Happy Easter
March 24th, 2008
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First off I want to say congratulations to my son Brandon for placing 5th in the State Tournament in Iowa as a 6-year-old. Brandon wanted to quit this year halfway through and I talked him into staying with the sport. My simple words were “Anybody can quit, anybody can give up, it doesn’t take anybody special to throw in the towel.” I wanted him to know at an early age that when you start something you’ve got to see it through to the end. I’m sure Brandon is now glad that he stayed in the sport. Hope all had a Happy Easter. Easter itself has come to mean candy, finding Easter eggs, bunnies and the beginning of Spring. Christians use Easter as a remembrance of Jesus’ death and a celebration of His resurrection; but unfortunately we celebrate it with a lot of customs and traditions that aren’t Christian at all. The holiday of Easter was originally a pagan festival celebrating the beginning of Spring that dates all the way back to ancient Babylon, 2000 years before Jesus. It was celebrated using the images of flowers, rabbits and colored eggs that were hidden for kids to find and was preceded by 40 days of avoiding certain types of foods. On Sunday morning, everyone would go to a special sunrise worship service that faced the east and celebrate their savior’s resurrection. It was even topped off with a special meal of ham later that day. Unfortunately, while that holiday was known as Easter (named after a fertility goddess), the “savior” they were worshipping was not Jesus, the Son of God, but Tammuz, the sun god. Easter has always fallen close to the Jewish Passover on the calendar. Passover is the Jewish festival that celebrates God’s deliverance of the Jews out of slavery in Egypt (Deuteronomy 16). It also predicted Jesus’ death and resurrection. It was a completely different holiday from Easter and it would have actually been a sin for a Jew to celebrate Easter. It also would have been a sin for a Jew to not celebrate Passover. So how did Christians get the two so mixed up? The Roman Catholic church would take existing pagan holidays and rework them with Christian names as a way of making the transition to Christianity easier for people. That’s the nice way of explaining their motives. Many Protestant churches have always been suspicious of the real motives behind the holiday and it wasn’t widely accepted in America until the late 1800s, after the Civil War. Why does it matter? Well if someone spends all of their time focusing on the pagan parts of the festival and forgets to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, then they’ve missed the whole point of the holiday. So, I would urge every Christian to focus on the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection and the sacrifice that He made for us and our salvation, not on the holiday of Easter. I don’t want to tell people that they’re sinning by celebrating Easter, because I don’t feel it’s my place to be casting stones. If you feel that you can’t celebrate Easter in good conscience because of its pagan origin, then that’s a decision that you need to make for yourself as a believer in Jesus Christ. A lot of this is new information to me, so it’s something that I’ve decided to give a lot of thought and prayer to. Here are a few links if you want to study more about this: thercg.org, history.com, allaboutjesuschrist.org, lasttrumpetministries.org. Anyway, I’m feeling a lot better now, my schedule at the gym will now be regular again. So everybody have a good weekend and hope we have some good springtime weather for everyone to enjoy. -matt |
39 Responses to “Happy Easter”
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March 24th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
Hey Matt, thanks for posting the great information on Easter. It’s fun to celebrate with eggs and bunnies with kids, but it’s also important to remember Christ, just like you said. Many blessings to you and family in the upcoming spring!
March 24th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
NOTE: As Matt and I were researching the websites that Matt linked to above, we only looked them over for their information on the holiday of Easter. Most of them look pretty solid theologically, but linking to their articles on Easter is not intended to be an endorsement of EVERY belief and opinion expressed on those sites.. -NateR
March 24th, 2008 at 11:01 pm
Somehow the culture manages to de-christianize every major day of celebration that we Christians have and turn them into money-making businesses. As Christians, we can withdraw completely from them and shun everything that isn’t of Christ, or we can be in the world but not of it. And believe me, nothing ticks me off more than not seeing Jesus’ name all over the place on these days, but instead fluffy bunnies, fat jolly men, toys and money money money, but it doesn’t hurt to have fun with giving kids candy or blessing someone with the perfect gift. Last Christmas, ironically, my all around best friend and neighbor gave me one of the best gifts ever, an autographed Matt Hughes portrait with my name on it and a Bible verse-”Chris, keep fighting for Christ”. That is how I view my walk with Christ right now, as a fight, with blood and strategy. Having that on my wall has been so encouraging to see during down times, seeing the world’s greatest welterweight telling you to keep going. Thanks, Matt!
