpose...AMEn to that! No one is speaking about a long dead goddess...except you! Why do you want to "resurrect" her?
These "secrets" that you think you are revealing are not secrets. They are known to any Catholic that knows their faith and their Church. My Church can trace Her roots directly back to Peter and The Apostles and to Christ Himself. Why do you slander Her? Why do you fear Her? You use Scripture and "twist it" and "trim it" to suit your point. It does not go unnoticed. My Brothers...please pray for discernment.
The Church chose those dates specifically because they were pagan days of worship. Pagan sites were torn down and a Church was erected on that site. Pagan dates were made into Christian dates of worship. What better way to combat paganism then to attack it head on?
mine here
thanks for the history lesson.. that makes good sense to me.. take down their stuff and put a church of GOD there .. combat it head on and take their day and make it JESUS S day.. nice
i still aint jivin with the name for the holiday though hehe..
Hmm....that seems like pretty poor reasoning to me...but whatever. Sounds more like compromise than "taking it head on".
"Hey! Lets make it easier on the new ex-pagan converts by just changing the names of all their stuff! Then they don't need to feel any difference between worshiping God or Easter! Woo! Problem solved!"
I don't think that's how God works. He expects us to stand for His principles...not giving in to every tradition of man. But you're right, it's only sin if you believe it is or if the bible says it is....although it sounds an awful lot like letting the world change the church instead of the other way around.
Forgive me Father God an those that will disagree...
Her name was Estar...a Pagan Fertility Goddess...the dates we have in the Julian Calendar align and correspond to the Pagan dates of old. Spring, Summer Soltice, Fall, Winter Soltice etc..etc...Non of the Hebrew/Jewish Calendar Dates align with any of the Julian/Roman calendar dates...What better way for the Roman Catholics to gain the Conversion of Pagans...Its jus History an no one wants to challenge this becuz as said prior here...it would rock there boat an world...
Its a shame that Beefcake left us...becuz no one would accept him as he is...jus goes to show us All how singular people are...Anywho...I'll miss him...Luv ya all...xo
