What is the origin of the name “Easter” that commemorates the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus?
The word is not found in the Bible, so where does it come from? Most Christians would be surprised to learn the name “Easter” originated from the name of an ancient pagan goddess, Eostre (a.k.a. Eastre). She was the Great Mother Goddess of the Saxon people in Northern Europe. The Anglo-Saxons celebrated the return of spring with a festival commemorating their goddess of springtime, Eastre. When the second-century Christian missionaries met with the pagan celebrations, they attempted to convert them to Christianity. In the process, they “Christianised” the existing pagan festivals. The festival of Eastre happend at the same time of year as the Christian observance of the resurrection of Christ, which was originally at the time of the Jewish Passover. Pagans and Christians would quarrel bitterly about which of their gods was the true prototype and which the imitation. Many religious historians believe that the death and resurrection legends were first associated with pagan gods, many cen