My point here is that we should find ways to bless people through these holidays, because people are much more likely to celebrate a secular holiday than a Christian one. We can then use this a way to witness. I’ve used Christmas as a way of witnessing to a group of Chinese kids who had never heard of Jesus. The presents make the holiday famous, now we can use that to tell our friends the true meanings.
Thanks for the great article Matt, and once again you truly are one of my heroes and you really encourage high school guys like me to press on towards the goal!
March 24th, 2008 at 11:25 pm
Matt…your kinda the Hank Hanagraff of MMA…keep up the apolgetics!!! Pete
March 24th, 2008 at 11:44 pm
I have a question, i’m confused in the first part of the blog
March 24th, 2008 at 11:54 pm
Matt,
As a long-time fan who was born and raised Catholic, I don’t think I like what you are implying. I can assure you that in my 32 years as a Catholic, we’ve never viewed lent or Easter as anything the slightest bit pagan.
In a nutshell, we abstain from eating meat on Fridays during lent (as well as give something up for 40 days or doing something special for others we might not normally do) to commemorate His suffering as well as to raise our awareness for those who are less fortunate than we are. The hope is that we will be more compassionate and charitable to those less fortunate.
A further study of U.S. history would reveal that Protestant discrimination against Catholics is rooted in the fact that Roman Catholicism was the church of many of the European immigrants who were coming to America after the original waves of Protestants had arrived. The KKK was a vehement anti-Catholic organization in the late 1800 and early 1900s. I wouldn’t consider the KKK a “Christian” organization, although that is how they described themselves.
Jesus preached love, forgiveness, compassion, and salvation. He reached out to EVERYONE…especially the less fortunate. I can assure you that message is the only message I have ever heard from the Catholic church about Easter.
March 25th, 2008 at 12:10 am
BradB41,
This is not an attack on Catholics, it’s just history. Those Easter traditions have no biblical basis, that’s a fact not an accusation. Before the Catholic Church adopted the practices, they existed solely as pagan worship rituals. Again, that’s just history, not some kind of anti-Catholic rant.
Jesus could not have kept any of those traditions, because that would have been a sin and Jesus never sinned. If He had sinned, then it would be impossible for him to be the Messiah and the entire Christian faith would be meaningless.
March 25th, 2008 at 12:11 am
My comment above isn’t quite complete. In addition to what I mentioned above, the Catholic church teaches us that God gave his Son so that that we could all achieve salvation.
We are reminded of this not just during lent or Easter, but every time we set foot in church. I think I understand what you were saying though…it’s similar to the way we (Americans) lose sight of the true meaning of Christmas.
March 25th, 2008 at 12:17 am
So I sinned by eating ham yesterday?
[If you think you did, then "yes." Read 1 Corinthians chapter 8 about sins of conscience to understand my point. -NateR]
March 25th, 2008 at 12:25 am
I would have to disagree with you. We were always taught that Jesus suffered for 40 days and 40 night in the desert (i.e., lent). He was tempted by the devil with food and water yet he resisted. We commemorate this by not eating meat on Fridays and by fasting on certain holy days during lent. As I stated earlier, we also give something up or commit to doing something positive for others during the lenten season.
It all is designed to achieve the same end (being a better Christian…not a better pagan). Isn’t that a good thing?
March 25th, 2008 at 12:43 am
You have to be aware of the danger of letting your attachment to religious traditions and customs close your mind to the truth. Jesus came to earth to free us from religion and give us a one-on-one, personal relationship with GOD with no human middlemen.
March 25th, 2008 at 7:37 am
By Matt’s logic then we shouldn’t celebrate the holiday of Christmas because it’s a reworking of the Roman holiday of Saturnalia. Especially because as history has demonstrated Jesus was probably born in the spring.
