The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1886-05-06
The History Of Easter,

to say that have read with much interest in your
last weeks issue the report of the Easter services
held in the several churches of this city Sunday,
25th ut., and l wish to thank you for the report,
especially for that part of which pays friendly
a compliment to my own church and service.
Bat there are certain implications and statements
In the predatory part of that report to which wish
to call attention, and l do so in the interests of
religious truth and historical accuracy. 1t is there
represented that the enemies of Christ took and
kept entire charge of the body and the tomb and
by every precaution guarded the place night and
day from the time Christ was buried on the evening
of the day of cructNon until he rose on Sunday
morning; and it is said also that "by order of
PLATE, the Roman Governor, a great stone
rolled against the door," &c; but that, 'notwith-
standing these precautions Jesus rose from the
tomb on the third day Sunday, and that .'the
Christian church has ever since observed this
annual Sabbath, this Easter or Resurrection day"
Now very much of this seems to me inaccurate and
decidedly misleading.
In the first place all the Evangelists tell that
the body was consigned to the care and keep
ing Of Joseph of Arimathca warm friend and
devout lover of Jesus, and that this was done by
no less person than the Roman governor himself.
Joseph, in company with other friends of Jesus,
caused the body to be laid in the tomb and Joseph
rolled the great stone against the door of the place
of burial. See Matt. p 80. All this was the work
of love and friendship. The body of Jesus
given over into the of his friends and there it
remained according to all the Evangelists except
Matthew lie tells us that ''the next day after
the cruciiNion and burial the door of the sepuchre
was sealed and guard stationed at the place.
See Matt y $3.50 There those who tell us
that when Matthew says, "the next day" on con
| the morrow, as the New Version gives it, he real,
means the night before ''the next day" This sub
terfuge can be shown up in its true light If any
one wishes to have it done. According even to
Matthew the tomb was under no Other guardian
ship than that of the friends of Jesus during the
| first evening and night after the cruciiXon. If
| the body to be resusctated or removed to some
other place, not by theft but by the loving hands
| into which it had been lawfully consigned then
that first night was the time in which to do the
| tender deed. And it is noteworthy that Joseph
and Nicodemus who laid the body in the tomb and
had the lawful care of it (John 10 :3S40), and who
We're the wisest friends that Jesus had, silent
upon this whole subject of the resurrection. We
lack their intelligent testimony. 1t plainly follows
that all this much emphasized talk about the great
precautions taken to guard the tomb Of Jesus is
misleading to say the least; and it is passing
strange that none of the Evangelists but Matthew
should know anything about these military and
| official precautions, or that knowing about them
they should utterly ignore such import mt measures
In giving the history.
In the next place fail to find any historic foun-
dation for the statement that beginning with the
third day" or the first Sunday after the cructN-
1on,' the Christian church has ever since observed
this annual sabbath, this Easter Resurrection
day" Indeed if we may judge from the historical
records that have been given us, the facts quite
the opposite ofths statement, The eminent church
man and scholar, Canon Nenables, says in his art-
Gle ON Easter in the last edition of the Encyclope
dla Britannica, there is no trace of the celebration
OF Easter as Christian festival in the New Tesla
ment or in the writings of the apostolic fathers"
And will here add that the only mention of East
er in the Bible t. well known to be an of the
translator and as such has been corrected in the
Revised Version. The church historian, Socrates
says that neither Christ nor his apostles enioincd
the keeping of this or any other festival. The in
PRODUCTION of Easter into the Church he ascrhes to
the influence and perpetuation of an Oh usage
''just many other customs have been establish
ed, he says See his Hist. Feel, v, - And this
Old usage understand to have been the ancient
Spring Festival which under different forms was
observed in Palestine, Syria, and throughout the
Graeco Roman world.
There is one more point upon which wish to
dwell for moment, and then this communication
shall close In the conclusion of the Journals
predatory remarks to the report under considera-
ton there is this statement 'The custom of some
pagan peoples Of devoting day to the honor of
the goddess Ostera-or goddess of sprng-has no
connection whatever with this Christian observance
here descrihee!.' That il to say Of properly IN
derstand this sweeping statement) the Easter ami
versary ''has no connection Whatever with that
phase of the ancient Aryan spring festival from
which it derives its very among Anglo Saxon
people. Is it admissible for us in these DAYS to
challenge or deny the facts of history in this sum
mary and eXcathedra style? Are we at liberty
thus to contradict and condemn, not only the test
mony of philology, but also such plain and posi-
tive statements of history those made upon this
question by that great saxon ecclesiastc the learn
ed and "Nenerable" Bede? This great Saxon
scholar and church historian of the It'll century in
forms us i'll the 18th chapter of his De Tcmporum
Ratlone that the name Easter is derived from
Eostre, or Ostara, the Anglo Saxon goddess OF
spring to whom the fourth month our April, was
dedicated This month"; he tells us, was the same
as the 'MenslS Paschalls' (month of the PaSSovcr)
when, as he says, "The Old festival was observed
with the gladness of Il new solemnity." 1t thus APP
pears that the cold festival of the spring goddess
Eostre received "anew solemnity' in its amalgam
alton with the Christian spring festival, but retain
ed its old name, Easter, under the new aud Chris
tian form of the old observance. And if these IN
deniable facts of history mean ANYTHING, it can
hardly be said that the Anglo Saxon spring fest
val IL, h,lp.
nection whatever with this Christian observance"
that we call Easter.
If am wrong in these representations Of rclig-
ious history, hope to be corrected Ii have mis-
understood the statements in the report then pro
badly others have also misunderstood them; and
in such case, we need to he put right upon this
matter. Yours very truly, J. A. SAVAGE.
Belfast, Me, May s. 1886.