As Resurrection Sunday approaches

[SolaFide]

Instead of all the pagan trappings of eggs and rabbits which actually are derived from pagan celebrations of fertility returning to the land in spring…how about if you all are challenged to actually celebrate God’s festivals God’s way? This will ruffle feathers and rattle cages…read on if you dare:

A Holiday Parable

Once upon a time there was a wonderful King that ruled a Kingdom.The King was always doing fine and wonderful things for His people. The people desired in their hearts to worship and glorify the King and His wonderful deeds. So the King planned appointed times each year: special times for celebrations to tell the stories of His deeds to the people’s children and to glorify the King. The King wrote the instructions of how to observe the celebrations in a book called the Book of Wisdom. For many years the people enjoyed these celebrations. Each year they would learn more about their King and feel closer to Him. They realized the King’s celebrations were not only to tell stories of the things the King had done for His people in the past, but also foreshadows of more fine things the King was planning to do for them in the future.

There was another kingdom that did not worship the King. They worshiped objects such as statues, animals, trees, and the sun. In this other kingdom, the people practiced several different annual parties that glorified the people and the objects instead
of the King. Each party had a different theme. In some they dressed up like animals and other beings. In some they decorated their homes and gave gifts to each other. Then a man from this other kingdom visited the King’s kingdom and told the people the annual parties were much more fun than the King’s celebrations. Some of the people wanted to continue celebrating the ceremonies that worshiped the King. Other people wanted to replace the special celebrations with the new celebrations.

Through the years people started to combine both sets of celebrations. They would practice the annual parties, meant to worship objects such as statues, animals, trees, and the sun,
but they would say that they were worshipping the King, not the object, so everyone would be happy. They changed the appointed times of the King’s celebrations to new times that coincided with the annual parties. The people of both kingdoms were combining so many traditions that no one could tell that there were two kingdoms.The kingdoms blended into each other. This continued for many years until the most recent generations forgot the celebrations that the King planned that glorified the King and His wonderful deeds for the people.

One day a man was reading the Book of Wisdom. He came across a little known chapter that told about the King’s appointed times each year: special times for celebrations to tell the stories of His deeds to the people’s children and to glorify the King.
He was so excited! He went to tell the people about the wonderful celebrations.

This made the people very angry. They felt that the man was condemning them for traditions that they had innocently done all their lives. They did not understand. The man was sad, but he decided to keep the King’s celebrations in his own family. The man’s family learned much about the King. In fact, each year the man and his family grew closer and closer to the King because of the wonderful stories they learned about during the celebrations. The man and his family learned that the King had special secrets that revealed foreshadows of more fine things the King was planning to do for them. That man wanted so much to share these stories with others. Even though the man was continually rejected, he continued to tell about the King’s celebrations. After a while, a few other families (who had always felt uncomfortable
about the annual parties they kept) listened to the man. They read the chapter in the Book of Wisdom and also got excited. Soon many people returned to celebrating the King’s appointed times, worshipping and telling stories about the King. This made the King very happy!

 

[Veritas41]

Every Sunday is a celebration of the Resurrection, and we always celebrate by worshipping the Holy Trinity during Holy Mass

 

[Rawb]

So how do we celebrate ‘Ressurrection Sunday’ God’s way?

We can’t dress all in white, some pagans do that.
We can’t have a large meal in honor of Our Lord, the pagans do that.
We can’t change the day to any other day, they’re all named after pagan gods.
We can’t plant a garden in honor of the day, because the pagans worship plants.
We can’t baptise, because pagans have washing rituals.
We can’t smile, hug, kiss, shake hands, or wish people peace; those are all practices of the pagans as well.
We must not eat, breath, sleep, walk, speak, dress ourselves, shower, attend religous services, or decorate our homes because the pagans do all of these things.

Or we could accept that everything can have the meaning you give to it, and realize that intent matters, and look at things differently.

If we do this, we may try and find a symbol for something that looks dead and brings forth new life…what about an egg? That looks like a stone, but bursting forth from it come a chick! Then we’ll hide it and find it to represent those who searched for Christ at the tomb! We can retell the story of St. Mary Magdalene who brought an egg to a pagan king and used it to explain the Resurrection. The king said he would believe if the egg turned red. In the hand of St. Mary, it did so. ( fullhomelydivinity.org/eggs.htm )

We could plant flowers and gardens, then bring some of those flowers into our homes. After all, these plants are new life of spring! Plus they smell good and look nice and grace all of creation, what God has created!

