Getting God’s Viewpoint “Easter Day, the Feast of the Resurrection of Our Lord, is the greatest of all the festivals of the Christian Church,” said Christina Hole in her book Easter and Its Customs. Other writers concur. “No holy day or festival in the Christian year can compare in importance with Easter Sunday,” notes Robert J. Myers in the book Celebrations. That, however, raises some questions. If celebrating Easter is so important, why is there no specific command in the Bible to do so? Is there any record of Jesus’ early disciples observing Easter Sunday? It is not that the Bible fails to give guidelines as to what should or should not be celebrated. God was very specific in this to the ancient nation of Israel, and as noted earlier, explicit instructions were given for Christians to continue observing the Memorial of Christ’s death. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Colossians 2:16, 17) An early edition of The Encyclopædia Britannica tells us: “There is no indication of the observance of the Easter festival in the New Testament, or in the writings of the apostolic Fathers. The sanctity of special times was an idea absent from the minds of the first Christians. . . . Neither the Lord nor his apostles enjoined the keeping of this or any other festival.” Some feel that the joyousness of such festivals and the happiness they bring are sufficient justification for their observance. We can learn, however, from the occasion when the Israelites adopted an Egyptian religious practice and renamed it “a festival to Jehovah.” They too “sat down to eat and drink” and “got up to have a good time.” But their actions greatly angered Jehovah God, and he severely punished them.—Exodus 32:1-10, 25-28, 35. God’s Word is very clear. There can be no sharing between the “light” of true beliefs and the “darkness” of Satan’s world; there can be no “harmony” between Christ and pagan worship. We are told: “‘Therefore get out from among them, and separate yourselves,’ says Jehovah, ‘and quit touching the unclean thing’; ‘and I will take you in.’”—2 Corinthians 6:14-18. As only the Memorial celebration—not Easter—is commanded in the Bible for Christians, it should be observed. So how can we celebrate it worthily? [Picture on page 5] Watchtower Library 2012 English Edition
Posted on: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 18:18:37 +0000
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