Having just passed Easter, let’s take a look at where the current Easter festivities came from. How did we get from reverent assessments of what the death and resurrection of Christ means to church potlucks, decorated eggs, baskets full of candy, and Easter egg hunts? The answers may surprise you.
In the second century, believers did not speak of “Easter.” They celebrated “Pascha,” a word derived directly from the Hebrew “Pesach,” meaning Passover. The earliest Christians understood the resurrection of Jesus as the fulfillment of Passover.
Several places in 1 Corinthians, Paul identifies Jesus with the Passover lamb sacrificed in Exodus 12. Just as that lamb’s blood protected Israel from judgment and death, Jesus’ sacrificial death brings deliverance from sin and spiritual death. Jesus fulfills what the Passover symbolized; He is the divine rescue, and His blood is a pure and permanent substitute.
Second-century church leaders referred to the celebration as Pascha. If you read the original Greek, you’ll see Pascha; if you read any normal English Bible, the world will appear as passover. In most languages today, the name still reflects this origin. Spanish: Pascua, French: Pâques, Italian: Pasqua, Greek: Pascha, Latin: Pascha
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