Pretty Girl Swag: What do bunnies on Easter have to do with the Catholic religion?
I’m not Catholic, but we still celebrate Christmas and Easter for the beginning of the winter solstice for Christmas and the beginning of Spring for Easter. That is what my parents tell me was the real celebration and then it got worked into the Catholic religion. I don’t go to church, so I don’t know what they are taught, but where do bunnies come out of it? Why do the church resemble the “rebirth” of church with bunnies?
Answers and Views:
Answer by Lepke
I am really not sure about the bunnies, but the Easter eggs are a symbol of rebirth.
What does Santa have to do with Christmas?
I think this is done for the children.
Answer by Just Plain BobBunnies are a symbol of fertility. Eostara, a pagan fertility goddess was worshipped at about the same time as the Christians chose to celebrate Easter.Answer by Ceisiwr
Bede writing in the 8th century CE wrote that the feast of Easter was originally an Anglo-Saxon festival in honour of the goddess Eostre, but that by his time no-one revered the goddess. It seems likely that a pre-Christian religion did celebrate the rebirth of life in spring and that when Christianity was imposed, instead of abolishing the festival, the reason for it was changed from the resurrection of the crops to the resurrection of Christ. The use of fertility symbols – Easter Eggs and Easter Bunnies – is a pointer to the pre-Christian meaning of Easter.
The supernatural beings and traditions of pre-Christian religions have become part of children’s lore – perhaps where the Church considers them harmless. Examples are fairies, as well as Easter eggs and bunnies.
Answer by Knickers Molloybunnies, eggs, chickens – nothing to do with Jesus Christ, just a pretty little distractionAnswer by Antonia Hausner
becuase eggs and bunnies were symbols of fertility from the ancient spring festival that easter was orginally. easter used to be a pagan holiday just like chirstmas.Answer by Solomon
The Origin of Easter
The name Easter, used in many lands, is not found in the Bible. The book Medieval Holidays and Festivals tells us that “the holiday is named after the pagan Goddess of the Dawn and of Spring, Eostre.” And who was this goddess? “Eostre it was who, according to the legend, opened the portals of Valhalla to receive Baldur, called the White God, because of his purity and also the Sun God, because his brow supplied light to mankind,” answers The American Book of Days. It adds: “There is no doubt that the Church in its early days adopted the old pagan customs and gave a Christian meaning to them. As the festival of Eostre was in celebration of the renewal of life in the spring it was easy to make it a celebration of the resurrection from the dead of Jesus, whose gospel they preached.”
This adoption explains how in certain lands the Easter customs, such as Easter eggs, the Easter rabbit, and hot cross buns, came about. Concerning the custom of making hot cross buns, “with their shiny brown tops marked by a . . . cross,” the book Easter and Its Customs states: “The cross was a pagan symbol long before it acquired everlasting significance from the events of the first Good Friday, and bread and cakes were sometimes marked with it in pre-Christian times.”
Answer by harpertaraQuick history lesson as your parents told you Some but not All of the story…
The Early Church didn’t celebrate Pasch (no easter) with eggs, bunnies, etc. It was a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus and was a solemn high feast day. Certainly there were lots of family gatherings and people had lard meals/feasts to celebrate the end of the Fasting of Lent back then.
The whole thing with the bunnies and eggs didn’t happen until the Germanic Tribes were converted to Christianity and they brought into the celebration the idea of eggs and rabbits. Eggs because they are a symbol of rebirth and continuance. Hares or rabbits because they are a symbol of fertility and continuation after winter. That part was taken from the Germanic celebration of the goddess Eostre, from which our modern Easter gets its name.
The Catholic church, per se, has never made the eggs or rabbits part of the religious celebration of Easter. But as more and more people latched on to this idea and it became popular, it became associated with Easter instead of the Spring Equinox which is when the Germanic day of honoring Eostre was.Answer by BibleChooser
Nothing. It is a practice derived from Germanic culture; most Roman Catholics probably do not associate rabbits with Easter – just those who are part of a Germanic-based culture.
2) That is what my parents tell me was the real celebration and then it got worked into the Catholic religion.
They are probably correct about Christmas (though that remains hypothetical); they are certainly wrong about Easter, the date of which is derived from the Jewish Passover rather than any pagan celebration of the Vernal Equinox.
Final note: the bunnies were probably originally associated with pagan Germanic Vernal Equinox celebrations. Many Germanic **customs** remained intact when the religion changed from pagan to Christian, and so the bunnies – formerly associated by the Germanic cultures with celebrations of spring – became instead associated with the Germanic Christian celebration of Easter that occurs at approximately the same time of year.
– Jim, https://www.bible-reviews.com/
Answer by Lightning From the EastThe word “Easter” comes from a pagan figure called Eastre (or Eostre) who was celebrated as the goddess of spring by the Saxons of Northern Europe. A festival called Eastre was held during the spring equinox by these people to honor her. The goddess Eastre’s earthly symbol was the rabbit, which was also known as a symbol of fertility. Since rabbits and hares give birth to large litters in the early spring, it’s understandable that the rabbit is the symbol of fertility.
The legend of the Easter Bunny bringing eggs appears to have been brought to the United States by settlers from southwestern Germany. The German tradition of the Easter Bunny or “Oschter Haws” migrated to America in the 1800s, likely accompanying German immigrants, many of whom settled in Pennsylvania. Over the past 200 years, the Easter Bunny has become the most commercially recognized symbol of Easter.