We might dress in white, to remind ourselves the baptism Our Lord has instituted! We could also wear red, for the blood he had shed, or blue like his mother’s veil.

And food! We could make ressurrection cookies (annieshomepage.com/resurrectioncookies.html)), or eat lamb, and tell our children and friends about how these things tell the story of Christ and his sacrifice!

We could get together with our family and friends, eat the food, look at the decorations, hunt for eggs, and announce as we walk in the door “Christus resurrexit!” and rejoice in their response of “Vere resurrexit!” or “Deo Gratias!”*

You know, either way.

*Note, for our Eastern Brethren, “Christos anesti” and the response is “Alithos anesti!”

 

[SolaFide]

So how do we celebrate ‘Ressurrection Sunday’ God’s way?

We can’t dress all in white, some pagans do that.
We can’t have a large meal in honor of Our Lord, the pagans do that.
We can’t change the day to any other day, they’re all named after pagan gods.
We can’t plant a garden in honor of the day, because the pagans worship plants.
We can’t baptise, because pagans have washing rituals.
We can’t smile, hug, kiss, shake hands, or wish people peace; those are all practices of the pagans as well.
We must not eat, breath, sleep, walk, speak, dress ourselves, shower, attend religous services, or decorate our homes because the pagans do all of these things.

Or we could accept that everything can have the meaning you give to it, and realize that intent matters, and look at things differently.

If we do this, we may try and find a symbol for something that looks dead and brings forth new life…what about an egg? That looks like a stone, but bursting forth from it come a chick! Then we’ll hide it and find it to represent those who searched for Christ at the tomb! We can retell the story of St. Mary Magdalene who brought an egg to a pagan king and used it to explain the Resurrection. The king said he would believe if the egg turned red. In the hand of St. Mary, it did so. ( fullhomelydivinity.org/eggs.htm )

We could plant flowers and gardens, then bring some of those flowers into our homes. After all, these plants are new life of spring! Plus they smell good and look nice and grace all of creation, what God has created!

We might dress in white, to remind ourselves the baptism Our Lord has instituted! We could also wear red, for the blood he had shed, or blue like his mother’s veil.

And food! We could make ressurrection cookies (annieshomepage.com/resurrectioncookies.html)), or eat lamb, and tell our children and friends about how these things tell the story of Christ and his sacrifice!

We could get together with our family and friends, eat the food, look at the decorations, hunt for eggs, and announce as we walk in the door “Christus resurrexit!” and rejoice in their response of “Vere resurrexit!” or “Deo Gratias!”*

You know, either way.

*Note, for our Eastern Brethren, “Christos anesti” and the response is “Alithos anesti!”

The saddest part of your response is the fact that you had to even ask those questions.

Why don’t you read Exodus…understand the Passover and the significance of Jesus being the Passover lamb that was sacrificed and the other typologies. That’s how to celebrate it. Oh, and one other thing…undo the hundreds of years of anti-semitism and Judeo-phobia and move Resurrection day back to during Passover rather than de-Judaizing it as Constantine did who declared it illegal to celebrate Christ’s crucifiction during Passover thereby moving Christianity further into Greco-Romanism and further from her Hebraic roots.

 

[SolaFide]

Every Sunday is a celebration of the Resurrection, and we always celebrate by worshipping the Holy Trinity during Holy Mass

Mass is one of those anti-King celebrations spoken of in the parable. Sadly, you didn’t get that. Why don’t you just celebrate it the way the Bible says to instead of with man-made traditions?

Do you celebrate God’s festivals or just ones the church adopted from paganism?

 

[SolaFide]

Something else to think about…

Millions of Christians are exclaiming, “Enough!” They have had it with worship traditions inherited from Medieval Christianity with little, if any, reformation. They are no longer satisfied with performance/audience-based religion that is little different from the theatrical performances in ancient temples. They will no longer tolerate holy days and festivals that are little more than pagan celebrations with a thin veneer of biblical language and expression. And by the millions they are leaving traditional structured Christianity.

Increasingly, believers are reaching out for the God of the Bible. They are reclaiming their coinheritance with the People of the Book by restoring the Hebrew foundations of their faith. No longer satisfied with jejune ritual of Christianity past, now in the tradition of the Jewish forebears of their faith, they are hungry for more intimacy with God, more emotive expression of their love and passion for him. They want to do God’s thing God’s way. They want to worship him in words and forms which he has approved in his Word. They are discovering that this God of the Bible is a jealous God who seeks obedience more than sacrifice, who says, “If you love me, keep my commandments.”