Really. I joined this forum because of respect out of Matt’s ability as a fighter. Little did I expect that I would find the degree of self righteous bigotry that has been expressed in this thread and in some others.
I have better things to do with my time. Good bye folks. But don’t worry about me because in your eyes I am probably going to hell anyway.
March 25th, 2008 at 7:39 am
The information given I find to be accurate. The TIME of Easter coincides with Passover, which Coincides with the Spring Equinox which is whats Celebrated by Pagens. ALL these have a focus that is based in “New Life” but not all of this reflects around Christ.
There is a difference between viewing Easter as a holiday for chocolate Eggs, and considering it a Religious Festival. All three Systems of belief would tell you that Easter is a RELIGIOUS Festival. The Pagens celebrate fertility in Nature as Winter gives to Spring, The Jewish Celebrate the New Lifr GOD gave them as a fully fledged Race out of Egypt and into Israel, and Christians Celebrate ETERNAL LIFE through Christ. There needed to be a time to remember it, and the Catholic Church decreed that All Souls/All Saints coincide with Tabbanakkles in the Jewish Callendar, which was the Atumnal Equinox of Sam Hein (Halloween, All Halos Even) for the Pagens. Christmas was to mark the Winter Equinox for the Pagens.
The Jewish Festivals conincide with Two Pagen Festivals, The Christian with Three…noone marks the Summer Equinox, that alone seems to be a Stone Henge event for the Druids. Consiquently the Church had many different tactics for convincing conversions…the people would continue to celebrate at the same time, but for different reasons…in a world that has lost all reason, half the people who celebrate Halloween DO NOT KNOW WHY they dress up as evil. You would be horrified if you discovered who Sam Hein for the Pagens is. Easter as an ulternative would seam positively harmless by association!! The Church also took figures and gave them knew meaning,…The Devil was depicted with horns…Guess which Pagen idol is depicted with horns? Eastra ( a later version of Tammuz)
Is Celebrating the Easter a sin? that depends on WHAT at Easter you celebrate. If it is just new life…then YES. If it is Eternal Lift through Christ (and you happen to eat some chocolate eggs aswell…then I dont think thats sinful at all) Lots of people are pagen without realizing…I think I put a group of people off EVER celebrating Halloween again last year whe I explained to them what the Feast was based on.
March 25th, 2008 at 9:55 am
I really do not like these “discussions” as I believe they may initially be well intentioned but almost always turn into discord and disunion between believers.
A poster here mentioned Hank Hanagraf. Hank Hanagraf has said on more than one occasion that we don’t need to be offensive to others when spreading the word - as the Bible is offensive enough on its own (i.e., You are a sinner who is undeserving of grace and nothing you can do on your own will ever be enough to make you worthy of grace. As such your destiny without accepting the gift of grace from Jesus Christ is enternal separation from God).
As a believer who was raised Presbyterian, became a Catholic and who is now a Baptist. I can say only that very few people can accurately claim to “speak” for their denomination - the details are lengthy but suffice it to say there are two distinct groups in each denominational body 1) Those who think that they know all of the denominations doctrine and claim to follow it as absolute, and 2) Those who identify with a particular denomination yet more closely ascribe to the practices of their local congregation. I can say with some authority based on observation and participation that most church members fall into the latter group.
I cannot tell you what I ever believed as a Presbyterian Christian, Catholic Christian or Baptist Christian. I cannot tell you because I have never been any of those things. I have always been a Christian believer first and a member of a church second. I can tell you that we are instructed to keep Jesus’ commands if we love him. And we have three such commands 1) A command to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, and all of our soul, and all of our mind. 2) To love our neighbor as ourselves. and 3) To influence others to do the same.
Division and discord over the origins of Holidays is “low fruit for the picking” when Satan wants to stir things up. He has no power over the victory Jesus won at Calvary. But he does have the power to stir up the body of Christ against one another with arguments like the ones here - and believe it he does.
