True meaning of Easter
By By Michelle Blaylock, Mom’s Corner
I had several people stop me the last few weeks and ask if I would again share the origin of the word “Easter.” So here it goes.
It comes from “Eastre,” which was the name of some pagan goddess of spring. It seems 2nd century Christian missionaries took over the holiday the pagans used to celebrate Eastre since it was about the same time the Christians celebrated the resurrection of Christ. The general idea was for Christians to be able to celebrate at the same time as the pagans and to gradually convert more pagans over to Christianity.
Over time, the spelling was changed to “Easter” and became the holiday we now know. Ok, so where does the Easter Bunny come into this? You’ve probably guessed it by now. The bunny was the symbol for “Eastre” the pagan goddess. Easter eggs also have a pagan origin; they represent fertility. Go Figure.
I think it’s important for us to imprint on our children what Easter means for us as Christians. I believe this can be done without having to give up Easter eggs, Easter baskets and other “traditional” stuff. After all, our Heavenly Father created the bunnies, chicks and eggs. It’s how we choose to use them that makes them “bad.”
In our home we focus on worship first and foremost all of the other Easter stuff second. We don’t have huge Easter baskets at our home. We do have baskets, but they are just not the focus of our day. We also try very hard to put things in the Easter baskets to turn our children’s attention back to Christ.
Some examples would be a small chain with a cross on it, a book about the true meaning of Easter, an Easter coloring book depicting the Christian Easter, plastic eggs with simple Easter scriptures or a puzzle depicting an Easter scene.
Another way to use eggs is to talk about how sin stains us as we dye the eggs. And just like we can’t remove the dye from the egg, we can’t remove the sin from our hearts, only Jesus can do that.
Another idea I really like is to use a crayon to write “Easter” messages on the eggs (Jesus Saves, Born Again, He Is Risen, etc.). Eggs also can represent the new life the tomb holds for everyone. (From “Let’s Make a Memory”)
There are so many ideas for Easter I can’t possibly share all of them with you. However, I do want to share a couple of my favorites. The first one is on the internetsite, http://www.annie somepage.com/holiday.html. She has a wonderful poem called the “Jelly Bean Prayer.” It reads: Red is for the blood He gave. Green is for the grass He made. Yellow is for the sun so bright. Orange is for the edge of night. Black is for the sins we made. White if for the Grace He gave. Purple is for the hour of sorrow. Pink is for the new tomorrow.
This is a fun way to share the message of Easter.
It’s easy to put one color jelly bean in a plastic egg with a slip of paper saying what that color represents or put the jelly beans in a small treat bag with the poem and pass them out to friends or family. Another idea this site has is to change the name from “Easter Sunday” to “Resurrection Sunday.” Annie’s page also has a wonderful recipe called “Resurrection Cookies.”
I also love Annie’s idea for the Easter Story Eggs. Her idea is to use 12 Eggs that can be opened and write a part of the Resurrection Story along with scripture background verses and a small token item that goes along with the story, such as a small piece of palm for Palm Sunday.
Make sure to number the eggs so you remember what order to open them, then you open one a day. I just love this idea, but unfortunately I usually forget to do it in time. Therefore, I change it a little and do it more like a puzzle. I number four to six of the eggs, then as we open them we have to figure out what order they should be in. I have also just put the scripture on the message and have the children look them up.
Also, on Annie’s page are ideas from other parents on things they do to keep Christ the main focus of Easter. One Mom suggests that if you’re going to give your children stuffed animals to consider giving them lambs. You can explain the lamb is a reminder of the God’s perfect lamb that was given in sacrifice.
Another Easter site I really like is http://peggiesplace.gospelcom.net/ It not only has some very good ideas, but it also has some wonderful stories related to Easter, as well as devotionals. There is one thing I noticed on her site that I had never considered. I think everyone knows T.G.I.F.
Usually said on Friday afternoons after a long week, “T.G.I.F., Thank God, it’s Friday!” However, when considering Good Friday, T.G.I.F. can and should mean “Thank God, I’m Forgiven!” It’s only through God’s Grace, and Christ’s Sacrifice that we have hope.
After worshiping our Heavenly Father, I think one of the most important aspects of any holiday is spending time with your children and creating memories with them. There is a wonderful book written by Gloria Gaither and Shirley Dobson called, “Let’s Make a Memory.”
I love this book. It has simple ideas that have lasting impressions like the Easter message eggs I mentioned above.
I hope you have a Blessed Resurrection Sunday. If you have a tip, question, or suggestion for Mom’s Corner, please e-mail it to: moms-corner@juno.com.
