Happy Easter!

I wonder how many Christians realize Easter originated as a pagan celebration of the spring equinox. Think about it. Why would the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus be celebrated on the a different date every year? It is because Easter was originally a celebration of new life and fertility. Eostre (or Ostara) was a Germanic Goddess of Spring and renewal celebrated for hundreds of years, associated with fertility and renewal whose name is the origin of the word "Easter." Her sacred month was April and celebrated  with fertility symbols like rabbits and eggs.That's why Easter falls on a different date every year. It falls on the Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox, honoring fertility and the return of life after winter, celebrating the balance of day and night and the earth's renewal.

Rooted in ancient traditions, Spring time celebrated the Germanic Goddess Eostre and symbolizes growth, often featuring symbols like eggs and rabbits. It is a period for planting, spring cleaning, and welcoming warmth. It marks the astronomical start of spring, the rebirth of light, life and creation.

Traditions were absorbed and rebranded into a Patriarchal Christian narrative focused on a male savior, now known as Easter Sunday. Nature-based rituals transformed into a linear story of sin, redemption, and male authority. As Christianity expanded, these existing symbols were retained but given new meanings to serve a male-focused theological narrative. The focus shifted from the Earth's natural cycles to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The divine feminine, embodying nurturing, intuition and creation was suppressed, demonized and removed from mainstream patriarchal religious systems, reducing God to a purely masculine concept. This suppression silenced the stories of goddesses. In Christian religions Easter is now dedicated to observing the resurrection of Jesus.

Common symbols like eggs and rabbits are often cited as pagan fertility symbols of Spring.

And as for April Fools Day, on April 1, 1582, when France adopted the Gregorian calendar, many people stubbornly continued celebrating New Year's on April 1 instead of changing to January. These individuals, were called "April fools," mocked with fake gifts and nonsensical errands by those following the new system. This historical misunderstanding created the tradition of lighthearted pranks.

Happy Easter!