 

[Rawb]

Something else to think about…

Millions of Christians are exclaiming, “Enough!” They have had it with worship traditions inherited from the local pop psychologist, and the liberalism of the sixties. They are no longer satisfied with performance/audience-based religion that is little different from the theatrical performances at modern day rock concerts. They will no longer tolerate a lack of holy days and festivals, instituted by narrow minded men who see any celebration as wrong, unless that celebration is specifically outlined in their (often incomplete) Bible, (has to fit their interpretation of said Bible, from their point of view). By the millions, they are running towards traditional, structured, Christianity.

It goes both ways.

It sounds as if you’re advocating Judaizing, which possibly the first heresy of The Church. It was dealt with at the Council in the book of Acts.

Many parishes, mine included, celebrate some form of passover, linking it to Christ. That’s the whole point of having Lamb on Easter Sunday. That’s why in the Eastern rites, and Orthodoxy, Easter is called “Pascha” (or something similar. Many non-English speaking nations also do this).

Finally, I just have to say, I see it as ironic that you call the Mass a performance/audience-based religion, when most protestant churches are completely devoid of any contact between officiant and congregation. The congregation sings, then listens to the man or woman at the front sing, pray, sermonize, pray, and dismiss them. There is interaction between our priests and parishoners during The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

 

[blossom02]

OK, so tell us Solafide how is everyone to have Easter celebrated. What will your day be like on Easter Sunday and what will you do Holy Week?

 

[Evan]

Mass is one of those anti-King celebrations spoken of in the parable. Sadly, you didn’t get that. Why don’t you just celebrate it the way the Bible says to instead of with man-made traditions?

Do you celebrate God’s festivals or just ones the church adopted from paganism?

The Mass in the bible is the combination of the way the Jews celebrated in Synogog (Liturgy of the Word) and the way the Christians celebrated in the Home (Liturgy of the Eucharist).

Each Saturday in Synogog they would go hear the OT expounded. Then celebrate the next morning with the revelation of Jesus “as long as time permits” followed by the “breaking of the bread” or the “supper of the Lamb”.

We haven’t changed since the AD 30’s. Eventually we were thrown out of the synogog and had to reflect on the OT and the revelation of the Lord in our homes (Church), but when converts from Judaism come to the Mass they say ’ we have found a Christian synogog’

It is celebrated in heaven similarly to how we celebrate on earth. (revelation).

 

[SolaFide]

It sounds as if you’re advocating Judaizing, which possibly the first heresy of The Church. It was dealt with at the Council in the book of Acts.

First of all, do you even know what Judaizing was? It was “requiring” gentiles to get circumcised and keep the Torah in order to be saved. I am NOT advocating that. Rather what I am advocating is a truer appreciation of God and understanding His word and His provision for us through the Messiah by understanding the Hebrew roots of our faith.

The entire Torah speaks of Yeshua HaMashiach! It points to him in every detail of the Tabernacle (later the Temple), in every feast and festival in every story. Did you know there are over 100 similarities in the story of Joseph to Jesus? Can you find them?

How can you truly love someone if you have no idea of where they came from and their culture? How can you understand them or know them? You can’t. Why are Christians so vehemently holding onto a Greco-Roman interpretation and exposition of a Book that is Hebrew from start to finish?

For example: The book of Revelation has only 404 verses but with over 800 allusions, references or illustrations from the Tanakh (Old Testament). So how can you possibly understand the Book of Revelation without understanding the Old Testament? You can’t!

Likewise, when we celebrate the Lord’s Supper we have to understand that it was a Passover Seder Jesus was partaking of with his disciples. (Matt 26:19, Luke 22:8-15) Therefore, we need to understand what goes on during a Passover Seder to truly understand what was meant during the cup and bread. Otherwise we come up with unbiblical ideas and traditions adapted from paganism.

Does this take work and diligence on our part? Absolutely! But we must search for wisdom as one searches for gold or precious jewels.

Pro 16:16 How much better it is to acquire wisdom than gold; to acquire understanding is more choice than silver.

 

[SolaFide]

OK, so tell us Solafide how is everyone to have Easter celebrated. What will your day be like on Easter Sunday and what will you do Holy Week?

Our celebration of Resurrection Day (the date celebrated on the Roman calendar) will include a sunrise service (as our Lord arose before sunrise) with worship and praise and then a teaching about the resurrection at our local fellowship.