March 25th, 2008 at 11:37 am
Matt, thanks for the info. I think the wisest thing you said was something everyone who commented here could stand to do. You say, ” lot of this is new information to me, so it’s something that I’ve decided to give a lot of thought and prayer to.” All of us should check our reactions and submit this to God in prayer and ask for His guidance. If He tells me to step back from this type of celebration, I will. If not, then I’ll continue what I’m doing and make sure to glorify Him in ALL I do. Remember, salvation is not through works, but through grace so that none may boast. So, no amount of “activities” will ever save us- only Christ can do that.
Keep fighting the good fight!
March 25th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Matt,
You’re post on Easter is right on the money… I will never understand how easter bunnies, eggs, and egg hunts have anything AT ALL to do with the resurrection of our dear Saviour. That being said, I don’t see how Santa Claus and reindeer have anything to do with the birth of Jesus either. I think the devil is a lot more crafty than people think, and he can use a lot of things to distract and confuse. I think that we should all give a lot of “thought and prayer” to these things that we try to make religious.
March 25th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
Many people have come to know Christmas and Easter to be times of Santa Claus and Easter bunny and presents and candy. I think a lot of people loose sight of the true reason we have holidays such as Christmas and Easter. They are christian holidays yet some people may go through the whole day without even thinking of God or the real reason we are celebrating. I think Matt just was reminding us not to lose sight of what is really important and it is not this materialistic stuff that comes with Christmas and other holidays.
I read the book by Lee Strobel, A Case for Easter……it is something I need to read before Easter to remind myself what I am really celebrating.
March 25th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
don’t worry bald, most of the know it all opinionated people that made a post on this is going to be there too.
george
March 25th, 2008 at 4:21 pm
i am confuse by the name of the 6 year old soni thought matts son name was joe.
george
[If you read Matt's book, then you'll understand. -NateR]
March 25th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
HELLO MATT ,WELL I WENT TO ALL THOSE WEB SITES AND I READ EVERITHING IN ALLTHE WEB SITES ANDU ARE RIGTH …AND HAPPY EASTER EVEN THOW WE SELEBRATE FOUR THE WRONG REASON …I WAS LOOKING IT UP TWO AND I WONDER WATH DO EGGS HAVE TO DO WITH BUNNIES THINK ABOUT IT ..IM REALLY HAPPY U ARE FELLING MUCH BETTER .AND TELL YOUR SUN I SAY HI AND TO SICK WITH HIS SPORT LIKE THEY TELL MRIN KIKBOXING NO PAIN NO GAIN ..LOL,-CINDY
March 26th, 2008 at 9:01 am
I dont think this is a matter of blaming the Roman Catholics…their conversion of these events happened about One Thousand Five Hundred Years ago. The Catholics ideology was NOT to celebrate paganism, but to distroy it by planting their own festivals over the top. The reason we Celebrate the Birth and Death of Christ AT ALL is because of the Roman Catholics organisation of a Liturgical framework where everything important is remembered per year, The Only reason we have Cannonized Scripture AT ALL is because the Roman Catholic Church put the effort in to strucutre what Christians actually believe. The only reason that America and England are even Christian is because of the Roman Empire. It was the Roman Catholic Church who brought Christianity to the Peoples who then went an populated America. I assure you that the Roman Catholic Church isnt the only political Denomination with agendas…but GOD can manage inspite of that, and we are to treat our Roman Catholic Brothers and Sisters in the proper manner…and I think largely, no hatred was intended at all…only one simple Fact…the Roman Church created the festivals to deliberately cover Pagen ones…thats a fact…a fact that in one way we need to be weary of (as mentioned in Matts blog) and a fact in one way we need to be thankful for!
March 26th, 2008 at 9:21 am
Not to sound contrary Pulvaris, but the only reason we have canonized scripture is because God preserved His Word for us. I personally believe that Scripture is God-breathed and God-organized (if that makes any sense). And it is the Holy Spirit that spread Christianity… imagine me saying that it was because of Peter that the first church (although I don’t believe it to be first started on the day of Pentecost) was energized and began spreading… God may have used Peter, but let’s not miss the point that it was all due to God working through men/women. Personally, and this is my own opinion, I don’t credit the Roman Catholic church for any positive advances in Christianity throughout the history of the church.
