Today on Easter, someone probably said to you, “Happy Sex Goddess Day!”
No? That didn’t happen? It probably did, and you just didn’t know it. The word “Easter” is the English equivalent to the Babylonian “Ishtar” who was the goddess of fertility, love, war, and sex. On Ishtar Day, worshippers would rise early in the morning and go the temple for a Sunrise service. Later in the day, they would feast on an Ishtar ham, and the children would go outside and hunt for decorated Ishtar eggs. The eggs were supposed to have come from divine Ishtar bunnies, which were revered for their ability to rapidly reproduce. Ishtar was, after all, a fertility goddess.
The reason the church adapted some of the symbolism and practices is an interesting study, but the simplest explanation is found in our own culture. How many of you have t-shirts that say “God’s Gym” or “Abreadcrumb & Fish”? I’ve seen t-shirts with the Guitar Hero design, but on closer inspection, it says “God is my Hero.” Similarly, “Amazing Grace” t-shirts that look like “American Idol,” or a shirt with the superman logo, but instead of a big “S” it has “JC.” I’ve seen a Staple’s “Easy” button with the word “Jesus” on it instead. Is all this silly, commercialized, “Jesus Junk”? Maybe. But the reason people make this stuff is because it sells. People buy $4.6 billion of this stuff every year. And one reason Christians buy it is because such things help them bring Christ into culture. I would argue that there may be better ways of doing this, but that’s a different subject.
The point is that, 2000 years ago, some Christians decided to combine some of the Ishtar traditions with the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. Why? For some of the same reasons we have “iPray” hats and “Got Jesus?” bumper stickers. It’s an attempt (a lame attempt maybe) to be contextual.
Some Christians are aware of all this, and thinking of passages like Jeremiah 10:2 (Do not adopt the ways of the Gentiles…) refuse to say “Happy Easter!” Instead, they say “He is Risen!” Or “Happy Resurrection Day!” Those are good things to say today, because, of course, this is the day that Jesus rose from the grave. But I’m also fine with saying “Happy Easter.” Is that because I worship Ishtar? Far from it. Have I adopted the ways of Ishtar? No. Instead, calling today “Easter” reminds me of my redemption. How?
Well, the simple fact that most people don’t know the origins of the word “Easter” shows that a shift has happened over the past 2000 years. The day has been redeemed. Though Easter is a commercialized holiday, most still associate it with Jesus and His resurrection from the grave. Few know that it was not always this way.
Easter reminds me of what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. Though his readers used to be adulterers, fornicators, slanderers, thieves, drunkards, idolaters, and swindlers, they are not this way any longer. They have been washed. They have been cleansed. They have been purified, sanctified, justified. They are no longer who they used to be. In a word, they have been redeemed.
Similarly, we can talk about the way Ishtar Day used to be. But it is not that way any longer. It has been redeemed, just like you and me.
So, Happy Easter! He is risen! He is risen, indeed!
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