The Ancient History of Easter and Its Symbols

Easter is said to have derived its name from names of an ancient Goddess and God. Bede, a Christian scholar wrote that it came from Eastore (or Eastre), the Great Mother Goddess of the Saxon people in Northern Europe.

A Teutonic dawn goddess of fertility was also known variously as Ostare, Ostara, Ostern, Eostra, Eostre, Eostur, Eastra, Eastur, Austron and Ausos. It is accepted by the majority of scholars to be a pagan fertility rite celebrating the rebirth of life in spring.

Since this celebration started with the pagans, many Christians tried to do away with the celebration. Others tried to "Christianize" it, and to this day, the way it is celebrated still resembles the way it was originally practiced.

Easter egg-hunting is one part of this celebration. In other books, it was said to be even related to the story of Jesus' resurrection and ascension. A story asserted that Mary Magdalene supposedly went to a Roman emperor and greeted him with "Christ is risen" as she gave him a red egg. She went on to preach Christianity to him.

The egg was said to be symbolic of death and resurrection. The red symbolizes the blood of Christ redeeming the world. The egg itself is a symbol of the Resurrection while "being dormant it contains a new life sealed within it".

To be able to handle the eggs easier and that they would not spoil, people were forced to hard boil them for the celebration. The eggs are colored and painted with pretty designs. Origin has it that people intended the eggs to be colorful and beautiful to drive away evil spirits. Good and helpful ones would come because of the beautifully designed eggs.

In many countries, Easter is celebrated with a dawn procession and mass. This could have started a long time ago because before, an early morning celebration symbolizes a sign of hope. Easter is celebrated at the start of the spring season, and for the pagans, it was the start of longer days, and a happier, hopeful life.

The Easter bunny is another symbol of the celebration. Before, he was called the "Easter Hare". Hare and rabbits are actually cousins, and have frequent multiple births, thus, becoming a symbol of fertility. It is seen as a symbol of prosperity or abundance. Ostara, the goddess, was said to have been accompanied by a hare, and this is why the hare (or a rabbit) became an important part of this.

Firecrackers and bells also play a role during Easter. In some countries this was done to drive evil spirits away. For others, it is a symbolic representation of bright, glorifying sun rays that mean hope and triumph over darkness and death in the world. In many Catholic Churches, the bells toll during the Easter Vigil Mass or the Easter Mass itself on Sunday morning to announce that "the Lord has risen".

Christians may have included some pagan traditions in their commemoration of this important celebration of their religion, unknowingly perhaps. But for a Christian like me, the more significant relevance of Easter is about the celebration of faith. Just like in other occasions like Christmas or Thanksgiving, different influences might have been incorporated with one another. Old and non-Christian practices might have been added, they might have been revised, changed or modified to be applicable to the modern times and according to one's values. Being informed of the true meaning of what is celebrated is still the most important thing. Because not knowing it would actually be just like a meaningless revelry.