In legend, the Easter Bunny, also called the Easter Hare and the Spring Bunny, brings baskets filled with colored eggs, candy, and sometimes toys to the homes of children on the night before Easter, in much the same way as Santa Claus is said to deliver presents on Christmas Eve. The Easter Bunny will either put the baskets in a designated place or hide them somewhere in the house or garden for the children to find when they wake up in the morning, giving rise to the tradition of the Easter egg hunt.
Should Christian parents allow their children to participate in traditional activities that refer to the Easter Bunny? This is a question both parents and church leaders struggle with. There is nothing essentially evil about the Easter Bunny, unless it is used to promote the goddess of spring or fertility rites. What is important is our focus. If our focus is on Christ and not the Easter Bunny, our children will understand that, like Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny is merely a symbol. As with Christmas, Easter should be a time to reflect upon and celebrate the incarnation, the resurrection and the risen Christ.
https://www.gotquestions.org/easter-bunny-eggs.html
The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus
By: Gary R. Habermas, Michael R. Licona
https://www.christianbook.com/the-case-for-the-resurrection-jesus/gary-habermas/9780825427886/pd/427886?event=AFF&p=1011693&
Thanks for the respectful question. Your parents are a little off, but that’s probably because they aren’t church-goers, so it’s easy to get things mixed up.
The celebration of the Nativity of Christ (Dec. 25) is NOT the winter solstice. You can look it up if you don’t believe me. Winter solstice is on Dec. 21 or 22, depending on what year it is. Obviously not the same date! The reason the Nativity was set for Dec. 25 is because it’s nine months after March 25. Nine months is important because that’s how long a woman is pregnant (traditionally, anyway — she’s actually pregnant for about 9.5 months, but she usually only knows she’s pregnant for 9 months). March 25 is celebrated as the Feast of the Annunciation: when Mary was told by the angel that she was going to bear the Christ Child, and also the day the Holy Spirit came upon her and made her pregnant. The reason why the Feast of the Annunciation is celebrated on March 25 is because in the Hebrew tradition (keeping in mind that Mary, Joseph & Jesus are all Jewish), that’s when they celebrate Purim, which is the deliverance of the Jews from the Persians. Jesus also delivered us, from the bondage of sin, a different kind of slavery. Get it?
Now for today. Easter isn’t actually the name of the Holy Day we celebrate today. It’s Pascha – the fulfillment of the Jewish observance of Passover. Did you ever learn what Passover is? The Egyptians had enslaved the Jews, and Moses was sent to help lead them out. Their king wouldn’t let them go, so God sent plague after plague. Finally, He sent the Angel of Death to kill all the firstborn sons, but He gave the Jews instructions so they would avoid this horrible loss. They were to take a spotless lamb, kill it and brush the atoning blood of the lamb on their door frames. It worked – the Jews finally got away. The Passover meal was repeated every year thereafter (still to this day) to celebrate God’s grace to the Jews. The Last Supper that Jesus had with His disciples was a Passover meal. But this time, not only was a spotless lamb killed for that meal, Jesus, the ultimate spotless Lamb, was killed to conquer the penalty of death that we all suffer because of our sins.
Now, then, as I said, Pascha is the real name for this Holy Day – in Latin (the official language of the Church). For some reason, people in English-speaking countries call it Easter, but nobody else does. It’s totally the wrong name, a derivative from the name of the pagan spring equinox celebration.
Bunnies have NOTHING to do with Catholicism, and you won’t find a bunny anywhere in any Catholic Church anywhere in the world today. Bunnies are a commercialized marketing thing, based on some vague memory of some vague pagan symbolism. Some Catholics put chocolate bunnies in baskets for this Holy Day, but that’s for their own pleasure, and it has zero to do with what we are celebrating today.
Answer by goodluckwithhatLike spring is a time of life, when bunnies and other animals are born, Jesus resurrected to new life on Easter. Therefore, we celebrate new life everywhere we find it.Answer by imagicalgreek
There’s a pretty good explanation of it in this article:
The Origin of “Easter,” Bunnies and Eggs
https://easton.patch.com/articles/the-origin-of-easter-bunnies-and-eggs
Hope that helps!
Answer by PainkillerN O T H I N G to do. that’s a popular way to keep Christ far from the Easter. “ooooh, the holy bunny of love!!!” . . . darn itAnswer by Wayne Pearson
Bunnies have nothing to do with what Catholics celebrate on Easter. No connection. Same thing with Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and Christmas. Sorry, no connection.Answer by Matt
As you stated, you are not Catholic. That is why I am not surprised you might think the Easter Bunny has something to do with Catholic doctrine. It doesn’t. No connection. Drinking green beer on St. Patty’s Day also has nothing to do with Catholic teaching.Answer by JW625
THE Bible is not the source of popular religious and secular holidays that are celebrated in many parts of the world today. What, then, is the origin of such celebrations? If you have access to a library, you will find it interesting to note what reference books say about holidays that are popular where you live. Consider a few examples.
Easter. “There is no indication of the observance of the Easter festival in the New Testament,” states The Encyclopædia Britannica. How did Easter get started? It is rooted in pagan worship. While this holiday is supposed to commemorate Jesus’ resurrection, the customs associated with the Easter season are not Christian. For instance, concerning the popular “Easter bunny,” The Catholic Encyclopedia says: “The rabbit is a pagan symbol and has always been an emblem of fertility.”
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