March 26th, 2008 at 10:43 am
nate-r i read the book and matts sons name is joe and matt is who the book is about.
george
[Reread the bottom of page 158. -NateR]
March 26th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
Brandon,
The Roman Catholic Church was the original Christian faith. If not for the Church, Christianity may have been regarded as little more than a cult in the big picture.
Christianity continues to have millions of followers world-wide, but it is far from (and has never been) the only game in town. Thanks to the efforts of the Roman Catholic Church (and all of the subsequent Protestant denominations that branched off of the Roman Catholic Church) there are millions of Christians across the globe. I would consider that a pretty significant advance.
[Actually, that's not the truth. The Roman Catholic Church didn't exist until the 4th century, almost 300 years after Christ was crucified. -NateR]
March 26th, 2008 at 9:28 pm
WOW! that was some Easter lesson. Thank you for shareing that with us, I really enjoyed reading it. Nice job with your son, Next weekend I take my son down to VA Beach Nationals, he’s 11. I’ll check out the links you posted
March 27th, 2008 at 3:16 am
Hey Matt, thanks for this post. It is true that all of our holidays were originally on or around pagan holidays, and were “Christianized” by the Catholic Church. Christmas, Easter, Halloween, etc… were all pagan holidays to begin with. But remember (and I think you do, based on your statement about good conscience) that Peter had a dream about what was clean and unclean - this ties into what your saying, as does the Bibles teaching about meat sacrificed to idols.
Ever since I became a Christian I dropped Santa Claus from Christmas and the Easter Bunny from Easter, my kids know full well that the holidays are celebrations of the Lords birth and the Lords resurrection. We don’t celebrate Halloween in our home, as I see no redeeming value to it.
Again thank you for the post.
God bless.
March 27th, 2008 at 9:47 am
Then to clarify Nate, Roman Catholicism was the first major Christian denomination and helped and still helps spread Christianity world-wide.
March 27th, 2008 at 10:43 am
i got it now nate, i had forgotten aboou his biological son that the mother wanted him to have nothing to do with. i bet she does now especially in the child support way.
george
March 27th, 2008 at 11:04 am
Actually, BradB41, Christ started His church long before Roman Catholicism began… and the Catholic church actually tried to stop the spread of true Christianity during the Inquisition, where millions of Christians were slaughtered for not agreeing with Catholic heresies… once again, I don’t attribute any positive advances in Christianity to the Catholic church.
March 27th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
The original Christians weren’t Catholics, they were Jews. The first Christian church is believed to have originated in Jerusalem in the first century and back then Christianity was considered just another sect of Judaism, not a separate religion. There were no Gospels written yet, so they had to preach the good news of Jesus out of the Old Testament. It was actually a pretty big controversy in those days whether to allow non-Jews into the Church.
That first church was wiped out in 70 AD when Titus destroyed Jerusalem and the non-believing Jews blamed these new “Christians” (a derogatory term back then, just like “Jesus Freak” is now) for the attack and the destruction of the Temple. Thus, the rift between Jews and Christians began and it’s only now beginning to be healed.
March 27th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Great post Nate…. however, I tend to believe that the first church began during Jesus’ earthly ministry, with His disciples. But, I agree with everything else you stated.
March 27th, 2008 at 10:55 pm
Wow…I think we maybe in a Christian spittin’ contest here. In the long run it doesn’t matter who “was the original Christian faith”. Christ said the Father wants followers who will worship Him in spirit and in truth…sometimes we get wrapped up in our “religion” and forget that it is not about what we think but what God thinks. Read the Bible to get the truth…the church are those who follow Christ, not a denomination.
March 28th, 2008 at 5:14 am
Wow…I have to side with baldprof…Matt you have my utmost respect as a fighter, but as a practicing pagan - we do not question others faiths. Everyone has their own path - and respect the path of any denomination or individual; as you’ve stated I don’t cast stones. I grew up as Catholic and basically learned not to believe in it, further organized religion isn’t for me. At the same time, I do believe in Jesus and that he was a great man and do pray to him at times, but I don’t consider myself as a Christian.