BTW: I don’t use the word “E” word anymore as it’s the adaptation of the name of a pagan fertility goddess.

Exo 23:13 Take heed to do everything I have told you to do, and do not make mention of the names of other gods-do not let them be heard on your lips.

Later, according the the Jewish calendar (thus in April) we and some fellow believers will celebrate again with a Messianic Passover Seder, including the explanation of how Yeshua HaMashiach fulfilled all the elements of the Passover and the looking forward to drinking the fourth cup with Yeshua in the Kingdom as He promised.

In an ideal world, the celebration of Resurrection day would be the 17th of Nisan, the day Jesus actually resurrected or at least coincide in some way with Passover. But through the centuries, the church has made sure that doesn’t happen any more.

 

[Lev23]

Solafide, I see your point how the Sunday our Lord rose from the dead has sort of lost its Israeli idenity. Knowledge of the actual feast day Yeshua was resurrected would come in handy when we witness to our Jewish friends. That feast of Israel was the feast of firstfruits. Saint Paul in 1 Cor 15 refers to Yeshua as the “firstfruits”. Before eggs, the “Easter” name,etc., the day our Lord rose from the dead had significance to Israel and the third feast day of Firstfruits.

 

[paidion]

Solafide, I see your point how the Sunday our Lord rose from the dead has sort of lost its Israeli idenity. Knowledge of the actual feast day Yeshua was resurrected would come in handy when we witness to our Jewish friends. That feast of Israel was the feast of firstfruits. Saint Paul in 1 Cor 15 refers to Yeshua as the “firstfruits”. Before eggs, the “Easter” name,etc., the day our Lord rose from the dead had significance to Israel and the third feast day of Firstfruits.

You lost me, Lev 23. Are you saying Yeshua rose from the dead on Ha Bikkurim (First Fruits or Latter First Fruits)? If so, you are mistaken. Bikkurim/Shavuot occurred well after He was raised from the dead. (see Acts 2)

Messiah was resurrected during Hag Ha Matzah (Feast of Unleavened Bread). Still a significant time, just not the same as Shavuot.

shalom

 

[Charlie_Zeaiter]

Our celebration of Resurrection Day (the date celebrated on the Roman calendar) will include a sunrise service (as our Lord arose before sunrise) with worship and praise and then a teaching about the resurrection at our local fellowship.

BTW: I don’t use the word “E” word anymore as it’s the adaptation of the name of a pagan fertility goddess.

Hi SolaFide,

Firstly, may I ask, do you have children? I suspect your children won’t find E-day very special. Kids are like that.

Exo 23:13 Take heed to do everything I have told you to do, and do not make mention of the names of other gods-do not let them be heard on your lips.

Later, according the the Jewish calendar (thus in April) we and some fellow believers will celebrate again with a Messianic Passover Seder, including the explanation of how Yeshua HaMashiach fulfilled all the elements of the Passover and the looking forward to drinking the fourth cup with Yeshua in the Kingdom as He promised.

Jesus was cruicified on Passover. We commemorate this on Good Friday. You’d probably call it GF-day. I’m not sure why you would commemorate that after the resurrection. Maybe I didn’t understand you correctly.

In an ideal world, the celebration of Resurrection day would be the 17th of Nisan, the day Jesus actually resurrected or at least coincide in some way with Passover. But through the centuries, the church has made sure that doesn’t happen any more.

Actually, he was crucified on 14th Nisan (Friday, 3rd April, 33AD). And was laid resting in the tomb for 15th Nisan (Saturday Sabbath - interesting to note, the day of rest). And was resurrected on 16th Nisan (Sunday).

To say that “the church has made sure that doesn’t happen any more” is, I think, being quite ignorant towards history. And it is very telling of your attitude towards our faith and culture.

 

[paidion]

To say that “the church has made sure that doesn’t happen any more” is, I think, being quite ignorant towards history.

to anyone:

So just how did it come about that Easter is celebrated on days independent of when Passover is? Passover is at the same time every year according to the Jewish calendar, but Easter is all over the place.

shalom

 

[strngrnrth]

Easter is not, as it turn out, a corruption of Eostre/ Astarte/ Ishtar, identified with Inanna, but is in fact simply a Germanic word meaning “spring, dawn or the east”. In the Norse/Teutonic Germanic pantheon there was no goddess by that name. It was the name of the season but not of any deity.
We call it Easter in English because it occurs in springtime – that is all. It’s not even the equinox, except once on a while by coincidence. It’s normally far later than the equinox.
People throughout the northern hemisphere have always celebrated fertility and new life in spring because that is when baby animals emerge from their nests and get some sunshine.

