According to folklore, Easter, recognized under various names like Ishtar, Ashtoreth, Semiramis, and Biblically the one mentioned as "the queen of heaven" in Jeremiah 7:18; 44:17–25, is commonly believed to be the widow of Nimrod, the first on earth to be a mighty and powerful man (see Genesis 10:8–9), and the mother of Tammuz. She is portrayed as a Pagan fertility goddess, often depicted bare-breasted, originating from the east. The legend describes her descent from heaven within a giant egg, landing in the Euphrates River during sunrise on the first Sunday following the vernal equinox. It is said that upon emerging from the egg, she transformed a bird into an egg-laying rabbit.
To honour this event, Pagan sun worshippers would gather early in the morning and face eastward to witness their sun-god's rise over the horizon (see an example of this in Ezekiel 8:16). Following this, they would partake in a mass ritual, often involving sacrifices. In these ceremonies, the priest of Easter would sacrifice human infants and dye the eggs of Easter in the blood of these infants. These blood-red-coloured Easter eggs were believed to hatch on December 25th, the same day as the birth of her son Tammuz, considered the reincarnate sun-god. Over time, this celebration evolved into what is now known as "Christmas" or Xmas.
According to folklore, following on from the death of Nimrod, his wife and queen Semiramis (Easter) married and entered into a sexual relationship with her son Tammuz, who she deified as the reincarnate sun-god. Tammuz met his demise while hunting wild pigs, fatally gored by a boar. This is purportedly the origin of the tradition of consuming ham on Easter among Pagans. Additionally, Tammuz's death at the age of forty led Pagans to observe a fast, allegedly lasting one day for each year of his life. This is likely the Biblically mentioned practice of "weeping for Tammuz" (see Ezekiel 8:14). In Catholic tradition, this fasting period is referred to as Lent.
There is no mention of Easter in the Bible, nor is its celebration mandated. These holidays are ancient Pagan feasts that were ushered in by the Roman Catholic church during the reign of Emperor Constantine. Constantine was a Pagan follower of the sun-god Mithra who had what he thought was a "Christian experience" that led him to victory in battle. He aimed to unify his empire, encompassing both Christian and Pagan populations, under a single, universal (Catholic) religion. To accomplish this, he assimilated ancient wisdom and spiritual elements from various cultures and beliefs. This involved revising historical narratives and assigning Christian names to previously Pagan festivities, beginning at the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD.
The LORD God hates worship in this way. As it is written,
"When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations whom you go in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, take care that you be not ensnared to follow them, after they have been destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods?--that I also may do the same.' You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the LORD hates they have done for their gods, for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods. "Everything that I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to it or take from it. (Deuteronomy 12:29-32 ESV)
Thus says the LORD: "Learn not the way of the nations, nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens because the nations are dismayed at them, for the customs of the peoples are vanity. A tree from the forest is cut down and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman. They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move. Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither is it in them to do good." (Jeremiah 10:2-5 ESV)
See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. (Colossians 2:8 ESV)