Many of my friends/fighter friends as well criticize me for being a fan of yours because they believe you are a bible thumper - again, I don’t judge anyone for their beliefs; however, I do have a problem with those that prostelitize in many that post on here. Just to be clear many posters believe in the Bible - the Bible is not the word of God it’s the work of religious scholars that have been copied for millenia. Moreover, some say Christ wasn’t considered divine until the Council of Nicea voted him so in 325 at the behest of the emperor. Then Constantine-a lifelong sun worshipper-ordered all older scriptural texts destroyed, which is why no complete set of Gospels predates the fourth century. Christians somehow failed to notice the sudden and drastic change in their doctrine.
Anyway, I’m getting off topic. Just respect people folks and don’t hate. In the end, we are all striving for the same thing - peace, salvation and to be with the divine.
Blessed be,
Ty
March 28th, 2008 at 6:56 am
Brandon,
Sorry you feel that way. I just disagree.
March 28th, 2008 at 8:42 am
I think that the part in the book about Matts biological son left most people thinking Matt has never had anything to do with his first biological son, Brandon…….it would have been nice it it went on to say that he IS a part of his son Brandons life……
March 28th, 2008 at 10:32 am
That’s alright BradB41, we all disagree on some things….
March 29th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
I love the site and have tons of respect for you as a world class fighter. As far as eggs and bunnies go: they’re all things made by God and anything that inspires the laughter of children and the gathering of loved ones has a place in Christianity (in my opinion). On a side note: I wish you would have had Brandon reflect and pray on his decision about quitting rather than use the old “it doesn’t take anyone special to quit”. tell that to the many people who have given up dangerous addictions, left abusive spouses, etc. Quitting can be the the most admirable action we can make as humans. I do agree that once you committ to something you should see it through. Again, I’m a huge fan just airing my opinion. Best regards and thanks for the site.
March 30th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
We need to keep our eyes on what is important here. Easter or, as some have begun to call it, Resurrection Sunday is an essential part of Christianity. Without it there is no resurrection for the rest of us (1 Cor. 15:14ff). This is definitely worth celebrating. The death and resurrection of Jesus is not about an example of what it means to be a good person, it is the satisfaction of God’s anger (Romans 3) so that we can face Him as righteous. We can not accomplish salvation it is given to us through the atoning death of Christ and His resurrection, and that is the only way it is received, through Jesus. That is not arrogant, because none of us “deserve” to go to heaven (Romans 3 again), it is the words of Jesus himself (John 14:6). It is not a matter of respecting other religions or anything of the sort. Respect or not, it is just they way it is. That does not give Christians a right to be jerks.
April 1st, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Hey Matt,
Sounds like you did your research. It’s true what you are saying. I think what people need to remember is that the information is not meant to be offensive but rather informational. Then it’s up to them if they want to participate or not. I would rather know the truth than be left in the dark. That way, I can make the most educated and informed decision for myself and how I should live my life.
Just a kind note to the offended: Don’t get all worked up by this. It’s something to think about or research for yourself, that’s all. You can agree to disagree. Matt like many people has many dimensions. We don’t have to agree on everything to like someone as a person.
Anyway, I personally don’t care if someone wants to celebrate Easter by incorporating bunnies and eggs. I can see the commercialism in it but I don’t see the extreme harm in it either. I don’t get into it myself but I don’t think anything of it when someone does; at the same token you’re absolutely right about the need to focus on Christ. It’s the same with Christmas (which also has pagan roots). People are so conditioned in thinking Christmas is all about presents and spending time with family. Yes, of course all those things are nice, but it’s about God and we need to be sure we hold Him above all these things and not our own desires.
There are Pagan origins to many holidays, celebrations and events. Even wearing your wedding ring has pagan roots but that does not mean I am going to stop wearing my wedding ring. We can change things from the bad to the good.
Love the topic. Keep it up. I can probably talk about this for hours but I won’t bore all of you…
I’ve been enjoying your book too. You’re awesome!
Your Lil’Sis in Christ,
Millie B.