 

[Charlie_Zeaiter]

to anyone:

So just how did it come about that Easter is celebrated on days independent of when Passover is? Passover is at the same time every year according to the Jewish calendar, but Easter is all over the place.

shalom

Theoretically, Easter is the Sunday that follows Passover (because Jesus rose on the Sunday after Passover, 33AD). And Passover is the first full moon of Spring. But the early catholics got tired of waiting for the Jews to finish their astronomical observances to determing Passover. So, the early catholics decided to use scientific methods to determine the first full moon of Spring.

But the scientists that the early catholics trusted had gotten their science wrong. The predictions of the full moon were slightly inaccurate. And by the time they realised this, centuries later, a schism had already taken place. Nowadays, Chrisitianity it too divided to come up with common Easter date across the world.

So, pagan names like “Easter”, and unbiblical symbols like the rabbit, and those unchristian eggs, and the incorrect date… boy, I tell ya - we celebrate Easter is very unorthodox way.

But so what?

The important thing is that we teach that Jesus died and rose from the dead. We need to teach that to non-Christians. What could be more important than that?

 

[paidion]

Theoretically, Easter is the Sunday that follows Passover (because Jesus rose on the Sunday after Passover, 33AD). And Passover is the first full moon of Spring. But the early catholics got tired of waiting for the Jews to finish their astronomical observances to determing Passover. So, the early catholics decided to use scientific methods to determine the first full moon of Spring.

errr…to what “astronomical observances” are you referring? The entire Jewish calendar reflects the lunar cycle. I’m not sure what scientific methods the early catholics used, but the Jews had no problem whatsoever determining when Passover was to occur every year.

What I have read so far indicates that the date for celebrating Easter was set at the time of the council of Nicea (sp?). Part of the reasoning for changing the date had to do with making the celebration of the resurrection always occur on a Sunday, vs. various days of the week. (The reason it would change from year to year was because of the disparity between the Hebrew calendar and the Roman one.)

Some of the other things I have read indicate certain early Christians (because of their anti-Semitism) wanted to wipe out any references to the Jewish roots of the faith. I was trying to find out if any of this was true or not.

shalom

 

[paidion]

Someone in an earlier post on this thread made reference to kids and the fun (or no fun) they may/may not have celebrating the holiday.

May I suggest that the amount of “fun” one can have should not be the determining factor on whether or not to promote or continue a certain celebration. Not hunting for eggs or the lack getting a chocolate rabbit has not caused my kids to miss out on any fun.

Our family has always celebrated Pesach. The entire seder revolves around telling the story of G-d leading His people out of the bondage of slavery in Egypt. Children are an integral part of this celebration. If you’ve ever been to a seder, you’ll know the excitement of the search for the afikomen and the reward/ransom that is paid. This holiday is a great time for the extended family to gather together (much like Thanksgiving or Christmas). There is plenty of fun to be had.

Yet the reason we celebrate it is because G-d said to do so, not just because it is “fun”. The Gospels record numerous times when Messiah Himself celebrated it. How can we go wrong following His example?

I do not mean to imply that how anyone else celebrates the Holy Days is “wrong” or “bad”. Certainly celebrating Messiah’s death & resurrection can be done on any/every day and in many different ways. My take on the OP is that perhaps we should consider why we celebrate things in the way we do and not do things merely because “we’ve always done it this way”.

shalom

 

[Lev23]

You lost me, Lev 23. Are you saying Yeshua rose from the dead on Ha Bikkurim (First Fruits or Latter First Fruits)? If so, you are mistaken. Bikkurim/Shavuot occurred well after He was raised from the dead. (see Acts 2)

Messiah was resurrected during Hag Ha Matzah (Feast of Unleavened Bread). Still a significant time, just not the same as Shavuot.

shalom

Yeshua rose on the 3rd feast, “Firstfruits”, not Shavuot. The third feast is always on the first Sunday after Unleavened Bread. Since Unleavened Bread was seven days long, one of those days would be a Sunday and that Sunday would be the 3rd feast of First Fruits every year-
Leviticus 23:11—…the priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath.

Yeshua was crucified on Passover, buried on Unleavened Bread, rose from the dead on First Fruits(Sunday), and the Holy Spirit came at Shavuot., again on a Sunday, exactly 50 days(“Pentecost”) after the 3rd feast of First Fruits.