Should Christians Observe Easter and Lent?

By Laurel Head

In March and April, there are two religious observances that most of the “Christian” world recognize and participate in. These observances are Easter and Lent. I am in college and therefore, I have friends that observe both, so I have been asked if I observe them. I mostly understand what they symbolize but not fully, so I wanted to take a deeper look into what Easter and Lent symbolize and if Christians should observe them according to what the Bible says about them.

First of all, let’s take a look at if Easter is mentioned in the Bible. The only verse that uses the word Easter is Acts 12:4. Let’s look at the specific word and dig into the Greek language some. the Strong’s number for this word is 3957. The Greek word is πάσχα or pascha. This word is used in the New Testament 29 times. Twenty-eight of those times is referencing the Passover- the night that the angel of the Lord passes over the firstborn of the Israelites and killed all the firstborn of the Egyptians (Exodus 12). Why then is pascha in Acts 12:4 translated to Easter? Shouldn’t it be Passover instead? Take a closer look at who was talking in this context and what is happening. Acts 12:15- “Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he prceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.) And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.” Take note of a few things: Herod was a Roman who governed the Jews, Peter was arrested during the days of unleavened bread, and in Exodus 12 the angel only passed over the Israelites on one night, not multiple nights in a row. The days of unleavened bread are important because they are the 7 days directly after the Passover. The feast of unleavened bread always went after Passover. The Passover had already been observed when Peter was arrested. This means that this word isn’t translated to Passover. Instead of meaning Passover, Easter comes from the words Ashtoreth, Astarte, and Ishtar. these are all names for one goddess. These names are used in ancient Sumerian legends and are associated with the rising sun, rabbits, eggs, and springtime. Ashtoreth is mentioned a few times in the Old Testament in connection with an idol that the Israelites worshipped in defiance of God. 1 Kings 11:5- “For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.” Astarte is also mentioned in the Old Testament as the “queen of heaven.” Jeremiah 7:18- “The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.” Jeremiah 44:17-25 is also an interesting passage to see how God reacted to His children defying His laws and commandments to worship Him only. The fact that Herod was a pagan king solidifies the fact that since he worshipped the “queen of heaven” the Bible is trying to make a difference between the Passover and the pagan holiday Easter. This holiday has been incorporated into the religious world as a celebration to observe the resurrection of Jesus. We are to celebrate the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ every first day of the week, not only on the day that He was resurrected- Acts 2:42; Acts 20:7; and 1 Corinthians 16:2.

Secondly, let’s take a look at Lent. Lent is not mentioned at all in the Bible. However, it is observed in the religious world as a period of 40 days of fasting and prayer. It is meant to symbolize the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert before He was tempted. The Bible says nothing about observing this time or fasting as something that needs to be observed on an annual basis to bring us closer to God. Christians are allowed to fast anytime, but fasting shouldn’t be a show or to flaunt that we are doing something special. Matthew 6:16-18- “Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and they Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.”

In conclusion, both of these observances have been created by the religious world to remember “good” things. But the question that we should ask ourselves every time observing something is brought to our attention is, “Did God command it, or did the world create it?” If God commanded it to be observed, then we should observe it and understand why. If the world created it, then we should study to see if God would want us to observe it, what it symbolizes, and where it originated from.